This commentary is by Duane E. Sherwood of Winooski, a retired nurse and erstwhile technical writer.
Nothing gets summer off to a good start like the events we enjoy on Memorial Day weekend. But while the steaks are sizzling and the beers are chilling, I like to reflect on the true meaning of this national holiday and its relationship to patriotism.
There is a difference between one’s government and one’s country. One’s government includes all the elected officials, of course, and their political appointees. It includes the laws enacted by the politicians, and the giant bureaucracies authorized by those laws. It includes the legal system, law enforcement agencies, taxation, and the military.
The country, however, is something very different. It consists of a well-defined area of land. It includes all the mountains, rivers, cities, woodlands, wildlife, farms, and other features of the terrain and environment, each of which has its own beauty. It includes the natural resources that allow our economy to flourish. It includes our history and traditions, and to some degree a set of shared values. It includes the noble principles on which our first law, the Constitution, is founded.
But most importantly, the country consists of people — the human beings who live within its boundaries, attend to the cares of daily life, and enjoy the protections of its laws, especially as they pertain to our cherished freedoms.
Thus it is very possible to dislike the government while fully loving the country.
Each Memorial Day, I take a moment to remember the men and women in uniform who gave their lives, not because they loved their government, but in service to their country. Ultimate sacrifice: ultimate patriotism. We owe our freedoms to them.
We also owe our freedoms to the enlightened thinkers of the 18th century who imagined a world where people were not under the thrall and whim of kings who too often were brutal, egomaniacal dictators. The founders said no, that is not the best way for human beings to live. Rather, the satisfactions of life are best achieved in a system where the people have a say in how they are governed.
I often think of our Constitution as a set of words that enshrine a set of noble principles. I like to believe the founders hoped people would value these principles, and by doing so would incline toward their own nobility of character — or, as Lincoln said, the better angels of our nature.
Patriotism means love of country. Providing a service to the country is an act of patriotism. John F. Kennedy said it best: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” When someone serves their country, in the military, in public office, or otherwise, they are serving something greater than themselves. That is patriotism.
There is more to patriotism than waving flags at the parade and touting our personal freedoms:
- We love our freedom of speech, but is it patriotic to use this right in the service of lies?
- We love our freedom of the press, but is it patriotic to use this right in the service of propaganda and misinformation?
- We love our freedom of religion, but is it patriotic to disregard separation of church and state and push religious beliefs onto others via governmental authority?
- We love our economic freedom, but is it patriotic to gain an excess of personal wealth through various forms of exploitation?
For each of these questions, the answer is no. To love something is to care for it, which often means giving something of yourself in care of it.
Many claim to be patriotic, but how can anyone be a patriot when they disrespect the people (especially those who are different)? Or the land? Or the law?
Real patriotism is not death on the battlefield — real patriotism is a willingness to support the greater good by living up to the nobility of the principles on which our country was founded. It means having personal integrity. It means promoting justice for all. It means respecting the will of the people.
The country that we love is a noble experiment. If the experiment is to succeed, then our personal nobility of character must rise to the occasion of liberty and be worthy of the gift the founders gave us. However, if we fail to uphold our part as decent human beings, then there is a real risk those we honor today will have died in vain.
Are you a patriot? This isn’t a trivial question.
