How patriotic are you?

[korik]

I said "yes" to the first question and "3" for how patriotic I am, simply because... well, I could have done worse. (having said that, my own country is speeding toward those "worse" places. (with regards to womens rights, etc.))

As a rule, I do not like [over-] patiotism... it often tends to be near a racist level.

I am far more "patriotic" to counties other than my birth. (one in particular) =)

[Kitty Spoon Train]

I said "yes" to the first question and "3" for how patriotic I am, simply because... well, I could have done worse. (having said that, my own country is speeding toward those "worse" places. (with regards to womens rights, etc.))

As a rule, I do not like [over-] patiotism... it often tends to be near a racist level.

I am far more "patriotic" to counties other than my birth. (one in particular) =)

Actually, looking at it this way, so am I! :lol:

Not any one in particular really, but in general to the Nordic countries I suppose.

[littleheartsofjoy]

I had a hard time answering some of the questions. I was born in America but when I think of my country, I think of Nigeria first before America, since that is where I am from and how I was raised. However, I'm ok with only visiting Nigeria and not living there because of circumstances and other little things. I like America but I'm not sure I would ever use the word proud for being born here. At the same time, I am also not ashamed, so I feel like I'm more in the middle of yes and no.

I'm lazy about the Olympics and when I do watch them, I look out for the USA and for Nigeria, if the sport applies. The number of medals, I can't say that I'm sad when neither country wins any. but it's cool to me when Nigeria wins something (so rare, lol).

I probably wouldn't change my citizenship for the ~ease~ that it has given me with opportunities here. It is kind of easier to seize an opportunity here. Not for everyone though, of course, but in a very general sense.

As for the level of patriotism, I'll say a 3 is perfect. I'm not sure about agreeing with the quote or not.

[Notte stellata]

I like America but I'm not sure I would ever use the word proud for being born here. At the same time, I am also not ashamed, so I feel like I'm more in the middle of yes and no.

You can vote for no as long as you're not proud. You don't have to be ashamed to vote for no. ;)

Even though I don't like my country, I'm not ashamed to be its citizen either, because that would feel just as arbitrary as being proud of something I had no control over. :P

[wasd]

I have no real complaints about Canada sure it has it's faults (Harper) but we are free and have a good health care system so I guess I'm neutral for Q1. I don't follow the Olympics really once it's done I'll check the medal scores out of curiosity more than anything. I plan on one day moving to Australia or somewhere in Europe haven't decides where yet but I would want a duel citizenship. As for foreigners criticizing my country I dont really care many I would probably agree with. I put down a 2 for patriotism as I guess I can't be to high since I don't even recognize the British crown as any significance to Canada.

[littleheartsofjoy]

I like America but I'm not sure I would ever use the word proud for being born here. At the same time, I am also not ashamed, so I feel like I'm more in the middle of yes and no.

You can vote for no as long as you're not proud. You don't have to be ashamed to vote for no. ;)

Even though I don't like my country, I'm not ashamed to be its citizen either, because that would feel just as arbitrary as feeling proud of something I didn't choose. :P

Oh OK! In that case, I'll vote no then. That is a true point though, even though how ignorant some Americans can be about other cultures can make me feel ashamed. lol

[Guest]

Not any one in particular really, but in general to the Nordic countries I suppose.

They certainly are on the (rather short) list of countries I would consider moving out to and change my nationality to, yup. ^_^

[DexM]

I'm not very patriotic although I did support the Olympic team and I was very pleased with the amount of medals we won. It's more along the lines of great sporting achievements. But I'm very unhappy with how England has gone down the toilet as a country and my patriotism because of that has become virtually non existent.

Logistics aside, I would change my citizenship in the blink of an eye and I would have no problem with anyone, as long as they were sane, relevant criticisms, having a go at England. I would probably join in. I see know point in being blind to the many wrongs of our country just because an "outsider" has the audacity to talk about what can be clearly seen to those who take note.

So I gave a 2 on the patriot scale. Mainly because of the Olympic thing (and that isn't going to happen again for a while) and because of my stupidity in still getting annoyed/involved with the shambolic, below average, infuriating bunch of losers that is the England's footie team :(

[Syphon]

I am seriously a European who was born into an American family. I have no love of this culture whatsoever and would be much less introverted and happy being someplace else. Especially since I'm from a very boring conservative let's get to church and have babies type of state. Maybe it doesn't suck as bad on the coasts!

This ^ almost exactly.

[Piotrek]

Hard to say how patriotic I am, really. I like watching sport and when I do, I root for Polish athlets. When I see/read someone criticizing Poland without much justification (as in: "I hate this country. My favourite bands never come here to play") or wrongly (because the speaker generalizes on the basis of their experience or simply doesn't know what they are talking about) I tend to get annoyed. Having said that, if someone knows what they are talking about and draw attention to some real, widespread problem, I don't see why I shouldn't agree with them. I have no idea whether I would change my citizenship.

By the way, someone upthread said something about the medals won being only the athlets' merit. It's actually more complicated than that :) Especially in today's sport, you need people who take care of your preparations, and you obviously need money, which means either state-sponsorship or private sponsorship, which again means people.

[ponz]

I'm American.

1. No.

2. I don't watch sports.

3. No, I don't care at all.

4. Yes.

Only if I could keep my original citizenship.

5. No.

6. 2 (I can acknowledge the good parts of my country.)

4. Not sure.

[hhwgv]

I really like living in Canada. I'm very happy that I was born here, and I know that if I was born anywhere else, I'd end up here anyway. I'm passionate about my country because I want to do what's best for it. I want to change it for the better and help make a real difference within it. Growing up, I always wanted to move away, one of the main reasons being the cold. But as I became more interested in politics and socialism, my views started to change.

When I see people complaining about the government (in general, not just in Canada) it bothers me. Well, it depends what they're complaining about. Here in Manitoba, they're putting a lot of money into roads and job creation, only to be met with criticism from the conservative supporters because they're "wasting taxpayers' money". They are not wasting it, they're putting it back into the province, into something that will be beneficial to you and your children down the line.

Maybe another reason I like Canada so much is that I've seen it called "the Hufflepuff of countries", which I really like. So yeah, I love my country. However, I don't put its worth on how many medals it wins at the Olympics. Every country has faults, and someone needs to fix them. I want to put as much effort into my home to make it the place it should be.

[Templar]

I would be more patriotic were it not for the fact that my government (UK) is trying to censor the internet whilst simultaneously spying on me and everything I do.

Aside from that "little" issue, I really don't care what my government gets up to, as long as it doesn't bother me.

Fuckity bye.

[Vuhhuur]

I do think this is a good country to be born and raised. However, it is not perfect, not even close to be one must admit aloud. But, yea, I keep paying my taxes to this country - no I don`t have dreams to live anywhere else.

[Janus the Fox]

Im quite patriotic, I like Wales and Britain as a whole despite its shortcomings. Possibly I like the idea of dual citizenship if circumstance requires.

Gwydion: - No doubt very nationalistic, this place I call Wales is an exceptionally awesome country and perfect in many ways ;)

[shnazzy214]

I'm patriotic because I believe in most of the values that founded America and believe that they can guide us today as well. I don't believe that this is divisive because these simple principles (like equality, justice, checks on power) should be universal and we should strive to make them such. Just because I love America and many of its core values does not mean that I won't criticize it when criticism is due (which is very often.)

[kassafrass]

I think i'm pretty patriotic :) Go canada woot woot. Everyday life, meh not so much. Canada day and Winter olympics, yeah a little more. I'm proud to be Canadian. Maybe it's because i'm first generation to immigrants? I don't know. But if I could have my dual (which is what i;m working to get) I would definitely have my dual citizenship between Canada and Italy.

[DynamiteMonkey]

I feel like I should contribute to keep the country stable, such as taxes, but nothing beyond that.

Being born in a certain country changes nothing. We are who we are.

Anyway, what has Britain done other than enslave half of the world? We only gave it up due to a lack of funds.

[Guest member25959]

No. I'm not patriotic at all. Given the chance, I would change my citizenship within a second. There's no zero for "how patriotic are you?", I would be somewhere below that figure. It's actually kind of stupid because I find that foreigners are more offended by my own criticisms of this country. Sometimes I really do wonder if I was purposely placed in the wrong country or something, it's seriously ridiculous.

[Weltraum]

Don't feel any national identity. I have EU citizenship, but if I had to choose a country to identify with, it would be the USA or Canada, even though I have citizenship of neither country. I am pro-EU, but for political and ideological reasons (e.g. freedom of movement, unity, cooperation) instead of patriotism... yes, I know the EU isn't a country. To me, citizenship is just pragmatic, which is why I plan to get naturalization when I can.

[AlexPeyton]

I just think that country's borders are nothing but man-made concepts that divide us from one collective humanity and we should be able to roam earth freely instead ;) (obviously that's not practical but still)

IMO the UK is really corrupt, millions are going hungry (with half a million living on foodbanks) large class divisions still exist, the monarchy is pointless/waste of taxpayers money, the British empire makes me ashamed to be from here. The only thing I'm somewhat proud of is the fact gay marriage was legalized a few weeks ago (though it should've been anyway) also, the NHS (which is now being dismantled by our government and is heading towards privatisation) -.-

I am really grateful I was born in the UK but I guess that's entirely different, if I had the chance I would move to a Nordic country or Canada.

[Squirrel Combat]

My feeling for this place are mixed. The geography is enough to stay here but the politics biased in favor of the rich and the rest of the jerkoff public that treat each other like crap has seriously prompted me to leave. I'm still American at heart but I think I should live somewhere else, even for just a little while because I really hate some of the people I'm stuck in the same place as.

Also, I don't want to deal with the Affordable Care Act.

[Oddplume]

It's a mixed bag, there's good and bad. A lot of bad is drumming up, but hopefully that will recede.

I pay zero attention to sports in general much less the Olympics.

[Lelouch]

Very interesting discussion, I'm not patriotic at all. I wish that we could do away with borders for most nations and just move around wherever we wanted. Not being borne in a EU nation myself I can only move between AU/NZ freely to live/work. Being in a country were the majority either immigrated or their parents did makes patriotism seem more of an offensive problem than something to be proud about. If my country was swallowed up tomorrow into some mega union (SG/AU/NZ/JP/KR/CA/US/EU) id be like, are we changing currency?

[Mauve]

Personally, I've always felt like a Global Citizen at heart; For this reason, I find the experiences of third culture kids and/or cross cultural kids to be most appealing and dare I say, desirable. Also for those expats who are in a constant state of mobility, they can likely relate to other fellow expats, more than their countrymen back "home" - wherever that is!

[nota999]

I'm proud to be an American, even if I can definitely see things that should change.

[Mauve]

Already have dual citizenship.

Ten years in Israel and still freaking love this freaky country, even after missing several good opportunities to die for it :P

In the same time I don't think my country is the best one, and accept people who decide to leave it for whatever reason.

I criticize my country a lot, if it's about political and economical issues, too close relationship between the religion and the political system, etc.

Criticism from foreigners can be constructive and helpful, if they try to learn a bit about the subject of their criticism before. I'm always glad to talk to people who not only suggest answers but also ask questions.

lol @ "even after missing several good opportunities to die for it" - gotta love the humour! But seriously, it's great to hear you're enjoying it there. What do you like about living in Israel? Honestly curious!

[Guest]

Not very patriotic, if at all.

[LaMaestra]

I just think that country's borders are nothing but man-made concepts that divide us from one collective humanity and we should be able to roam earth freely instead ;) (obviously that's not practical but still)

IMO the UK is really corrupt, millions are going hungry (with half a million living on foodbanks) large class divisions still exist, the monarchy is pointless/waste of taxpayers money, the British empire makes me ashamed to be from here. The only thing I'm somewhat proud of is the fact gay marriage was legalized a few weeks ago (though it should've been anyway) also, the NHS (which is now being dismantled by our government and is heading towards privatisation) -.-

I am really grateful I was born in the UK but I guess that's entirely different, if I had the chance I would move to a Nordic country or Canada.

What an excellent post! Britain is the crappiest nation in the world for all of the reasons you outline.

I actually have dual British/Irish nationality but have no loyalty towards Britain and when asked my nationality, say just Irish.

[Alfred_Juumonji]

I really love Canada, though I'll admit we do have some problems. I think as I've grown older I've gotten more patriotic, not entirely sure why.