The Fine Line Between Patriotism and Jingoism

What is it that people are honoring?

From time to time, events remind me of a conversation from years ago. Today, I am remembering a day when I was with a group of my fellow university students discussing a recent outbreak of armed conflict somewhere in the world. Being curious students, we talked about why the conflict had started.

“Because the ___ are proud to be ___,” one person said (no need to prejudice the point by naming the conflict). Another person blurted out, “Why would they be proud to be ___?” I and others rebuked the person. Why wouldn’t they feel proud of their country?

It turned out the naïve person sincerely believed that everyone in the world wished to be Americans rather than what they were. The idea that someone would fight to preserve a national or ethnic identity other than being American was unthinkable to this person.

Then and now, what I find unthinkable is that person’s attitude. There are two aspects to this. The first is that of course it is not only possible but laudable for people to be proud of where they are from. The second is the silly arrogance of believing that everyone else wants to be like you. These two aspects lead me to think about the fine line yet significant differences between patriotism and jingoism.