American Idiot

[moonbird]

I am not a patriotic person.

When everyone's supposed to be saying the Pledge of Allegiance at school, I stand silently at my desk. When The Star-Spangled Banner plays before a football game, I'm more focused on my brackets for the season than the tired old tune buzzing in my ears. I can't recall the last time I wore red, white, and blue on Independence Day, or any other day.

And yet, I love America more than most other people you'll meet.

One of my favorite songs is American Idiot by the popular punk rock band Green Day. Take a moment to look past the seemingly-unpatriotic title and you'll realize that the lyrics actually speak of a profound love of our country.

The song criticizes America's overuse of the media, arguing that technology overload stifles the freedoms which were the reasons our great nation was founded. Furthermore, it is a call to action for the American people to break free of our dependence on the media and return to our true American roots. The people who listen to this kind of music don't hate America; they are willing to fight to save it.

Try explaining this to anyone who considers himself a passionate patriot, and you'll be lucky to get two words in before you're faced with a pro-America rant.

Here's another example.

I once announced to some friends that I considered the bald eagle to be a very unattractive creature.

Instantly the faces of my companions morphed into unfamiliar masks of patriotism as they fired a barrage of fierce protest at me. I was accused of making up ludicrous statements in attempt to get attention, or of being an America-hater. One supposed-friend even called my remark terrorist.

Yet my opinion was based on no more than pure fact. While our national bird perched on an olive tree with the American flag flying triumphantly in the background would indeed appear majestic and beautiful, this is simply a propagandist image, not reality.

The reality is that the bald eagle is a wild animal. Furthermore, it assumes what could be considered a rather undignified niche in the food chain, that of a scavenger. The sight of the eagle's white head stained deep red after devouring a half-rotten deer carcass is certainly not a pretty one. The brilliant white feathers for which the bird is famous actually are something of a hindrance to its survival, as the blood that can collect there is a magnet for disease.

Perhaps a better-adapted scavenger bird would be the turkey vulture. The fleshy head and neck that give the creature its reputation for being ugly actually aid in cleanliness, as blood from its meal is less likely to collect there.

I was called an America-hater simply because I'd looked past all the blinding patriotism to see the truth.

Over the years, so much emphasis has been placed on the symbols of America that the deeper meaning for which they once stood has been lost. Is it right that to love America, we must love all of its smaller idols as well? What's wrong with just loving America itself?

It's tough to convince people that non-patriots, people who don't consider Lady Liberty to be anything special in the looks department, people who think American nationalism has become something verging on snobbery, can still be passionate lovers of the United States as much as someone else who tramps around in a red, white, and blue top-hat. But gradually, I really believe that people have begun to accept my unique mindset on American pride. And sometimes, after listening to what I have to say, they tell me that they even understand what it truly means to be an American even better than they did before.

I am not a patriot.

And I love America.

[moonbird]

My entry into a patriotic short essay competition. Comments and constructive criticism greatly appreciated.

[Shea]

The problem with this essay is that you haven't actually shown how you love America except to say that you love a Green Day song. How are the symbols of that song any different than the ones in the Star-Spangled Banner (which is about an American battle victory and in my opinion more moving)?

The other problem with it, is that you've misrepresented the bald eagle, which isn't a scavenger bird except in the winter time. It's diet is primarily fish. It was chosen as our symbol because it was a prominant image in the Roman Republic, which is by what our government was influenced.

Maybe you should go deeper into reminding your reader what these symbols mean instead.

[moonbird]

Thank you for your comments. I will look into your suggestions.

[Summer M]

You need to define patriot before you explain why you're not one. Essays of this sort are wide-open to misrepresentation and misinterpretation unless the terms are defined clearly.

[moonbird]

I did a complete overhaul. Tell me what you think.

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I am not a patriotic person.

Well, not by most people's standards, anyway. I don't say the Pledge of Allegiance at school or sing the Star-Spangled Banner before football games. Not one article of red, white, and blue clothing is found in my closet. In fact, I find all flashy displays of American nationalism to be snobby and obnoxious.

And yet, the way I see it, I'm one of the most patriotic people you'll ever meet.

When you think of a patriot, you're probably picturing the usually images: stars and stripes, the bald eagle, Uncle Sam, all that showy symbolism that we're assaulted with from birth until death. But what does it all really mean? With countless glittering motifs surrounding us, the whole concept of patriotism begins to blur into an epileptic light-show, leaving us with no recollection as to the deeper meaning which these American symbols once represented. Now, all we're left with are the gaudy reminders of a forgotten ideal.

And yet, the answers are all there. All you have to do is look for them.

Consider this common misconception. A man hangs an American flag outside his house. Therefore he is a patriot. Right?

Wrong.

The flag itself is no more than a strip of dyed fabric, probably manufactured in China. It's the symbolism behind the colorful piece of cloth that really matters, the true meaning that few people seem to know or care about. The thirteen red stripes represent the blood of the American people, which has been spilled over countless battlefields as if they were sacrificial altars, willingly shed in fighting for the nation these people loved. The white stripes are the light of purity which is the embodiment of the American ideal. And the iconic white stars on the blue background are symbolic of America's status as a shining beacon of hope to all the world.

If the man who so nonchalantly erects the flag does not understand and accept the deep and profound meaning for which the colorful banner truly stands, if he is not willing to lay down his own life for his country as the emblem signifies, then this once-proud symbol of American unity is only being desecrated.

So what is patriotism, then, if not all the propagandist and nearly meaningless regalia adorning our romanticized view of the United States, like false glittering jewelry bestowed upon Lady Liberty? It's not enough to just hang a flag or sing the national anthem or wear red, white, and blue on Independence Day, for if we truly understood what these symbols stood for, we wouldn't just be waving them around like strutting children, we would be taking action to assist the country we love. Just because you put on a show of being a patriot, doesn't mean you are one.

Most people would not consider me patriotic, because I don't think Lady Liberty is anything special in the looks department, and because I don't find “God Bless America” to be an especially moving song. And yet, I willingly donate countless hours of my time each year to volunteering. What's more patriotic to you, prancing around in a nationalistic-colored top-hat or volunteering one's time to community service in beautifying this great nation? Isn't the practice of making sacrifices for the greater good that the American flag represents more meaningful than the flag itself?

The true definition of patriotism has been clouded over by propaganda overload, and the symbols have lost their meaning and been reduced to tired old relics. But we don't need all this symbolism any more; in time, we can learn just accept our American ideals at face value. I think that if everyone adopted this mindset, we would each understand what it truly means to be an American more than ever before.

I do not salute the American flag.

And I am a true patriot.

[Shea]

This is better, but it still sounds like you're attacking others and bringing them under false scrutiny. I definitely see where you are coming from with the symbols being proganda. For an example, I'm a Christian, but I don't wear a cross around my neck or a blatent bumper sticker on my car. I'd rather my Christianity show through my actions, quite like the way you say your patriotism shows through your volunteering.

The problem is, just because someone hangs a flag outside their house doesn't make them less of a patriot than you. Suppose they are the widow of a soldier killed in combat, or a soldier missing a limb because he put his life at risk for his country, or even (like my brother-in-law and a sad many others) a soldier who has come back with PTSD and struggles to reintegrate himself into society. Sometimes symbols, like the flag, help to remind them of why they made the sacrifices they made. And even those of us who have never served in the military, like myself, hang a flag in support of those who have (like my hubby).

If you had a little more weight to your "volunteering," because that's essentially what soldiers do (nowadays), you might be able to get away with the aggression against a flag waver, but it still doesn't quite work here.

[Shea]

Oh, I meant to include (because this ties it in) that just because I don't wear a cross around my neck, dosen't mean my faith doesn't have symbols to help me remember. I take communion every Sunday (as commanded in the Bible) as a memorial to remind me of what Christ did for me (His death on the cross).

I'm not trying to preach but to give you an example. Even if you happen to be an athiest, I hope you can see the difference in the communion memorial verses wearing a cross necklace, and how it relates to our country's symbols and why people use them.

[moonbird]

Thanks for the comments. Regarding the issue with the flags, what I was attempting to show was that it's not a bad thing for someone to hang an American flag, as long as they truly understand what it stands for, and not just tossing it up there because they think it makes them look patriotic. A soldier or family of a soldier would most likely understand the meaning of the flag because they have willingly risked their lives or had loved ones risk their lives, just as the deeper symbolism of the flag signifies. Therefore I would have no problem with them putting a flag outside their house, because it isn't meaningless.

[Shea]

Thanks for the comments. Regarding the issue with the flags, what I was attempting to show was that it's not a bad thing for someone to hang an American flag, as long as they truly understand what it stands for, and not just tossing it up there because they think it makes them look patriotic. A soldier or family of a soldier would most likely understand the meaning of the flag because they have willingly risked their lives or had loved ones risk their lives, just as the deeper symbolism of the flag signifies. Therefore I would have no problem with them putting a flag outside their house, because it isn't meaningless.

Okay, then you really ought to clarify that point a little better. Otherwise, your piece comes across as you feeling you're more patriotic than a soldier who dies for our country. I don't know the details of your competition but I think the judges will appreciate it more if you include this point. Also, it will show them that you don't have to be a soldier to be a patriot, but that being a patriot is more that just being showy. Caring in action for our country and knowing what it's symbols mean is patriotism. :)

[cafolini]

America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense human rights invented America. ~ Jimmy Carter

[Shea]

I also wanted to say (but my family and a headache kept me from it yesterday) that I glanced at the rewritten essay, and you may want to rethink the fact that you do not salute the flag. I get that you do not like the commercialized image of it. But if you truly understand the meaning and respect the people who died for this country, your essay will read as though you do not respect them at all because you won't salute the flag which represents them by the red stripes.