The obligatory September 11 post
Sep. 11th, 2004 04:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vovatOkay, it's not really "obligatory," but I did want to acknowledge the date, and address something related to it.
Looking back at the aftermath of September 11 three years ago, I have to wonder whether an increase in patriotism was really the right reaction. I think the solidarity that seemed to pervade the country after the attacks was a good thing. Of course, we all know how the Bush administration ruined this by creating an overly partisan Department of Homeland Security and the like, but that's not what I'm getting at here. Rather, I think seeing it as an American issue, and a reason for celebrating America, is a rather nationalistic approach. Isn't the important thing not that there was an attack on America, but that there was an attack on thousands of innocent people? I hinted at this before, but I tend to think that we should be moving away from patriotism, and toward a more global view of things.
Mind you, I'm not trying to say, "Loving your country is stupid!" or "All the people who bought miniature American flags in September 2001 were part of the problem!" I'm just hoping that the United States, and the world, can try to move away from approaching everything in a nationalistic manner.
Looking back at the aftermath of September 11 three years ago, I have to wonder whether an increase in patriotism was really the right reaction. I think the solidarity that seemed to pervade the country after the attacks was a good thing. Of course, we all know how the Bush administration ruined this by creating an overly partisan Department of Homeland Security and the like, but that's not what I'm getting at here. Rather, I think seeing it as an American issue, and a reason for celebrating America, is a rather nationalistic approach. Isn't the important thing not that there was an attack on America, but that there was an attack on thousands of innocent people? I hinted at this before, but I tend to think that we should be moving away from patriotism, and toward a more global view of things.
Mind you, I'm not trying to say, "Loving your country is stupid!" or "All the people who bought miniature American flags in September 2001 were part of the problem!" I'm just hoping that the United States, and the world, can try to move away from approaching everything in a nationalistic manner.
