Sudden Patriotism
Taking American History 2 this semester has had a profound effect on the way I view America.
I used to think I was so above the rest of the ignorant Americans and that America was just an arrogant country that I did not want to be a part of. I wished that I had a different accent, maybe British or Scottish, and that I was born somewhere else. I was ashamed to be an American. Granted this was like…maybe a month ago? Maybe even a little less.
As I began to learn about America’s history and what America has really done, I don’t think that America is such a terrible country anymore. Did you know that we were entirely neutral for the beginning of both World Wars and that we basically HAD to join in the wars in order to protect either our allies or our economy? We tried to make peace acts with the countries. We tried to talk it out with them before entering.
We saved the British asses in WW2. We came to their rescue. Sure we intervene in a lot of petty arguments between countries, but we help them in the end. It’s not like we intervened and then took advantage of them.
When we bombed Japan? It was a terrible thing to do to kill all of those civilians. But I don’t think that we should have not done it. We were sending a message; and a mighty powerful one at that. Don’t fuck with us and don’t underestimate us. We have a good situation going on here. We can do whatever we want. How long ago were we discriminating against blacks? Lets say about…50 years ago? And now we have a black president. This country is the ultimate step ladder. If you work hard and grit your teeth, you can get what you want. We protect that at all costs. Even if it means dropping a bomb when some country is going culture crazy and needs to be put in their place.
I’m actually really proud to be American. We are the badasses of the world. I have never looked more republican that I look now but I really don’t care. I love my accent. I love the english language; I think it’s the most organized language that exists. I love my culture. I love my history. I love that we are the immigrants of the world.
Sure I think that 3/4 of Americans need better schooling and need to look at their priorities a little closer, but every country has their problems.
And you can’t deny that Americans have fun. We are the most chillax about things. We can make fun of our leader while still having respect for him. We can make fun of our ignorance while still being proud of who we are. We can make fun of our religion, but still be 100% faithful. We do what we want. We indulge.
Now of course I shouldn’t even be posting this because my research is entirely one-sided. I’ve never been to any other country besides Canada. I don’t know what it’s like in other countries at all. But I suppose I’ll get back to you in around 50 years and make a final opinion of America then. But for now I’ll settle with being proud to be American for the first time in my life.
3 years ago