Is the United States a Republic based on patriotism? According to an article in the National Review by Dave Seminara, "Independence Day is a time to celebrate our country, but with patriotic sentiment at perhaps an all-time low, this year’s holiday is also an opportunity for us to remember how excruciatingly lucky we are to be American citizens. With nothing but bad news filling our screens in recent months, love of country has become anything but an article of faith. When Gallup first started asking Americans how proud they were of their country months before the 9/11 attacks, 87 percent claimed to be “extremely” or “very” proud and only 2 percent said they were only “a little proud” or “not at all” proud. Gallup recently released this year’s American-pride poll, and the results are concerning, to say the least: The extremely/very proud cohort has fallen to an all-time low of 63 percent, while the only a little proud/not all-proud group has swelled from 12 percent to 21 percent in the last year (2020)."
We take our beautiful country for granted, focusing on its problems rather than its blessings. Every country has its problems, and we certainly have our fair share. Freedom of speech is under attack here like never before. Discrimination is still a problem. But these are issues that are by no means unique to us. Mark Twain once defined patriotism as “supporting your country all the time and your government when it deserves it.” Americans have historically come together during times of crisis, but this isn’t happening now, in part because many on the left don’t subscribe to Twain’s maxim. While the word’s origins come from ancient Greece, its basic meaning in American history is someone who loves his or her country.
America was founded on the principle that every American is created equal, and that each individual has inalienable rights. Of course, there were times when America failed to live up to those lofty ideals, but for the first two centuries of the Republic’s existence, these principles were the essential ingredient of American cohesion.
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