There's been something that's been getting my goat lately. I see it all the time on message boards, in the media, TV, everywhere. What is it?
The U.S. flag. Hijacked by Republicans.
That, dear readers, needs to change.
More below the fold.
The U.S. flag is something near and dear to my heart. I love my country dearly, and I proudly display the flag to show it. But lately, overt displays of love for my country has fallen into disfavor with those that I share political views with.
And that's a damned shame.
I see comments here on Kos, ridiculing GOP/neocon figures for wearing flag pins on their lapels, appearing before flag-themed displays, and wrapping themselves in what has been termed "magnetic patriotism".
I agree with the sentiments, but it disheartens me to see the reputation of the flag and the great country it represents get dragged through the gutter.
So why is this diary being written? Because I believe that we, as liberals and progressives, don't seem to be getting the message across that we love our country. While the GOP has done quite a job in damn near replacing the old elephant with Old Glory as their mascot, we have done little but criticize the overt patriotism.
I think that sends the wrong message.
We on the left love our country, perhaps moreso, than our rivals on the right. While they pander to big business, we care about the common person's welfare. While the GOP focuses on alienating anyone that's not "like them", we fight for the rights of the minorities, even if we do not belong to them.
We represent everything good and correct with this country, and we should be proud to display our love for it. We should be working to soothe the mind of anyone who feels that "libruls hate America" and show them that a statement like that is unequivocally false.
Just because our country has been tarnished by the neocons, and our flag has been used as a mere prop for them, doesn't mean that we should simply squirrel ours away, fearful of being associated with them.
Fuck that.
We should be showing our patriotism, and telling people exactly why we fly our flag and wear it.
We show our patriotism because we love this country, even though we despise it's current government.
We show our patriotism because we believe this country can do better than it currently is.
We show our patriotism because we no longer want Old Glory's beautiful stars and stripes used as nothing but a GOP prop.
Be proud of your country. Work to make it better in '06 and '08. Show the neocons that we are sick and tired of them hijacking the flag and the ideals it represents for their own gains.
Fly it proudly.