In Part 3, I explained why we should treat patriotism and nationalism as separate and distinct ideas. In this article, I will apply that claim to America’s current nationalist moment.
Many political figures, some who I admire greatly, have sought to temper the right’s nationalist trend by lessening the danger nationalism poses. Figures such as Rich Lowry and even Mike Lee have tried to indulge the budding nationalist movement in hopes of guiding them towards “good nationalism,” which they define as patriotism.
Have these efforts gained them any headway? Does the nationalism embraced by so many Republicans under Donald Trump’s sway look like the civic virtue of patriotism? After reading the previous three parts of this series, conduct for yourself an honest appraisal of the current conservative movement and apply the tenants of my case by answering these questions:
Are principles and ideals held as the highest end, or as impediments to victory?
Is individuality held in higher regard, or conformity?
Is civil decency more valued, or abject rudeness?
Do individuals find their identity in themselves, or their leaders?
Is our nation conducting itself internationally based upon consistent values, or pure self-interest?
Is the movement based on universal ideals, or a sense of supremacy (liberty for me but not for thee)?
Are political opponents treated as fellow citizens with differing opinions, or are they considered “the enemy”?
Are stances consistent as individuals stick to their own reasonings, or do positions change and evolve to the marching orders of leadership?
Are self-governance and the election process respected in all cases, or are the results questioned and delegitimized when unfavorable?
Is the sovereignty of the mind respected, or are those with contrarian views shamed into silence?
If you answered these questions honestly, I am sure your conclusions force you to agree with my own: that the conduct of the conservative movement and the Republican Party in the last four years is far from what we can call patriotism.
This is why I see such great danger in letting patriotism and nationalism occupy the same philosophical space. Nationalism is akin to patriotism just enough that it corrupts patriotic feelings and subverts them towards a wholly deranged sense of national pride. At length, a nationalist abandons all pretenses of civic virtue, the core of what true patriotism is.
Conclusion
We should dismiss nationalism to its proper place in the annals of human history. It was a regressive episode that coincided with the rise of nations as new pretexts for absolute power, and centralized authority, were sought. It was wholly distinct from the rise of the American nation. America was built upon the ideas of the social contract and the universal values of freedom and liberty, with limited powers and decentralized government.
While we can indeed regard patriotism as a form of civic nationalism, this is more a philosophical footnote. Patriotism is far too disconnected from the realities of true nationalism to be a sub-category of it. The simple facts are that real patriotism offends the nationalist, and the nationalist always comes to see a patriot as his enemy. So long as well-meaning intellectuals and political leaders give nationalism a safe space to thrive, in the vain hope they can lead it towards a better version of itself, then patriotism will increasingly be under assault and lessened as a guiding star of our republic.
The rise of nationalism on the modern American right bears no kinship with America’s patriotic tradition. In so many ways, it is cynicism and nihilism inuring them towards forsaking the principles, ideals, and virtues that comprise what American Patriotism is.
There is no softening of this nationalist phenomenon. There is no directing it or guiding it towards a better version of itself. A citizen is either a patriot or a nationalist and cannot truly be both. If the goal is a resurgence of patriotism and a return to the founding vision, if the goal is to place liberty as the highest end of government, and if the goal is to reassert universal ideals and champion the ideas of self-governance, self-determination, and popular sovereignty then nationalism must be excised, not exhumed.
Justin Stapley is the owner and editor of The Liberty Hawk. As a political writer, his principles and ideas are grounded in the ideas of ordered liberty as expressed in the traditions of classical liberalism, federalism, and modern conservatism. You can follow him on Facebook and on Twitter.
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