A ton of American flags on display in front of the Kinnelon Municipal Complex in Kinnelon, New Jersey.
June 14th is a holiday, although it is not the most well-known of holidays. Yes, it is Flag Day today. That is not the most important or well-known of holidays recognized and celebrated in the United States, but it is one of many where Americans capitalize on their opportunity to wave the flag and speak in their most patriotic tones, or what they often mistake for patriotism, but which is really closer to nationalism. These days, too many Americans seem to feel that expressing a sense of superiority to the rest of the world, and a virtual impunity to those things that the rest of the world has to deal with. It is a particularly unique chauvinism, and speaks more about the limitations of Americans in their way of thinking, than it does to the rest of the world and their limitations.
Still, Americans collectively look for every opportunity to express their nationalistic attitudes, which again, they mistake for healthy patriotism. Wave the flag and agree with sentiments that we are somehow more special than the rest of the world, and exempt from the laws that govern the rest of the world. This is reflected in our foreign policy, when we invade sovereign nations, and when we systematically turn away from common sense bans of weapons and acts that the rest of the world understands to be inhumane. The fact that members of the American military are exempt from charges of war crimes that the rest of the world have to deal with also shows a certain artificially imposed distinction, but it is only based on power. The United States currently has the power to be exempt, and so they choose to be so. I would argue that making exceptions for yourself is a mistake in the long run, but those who see America's current reign as the leading super power of the world as not ending anytime soon would surely disagree.
One thing that other people around the world do not understand, and probably often underestimate, about Americans, is their love for the flag. The red, white, and blue, the stars and stripes. Yes, Americans love to celebrate their flag, and their country's privileged status around the world. They do so on other holidays as well, official and unofficial. Super Bowl Sunday has sometimes been compared to the 4th of July, only for wintertime. There are prominent displays of nationalism then, and not just with the singing of the national anthem, either. Then, there is President's Day, Memorial Day, then Flag Day, then Independence Day, and then Veteran's Day. Sometimes, there are anniversaries in between as well, such as certain anniversaries for certain prominent events, particularly relating to war. Americans love their flag, and they love to get the chance to celebrate it. The flag is seen now more than ever. It is on television, for political ads, for car ads, for sports events. I have seen flag-themed imagery on napkins and paper plates. It is on clothing, although the official rules of how to respect the flag actually state that the flag should not be worn on clothing, except in an official capacity. Yet, I once saw a young man who considered himself a patriotic American wearing stars and stripes boxer shorts, and he showed a room full of people those boxers. What a patriot.
I remember reading an old National Geographic, probably from around the time of the bicentennial of the American Revolution. And one article was from a couple from, if memory serves correctly, Poland. They said that when they came here, they saw flags hanging from everywhere. They thought that it was perhaps a national holiday, but it was not.
Think of how often we Americans see the flag on display today. Public buildings, people's homes, street lamps, and, of course, gas stations and car dealerships. Everywhere, in other words. You can hardly drive a few minutes (if even that) in residential areas without seeing constant reminders of where you are, just in case you happen to have forgotten what country you are in. Lately, I noticed that in certain areas of northern New Jersey, you might literally run across hundreds of American flags during a drive of just a few minutes. The pictures shown above are of public buildings in Kinnelon and Butler, particularly. Yes, there are literally dozens of identical flags just in front of these two buildings, and they are a five or so minute drive from one another. There are plenty of other flags on display in between, and around both. This hardly seems like some spur of the moment heartfelt displays of patriotism, but rather, an enforced yet unspoken doctrine that strongly suggests that whatever your political leanings in terms of party, you had better subscribe to the idea that the United States is exceptional, and that it should be the model for all other countries, that it is, in other words, better than every other country. It is not a far leap from this kind of thinking to Trump's "America First" policy, which won the White House and is now the enforced policy doing so much damage around the world. Maybe not everyone who waves the flag agrees with Trump, although they accept too much of this kind of artificially imposed nationalism, and let's call it by no other name but what it actually is.
You hear sentiments that put into focus this version of patriotism, repeated by politicians and, often, bumper stickers. Things like the USA is #1, that this is the greatest country in the world, this is God's country, America First, and nowadays, politicians are arguing constantly over who truly believes in "American exceptionalism," taking it for granted that everyone should agree that this is automatically a very good and responsible thing to believe in. Almost every president, no matter what the party, ends important speeches with "God bless America," in some form or another. What all of that means to me is that Americans fail to recognize how arrogant they sound, when they suggest that they should be seen as exceptional, as a special case, and everyone else in the world falls under a common lot, because essentially, the argument implies a certain inferiority for people and countries outside of these sacred American borders.
And some of these same Americans who believe this will truly wonder and be perplexed as to why so much of the rest of the world distrusts Americans, and view us with skepticism!
I am a dual citizen, and perhaps that allowed me something of an outside perspective on all of this. My father, who to this day never took his American citizenship, used to get very bothered by all of this superiority complex talk that Americans seemed addicted to. He used to ask what Americans meant exactly, when they stated that their country is the greatest country in the world, that they are number one. If they are number one, he used to ask, then who is number two? Who is number three, four, number ten, number 100? Who, for that matter, is dead last? And for that matter, does that imply that American lives and interests outweigh those of other nationalities?
My other country is France, and many, many Americans have very strong opinions of France. I have heard numerous stereotypes about France from countless Americans, and most of the people who do the most talking on this score have never even been to France. Yet, they believe their opinion is informed and should be heard, even when it is offensive and, frankly, dead wrong. Some of the most common stereotypes about the French include, but are not limited to, they are cowardly, they are rude, they have bad personal hygiene, they cannot be trusted, they are womanizers, they are faggots. It always seemed so strange to me, in this era of political correctness, that more Americans do not see how offensive these popular stereotypes are. You still sometimes hear them often on television shows, but they were especially common during the lead-up to the unjustifiable invasion of Iraq. It is still common and generally accepted, even though it could qualify as hate speech easily. Don't believe me? Try replacing the word French with blacks or Jews or Hispanics, and see what reaction you get. But, if you suggest that about "the French" it's okay. As if a nation with a diverse population of over 60 million all match these descriptions.
Another stereotype that many Americans have is that the French are more nationalistic than Americans are. While the French generally certainly have their limitations and problems, I never understood how Americans can suggest such a thing. True, they like their language and culture, and want to preserve it. But then again, so do Americans. However, if you drive through France (or pretty much any other country outside of the United States), you will not see flags in people's backyards or front porches, like you see in the United States. I never saw bumper stickers in France suggesting it is God's Country. I never heard a French person suggest that their country is the greatest, or that they should be viewed as exceptional in the world, or that they should be able to invade any sovereign nation without needing a permission slip from the United Nations. For that matter, I never heard a French person suggest that an entire other country should be turned into a parking lot by bombing, simply because our governments disagree with one another. But I heard all of those things from Americans.
Think what you will of France, or any other country, for that matter. But you are not likely to see the excessive, egotistical and increasingly jingoistic form of nationalism that passes as patriotism in the United States.
Somehow, though, Americans seem to believe this attitude is normal, healthy, and probably common in the rest of the world. There are Chrysler commercials that are initially narrated by men speaking different languages (in one case, it is German, and in the other, Japanese), and they are going on about the superiority of their countries. While this talk is going on, you see images of a car, and it is being toted as a superior car. Then, much to the surprise of the foreign narrator, they learn that the car is actually a Chrysler. In other words, an American car.
The commercial assumes that Germans and Japanese think about their country in superior terms, the way Americans collectively seem to like to think about their country. Much like Americans assume that the French feel and act the same way about their country as Americans do. But again, I do not believe that most people in other countries really do feel that way, let alone act that way. Perhaps it is because Americans feel a certain measure of superiority based on their status as a superpower, which enhances their sense of self-importance in global affairs.
I remember my father telling us a story from the rise of Ronald Reagan to the White House, which ushered in a whole new era of nationalism and flag-waving. This story was about a Holocaust survivor, and she suggested that she had seen a huge spike in flag waving and nationalist displays before, when Hitler took over Germany. That is not to say that Reagan, or even Trump, could or should fairly be compared to Hitler. But nevertheless, I think it is fair to say, and hardly controversial anymore, that the rise in nationalism has definitely revealed an ugly side among millions of Americans. After all, we literally have seen Nazis marching on American streets, and we are seeing xenophobia on display like never before.
Not to make comparisons with Nazi Germany, but the intoxication with power, particularly with the sense of military power, as well as with displays of nationalist sentiment, has some similarities, and it is beginning to be a real, glaring problem. There is a television documentary that I remember seeing about Nazi Germany, where they spoke about the tendency to exaggerate these kinds of displays in sentiments back in those days. One thing that I remember was expressed was someone asking (and I'm paraphrasing here), "Why fly one flag, when you can fly one thousand?" The Nazis sure did, and unfortunately, the only other prominent examples that I can think of, other than third world dictatorships like North Korea, would be right here in the United States. And no, that is no longer such a good or harmless thing, I think. Not when we found ourselves collectively capable of electing someone like Donald Trump into our highest office, and increasingly insisting on an "America First" policy that sure seems to be shaping up as an "us against the world" kind of mentality. Trump might not be Hitler, but he sure reminds me of Greg Stillson. It is a different kind of dangerous, but that does not mean we have to voluntarily accept it.
And so it is Flag Day, and many Americans will, once again, take this opportunity to celebrate their flag. It will be celebrated again in just about three weeks, when Americans celebrate Independence Day. Again and again, Americans take the opportunity to wave their flag and proclaim the greatness of their country. Often, what this means is that they essentially state their superiority over all other countries, which I find to be an ugly and negative expression of patriotism. To me, that does not even qualify as patriotism, but rather falls under the domain of nationalism. Nationalism is not something that should be encouraged. It is an expression of superiority over others. It is a prejudiced, every bit as much as racism is. When you feel yourself to be better than others and celebrate this, then most likely you are doing something wrong.
Ironically, even as I write this, a commercial came on for something called Golden Corral. I heard the narrator saying in a joyous voice, "This is US of A, okay!" Yes, the reminders are everywhere.
Yet, too many Americans will celebrate their flag without any objectivity, without any sense that they are going overboard with all of this. It is seen strictly as a positive thing, a way of identifying with fellow countrymen, and presumably, showing what most consider to be the proper amount of respect to their country, and the flag that is supposed to represent it.
However, I for one will not be waving the flag, or agreeing, much less celebrating, sentiments suggesting some inherent superiority of Americans over the rest of the world. That does not mean that I am not patriotic, because I consider myself to be quite patriotic. I would love to see this country right its wrongs. To start truly investing in the future, to prepare kids for that future. To stop spending so much on corporate welfare and the military, and to start truly working with the rest of the world to make this whole planet a better, safer place. One with a future. I would love for Americans to take what I feel should be their rightful role as the leading power in the world and utilize it to develop alternative energy solutions, as President Jimmy Carter urged as to do decades ago, rather than dragging our feet and denying that their is a problem. I look at another leader before my time, President John F. Kennedy, and see what he meant to the country, the youthful idealism and energy that he seemed to represent, and which inspired people. I look at the brilliant minds and sentiments of past Americans, including but not limited to Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Abraham Lincoln, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglas, Mark Twain, Nicolas Tesla, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, John Steinbeck, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and so many more. I look at just how much this country has provided to the world is such a short time, how unique the history it went through. So many triumphs, as well as so many shameful chapters. Through it all, the country generally went in a more positive direction, and hope was always present until recently. Things have gotten worse, the climate has stagnated on so many levels in recent decades.
But I do believe it can get better. I just do not believe that expressing superiority and arrogance in comparison to the rest of the world is the right way of expressing patriotism. My patriotism is strong enough that it does not require superficial means of trying to force unity and express superiority.
So, I will respectfully disagree with the majority of my fellow Americans, who feel that waving the flag relentlessly and hanging it from anything that does not run away is the acceptable and appropriate way to display true patriotism. I will not engage in flag-waving, and will continue to argue, as I am arguing now, that we should actually see less of, rather than more of, the American flag on this Flag Day.
Numerous flags on display in front of the Butler's Municipal Complex in Butler, New Jersey.
Below are the pictures I took just a few days ago of what I believe to be a prime example of what I feel to be an excessive display of flag worship on the front lawn of the Municipal Complex at Kinnelon. Guessing that it went up for Flag Day, although this was up for at least a week now, so I cannot say for sure. In any case, notice all of the flags here on display. Not just on the lawn, but on the flag pole, and some smaller ones that did not come out in this picture, unfortunately.
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