The answer to this question is the basic foundation of our nation. The founders of our nation are called “Patriots” but in reality they were “Dissenters” from English rule. So, dissent has always been a cornerstone of our liberty.
Our forefathers expressed our new nation’s ideals in the Declaration of Independence, “…We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…” Did they achieve these ideals with their new nation? No. They had to compromise on slavery, voting for owners of property only, etc. but the ideals were and are still intrinsic to us as a nation. Patriotism is a commitment to those ideals.
In the early 1800s, Steven Decatur declared, “…My Country, Right or Wrong…,” and this is often cited by alleged patriots as the “Patriot Credo.” In fact, that saying is absolutely contrary to the ideals of a country founded on dissent. When your country is heading down the wrong path, you have a “patriotic” duty to dissent. Senator Barack Obama was correct when he said, “…You show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans, especially those who serve. You show your patriotism by being true to our values and ideals…”
During the Mexican-American War, Abraham Lincoln was an anti-war dissenter. I am sure if the Bush Administration were in office then, they would have labeled his dissent as “un-Patriotic.” Henry Thoreau was another noted dissenter from the same war. History has proven that they were “true to their nation’s ideals.”
The Civil War was a struggle over two issues – the union and slavery. The South dissented from the North on whether “all men are created equal” and “States Rights superceded the Union of States.” Their dissent, however, turned violent, resulting in a bloody struggle over the ideals of our nation. When dissent turns violent while political solutions are still viable, dissent can no longer be viewed as an acceptable form of “Patriotism.”
Fear is the enemy of our ideals. Both World Wars and Korea had dissenters who were silenced because of the fear war creates in us as a nation. In WW II, we were so fearful that we put loyal Americans of Japanese lineage into concentration camps. Thus, fear creates “false patriotism” that lets us turn our backs on our ideals as a nation. Following Korea, a demagogue, Joe McCarthy, rose up and rode the fear of Communism to a very high place, until brave men, like Edward R. Murrow, helped the ideals of our nation rise up and restore “true patriotism.”
Vietnam was a time of conflict for us as a country. Our conflict was not just on the battlefield but also in our soul as a nation. In 1966-67, I served a year on active duty in Vietnam. By 1968, I was an active dissenter from the Vietnam War. My dissent from Vietnam, I believe, was more “patriotic” than my active service. However, no one should ever doubt that the patriotism of those who served on active duty in Vietnam was not real. There were “Phony Patriots,” of course. They were individuals, like Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld, who vocally supported the Vietnam War but avoided active duty. They were the “Phony Patriots.”
Today, those same “phony patriots” have us embroiled in another Unnecessary War, wasting lives and billions of dollars. The men and women putting their lives on the line as their country asks them are patriots. The “phony patriots” supporters chide those who dissent as “cutting and running” and question the dissenters’ “patriotism.” Senator Barack Obama’s, “…You show your patriotism by how you treat your fellow Americans, especially those who serve. You show your patriotism by being true to our values and ideals…” is the best definition of Patriotism that I have ever heard. If we live up to that definition, we will all be what our country needs now - “Real Patriots.”
