"Not sure I agree with Eric on the importance of national identity. Switzerland and Singapore seem to do fine without much of one. "
Switzerland and Singapore, in my experience, both have very strong national identities. Singapore benefited from the paternal leadership of Lee Kuan Yew, who built a post-British colony identity, rooted in Chinese ethnic heritage but not exclusively Chinese. Switzerland is bizarrely nationalistic, they think they are special, which is one reason they've avoided joining the EU.
Having spent some time studying in Geneva, I agree. One reason I didn't stay is because even my grandkids would have been known to the neighbors as "the Americans".
Yeah, I am merely a white guy that lived in Singapore for several years, but the view that Singapore doesn't have a strong national identity is... not correct.
Not sure about the particulars here, but I am fairly confident the US has a pretty strong national identity already. In my experience, most countries are much less nationalistic basically by default, so to act as if the US needs to strengthen its national identity for the sake of it strikes me as absurd.
This whole pushing of trans on children and impressionable tweens and teenagers is despicable. If an under 21-year-old is too immature to buy, own and use a gun, then most certainly is he/she too immature to take life-altering hormones to change his/her biological sex.
"maybe even do it better [than nationalism] because they are not inherently attached to state power in a country with an incompetent national government."
I think you're selling American nationalism short. The great thing about American nationalism is that it's anti-goverment, starting with the tea party and continuing to covid lockdown resistance.
America is the best country in the world, and the American government has always been extremely incompetent, and those two statements aren't a contradiction.
You raise interesting points re: national identity versus other kinds of identities, but it's probably not mutually exclusive right? I would think anyone who identifies strongly with their last name, with their local community, with being a Texan, and with Anglo culture and/or Western civilization, would also be a patriotic American, and vice-versa.
"Not sure I agree with Eric on the importance of national identity. Switzerland and Singapore seem to do fine without much of one. "
Switzerland and Singapore, in my experience, both have very strong national identities. Singapore benefited from the paternal leadership of Lee Kuan Yew, who built a post-British colony identity, rooted in Chinese ethnic heritage but not exclusively Chinese. Switzerland is bizarrely nationalistic, they think they are special, which is one reason they've avoided joining the EU.
Having spent some time studying in Geneva, I agree. One reason I didn't stay is because even my grandkids would have been known to the neighbors as "the Americans".
Yeah, I am merely a white guy that lived in Singapore for several years, but the view that Singapore doesn't have a strong national identity is... not correct.
Not sure about the particulars here, but I am fairly confident the US has a pretty strong national identity already. In my experience, most countries are much less nationalistic basically by default, so to act as if the US needs to strengthen its national identity for the sake of it strikes me as absurd.
This whole pushing of trans on children and impressionable tweens and teenagers is despicable. If an under 21-year-old is too immature to buy, own and use a gun, then most certainly is he/she too immature to take life-altering hormones to change his/her biological sex.
"maybe even do it better [than nationalism] because they are not inherently attached to state power in a country with an incompetent national government."
I think you're selling American nationalism short. The great thing about American nationalism is that it's anti-goverment, starting with the tea party and continuing to covid lockdown resistance.
America is the best country in the world, and the American government has always been extremely incompetent, and those two statements aren't a contradiction.
I’m gay but have given up on “LGBT.” All that means is that trans groomers are trying to latch onto something legit. Don’t let them.
You raise interesting points re: national identity versus other kinds of identities, but it's probably not mutually exclusive right? I would think anyone who identifies strongly with their last name, with their local community, with being a Texan, and with Anglo culture and/or Western civilization, would also be a patriotic American, and vice-versa.
Senator Tom Cotton has proposed S.3037, the "Empower Parents to Protect Their Kids" act: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/3037/text
Every candidate for every office (including state and local offices, especially school board) should be asked to take a stand on this bill.
The more this issue becomes part of regular political discourse, the more likely it is that there will be effective pushback.