Patriot's Day


Wherein Our Heroine Thinks Over a State Holiday.
Today is Patriot's Day, a day devoted to patriots and patriotism.

"I confidently trust that the American people will prove themselves … too wise not to detect the false pride or the dangerous ambitions or the selfish schemes which so often hide themselves under that deceptive cry of mock patriotism: ‘Our country, right or wrong!’ They will not fail to recognize that our dignity, our free institutions and the peace and welfare of this and coming generations of Americans will be secure only as we cling to the watchword of true patriotism: ‘Our country—when right to be kept right; when wrong to be put right.’”

— Schurz, “The Policy of Imperialism,” Speeches, Correspondence and Political Papers of Carl Schurz (1913)

In Massachusetts, where we used to live, it is also a holiday. The running of The Boston Marathon is today. The streets of Boston are lining up with people ready to cheer and holler for strangers putting out a supreme effort.

"Patriot: The person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about."

— Mark Twain

For many, running the marathon today will be the biggest physical accomplishment of their lives. These athletes, who don't usually refer to themselves by that name, will run longer than they ever have, put out more effort than they thought possible. It is always a revelation to find out how much farther you can go - how much you can accomplish when you bend your mind and soul and will to it. For most of those running today, the accomplishment is not important for what it is, it is important for what it represents. It is the pure promise of achievement, the promise made to the self. A milestone you can be proud of.

"The difference between patriotism and nationalism is that the patriot is proud of his country for what it does, and the nationalist is proud of his country no matter what it does; the first attitude creates a feeling of responsibility, but the second a feeling of blind arrogance that leads to war."

— Sydney J. Harris

Happy Patriot's Day.
Posted: Monday - April 19, 2004 at 08:53 AM         | |

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