Can criticizing your country be a patriotic?

Question

No. Never.

It can be a valid point. It should be allowed. It should never ever be a crime. Its important to have criticism in a democracy. Its critical in facilitating positive change. All that said, its never ever patriotic.

Leftists love to justify their hatred for American culture and capitalism with contradictory claims like "its patriotic to criticize my country when...".

I too criticize my country....often...and when I do, I make no claim to being patriotic. In the end, i simply defer to the famous "its the worst system, except when compared to everyone else, then its the best". That sums it for me, including our culture.

Personally, I would approve a law that allowed the death penalty for any monkey who claimed "bashing America is being American". What a great weeding out tool....certain to thin the herd in just the right way.

Answer 1

Listen pal, I think I live in the greatest country on the planet &
I'm from the left. It's Bush, that I have questions about.

He is hiding our guys who have been injured or killed in Iraq,
just to keep his war sanitized. Bob Woodruff, a journalist who
suffered a severe head injury, while reporting from there,
did a story about this last night. Like that isn't disturbing
enough, Bush has even cut funding for these veterans.

I love our country & all it stands for, don't ever try to confuse
that, it's our leader who, apparently lives in his own fantasy
world, that I question.
In the future, try not to tell me, what you think, I hate &
yes, I do take your question personally.
.

Answer 2

George Washington, you've heard of him haven't you. Said that is was not patriotic to not question your government. That is exactly what the founding fathers did. They questioned their government and found they didn't like what was going on so they changed.

A government is like fire, a handy servant, but a dangerous master.

In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude.

And then there was Theodore Roosevelt

To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. (1918)

I suppose those two were not patriotic.

Hermann Goering, Hitler’s Propaganda Minister said; “Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger”.

Answer 3

Well, to quote one of my favorite Presidents (#2 on the list actually, behind Thomas Jefferson):

"The President is merely the most important among a large number of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and disinterested service to the Nation as a whole. Therefore it is absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when he does right. Any other attitude in an American citizen is both base and servile. To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else."

"Theodore Roosevelt in the Kansas City Star",
May 7, 1918

I believe this could be applied to anyone of any elected office, actually. This, however, does not give carte blanche to those who wish to just yammer on and on with no credible information to back them up. That would be "base and servile."

Answer 4

Why would you ask a question *and then answer it*???! That's not exactly the Socratic method!

The Catholic author G.K. Chesterton disagreed with you (no screaming liberal he!). Chesterton wrote: "'My country, right or wrong' is a thing no patriot would ever think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying 'My mother, drunk or sober.'"

I agree with chesterton. True patriotism means standing up for the values your country represents, not necessarily the specific policies your government stands for. One's country and one's president are two clean different things.

Answer 5

sure without single SHRED OF DOUBT Patriots do right here issues: they help their u . s . a ., obey the regulations, pay taxes, combat for it while mandatory, are pleased with it, exhibit their comments, and criticize it while issues are not precise. sure, this is not any longer in basic terms ok, this is a bother-loose precise to realize this. extra importantly this is the activity of a Patriot to criticize. although we could desire to be waiting to shield the rustic against all enemies foreign places and family contributors. Enemies being defined as people who opt for to kill/injury us, or do away with our rights. The founders of u.s. are very very similar to our father and mom. As we grow old our father and mom get smarter and wiser. As we flow alongside in historic past, the founders, and writers of the form and invoice of Rights get smarter/wiser, and extra insightful. Patriots will provide their lives to shield your precise to criticize or in simple terms exhibit your 1st replace rights, even in the experience that your strategies or positions are such that they could spend an entire life opposing your place. How f-in cool is that? Makes me chuffed to be an American.

Answer 6

It's hard to be 100% critical of something as varied as the US. In fact, it's almost impossible. You can be critical of some things about it, but that only makes you supportive of other parts of it.

Answer 7

That sounds like a mentality that was prevalent in Germany in the 1930s.

Answer 8

Death penalty? You must be nuts!
Thank God 'pragmatists' like you are few and far between.
Do you mean criticising Bush is 'criticising' the country'?
Then you will have to execute more than half of the population.

Answer 9

Umm - it was the rightie tighties who claimed criticizing the president in wartime was unpatriotic pal. You guys started it, we're finishing it. And no - I don't think you are a patriot. A cheese puff maybe, but not a patriot.

Answer 10

Surely there must be some way that you question your country. Put your head on the block.