Nationalism and patriotism
Nationalism and patriotismCharles De Gaulle said "Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first." Patriotism simply means love of country, it comes from the Greek and Latin words meaning father. It includes admiration and even love for the fatherland, and for the customs and traditions of the country. It implies a feeling of oneness and membership in the nation. It also means attachment to the land and the people, as well as devotion to the welfare of the
community.
A citizen is shaped by the beliefs, customs, and institutions of his native land. If reared in another country, he would develop into a much different person. Most men and women identify themselves with the country of their birth. They have the sense of belonging to that country and supporting its principles and institutions. At the same time, immigrants from other lands frequently learn to feel patriotism or appreciation for their adopted country far beyond that of the average citizen who has always lived in that country. This love of one's adopted country is especially true of persons who have fled from the restrictions and controls of a dictatorship to a free or democratic country. These citizens are often willing to make unusual sacrifices for their new homeland.
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of patriotism is the people who gave their lives to free us from the British during the Revolutionary War. They fought and some of them even died so you and I can have the freedom to pretty much as please in everyday life. The next thing comes to mind when I think of patriotism is the people who fought and gave their lives during World War II. They fought for the same rights as our founding fathers did. That is to keep our country safe from foreign suppressers who want to corrupt our way of living, and from having one person having to much control over such a vast area of our little planet. Mainly, I have the utmost respect to the people who have done there part to keep our country as patriotic as it is now here in the late 20th century...
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