National Pride

I never thought I would say this, but I'm not proud to be an American. There's a few things I've come to understand over the years. And this is one.

When we first went to war against Iraq, the Dixie Chicks' Natalie Maines took a lot of heat for making the same statement. I was one of the people who was in disagreement with her. I couldn't understand how someone could make such a statement. Many people boycotted their music. I didn't. I don't like their music.

Bruce Springsteen is my musician of choice. He was an outspoken critic of President George W. Bush's policies, both fiscal and military. Again I did not boycott. Well, I did boycott going to his Orlando concert on the Vote for Change Tour, but that was because I didn't want my money going to something funded by the left-wing MoveOn.org. We were both expressing our first amendment rights.

Springsteen is one of those people who was against the war, but supported (and still does) the troops. He would show up at veterans' hospitals to cheer up wounded soldiers. That's admirable.

Now there's a lot of people who support the troops. Hootie & The Blowfish was one of those bands. I don't know their political leanings, but based on the songs on their last couple of albums, I'm guessing they didn't support the war. But they did perform for the soldiers in Iraq. That is one of the most noble actions a person can do. It was proof that you could be against the war, but support the troops.

But today, I've come to believe the people -- such as Fox's Alan Colmes -- who said, "I support the troops by wanting to keep them at home." I thought that was unpatriotic, anti-American, etc. But not anymore. If you don't support a cause you don't believe in, then what is wrong with taking a stand like that?

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not advocating that we treat our vets like we did during the 1960s and 1970s when our boys came home from Vietnam. There are many soldiers who willingly fight for the cause they believe in. There are many who go because they are told. There are many who flee. I don't disagree with them.

Think about this. Would you support a soldier fighting for a country, his country, that raped and pillaged the citizens of the countries it defeated? Would you support a soldier who fought for his country while the same country was enslaving and killing millions of its own people?

Now I know you're thinking of course I wouldn't have supported a Nazi. But I'm not talking about Germany. I'm talking about the Soviet Union. They were our allies in World War II, yet we don't look at them with the same disdain as we do toward Hitler and Nazi Germany. Joseph Stalin killed twice as many of his own people as Hitler. But I bet you didn't know that. Why? Because they were our allies. It wasn't until after World War II and Korea that we didn't like the Soviet Union.

So this brings me back to being ashamed of being an American. The late, great George Carlin -- in his final HBO performance, "It's Bad for Ya" -- made this point. I'm not proud to be an American. I'm happy that I was born in America. I'm grateful. I'm grateful that my the powers that be blessed me to be part of the magical meeting of sperm and egg that took place in an American woman.

I'm proud that I am expressing my opposition to the government policies that are happening now in our country. I'm grateful that I still have, and hopefully will still have, the power to express those opinions.