Question for Americans about ethnic identity

[kandrathe]

The problem here, I think, is the dual meanings of "waving the flag". In the literal sense, waving a flag on national holidays (and flying a flag at any time) is a statement of support for the country. That is patriotism in it best form. In the figurative sense, the expression is used to convey the sense of chauvinism or even jingoism. A method to use mob mentality and poor arguments to motivate a group into actions which are often evil.

I agree. I think this is an interesting difference between the US and Europe. In the US, there has been no recent "war" on our continent due to excessive nationalism. Our only non-domestic adversaries on the continent were native Americans, where the propaganda was entirely one sided, and the battles were remote on the frontier. Horrible stories were published about native atrocities but US Army and settler atrocities were white washed, and basically all the tribes were painted as "terrorists" with the same pejorative brush. Only the war of 1812 was a *real* threat to our freedom. Our old foes, the British empire, returned to attempt to return us as subjects of the crown. If it weren't for our pirate hero, Jean Lafitte, it probably would have been so.

Whereas, Europe fought through a larger part of their history due to various power hungry nobles and madmen fighting because of overt nationalism. I can understand why a European would meet "flag waving" as equivalent to a return to the mentality of a bygone era of moronic internecine conflict.

Much like protesters carrying signs with symbols, such as a peace symbol, would be the way that most Americans would view flag waving at parades, especially on the fourth of July. It is viewed more as a statement of support for the principles of freedom and liberty, rather than a statement of superiority of the US over other nations. It is a recognition of unity, in a republic of states, rather than of individual regional loyalties, or loyalties to the nations from which we were formerly citizens. I doubt it is ever viewed by most citizens in the US as a battle flag.

So, when I see a US flag being burned, I wonder if those people are against the notions of democracy, freedom, liberty, and human rights. Or, are they just angry with the policies of the US government? I assume the later.