This document discusses different views on what constitutes patriotism. It defines patriotism as a person's loyalty toward their country. Some believe waving flags and singing anthems shows patriotism, while others think more active involvement is needed. The document argues that passive displays like flag waving accomplish little and do not constitute true patriotism. It claims people who think flag waving is enough have not formed independent opinions and risk making the country weaker by basing it on laziness. It also notes few people waved flags before terrorist attacks, showing this "patriotism" was not genuine.

1. Patriotism Essay
The recent terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon have caused confusion on
the topic of patriotism. The best way to start understanding patriotism is to simply define it.
Patriotism is a person's level of loyalty toward their country. Displays of true patriotism are
prominent in times of despair, such as wars and terrorist attacks. However, many people have
discrepancies on what displays of patriotism really are. Some people believe that showing patriotism
can be accomplished by waving the flag and singing the national anthem. Others believe that a
person must be much more involved in a cause to show patriotism. It is true that waving a flag
doesn't accomplish much. Although this action displays good intentions, it...show more content...
But different men often see the same subject in different lights" (Henry, 88). The people that
believe they have done enough by waving a flag and singing the national anthem have failed to
form their own opinions of patriotism. If the United States has a government controlled by the
people, then the strength of the country depends on the level of loyalty among the people. So by
performing only the easiest tasks to show support for the country, these people are causing the
country to become less powerful. Basing a country on laziness could be paralleled to basing a
document on lies.
Finally, the most obvious fault on the side that claims waving a flag is patriotism is the fact that
very few people actually did this before the terrorist attacks. This so called patriotism transformed
from a dormant state into a state of overabundance in only a few days time. This observation
alone is evidence of the invalidity of waving a flag and singing the national anthem. Additionally,
some people have enough disrespect for our country to take advantage of fellow citizens during
this time of confusion by selling cheap American flags at twenty dollars each. These people are
playing jump rope with the line between patriotism and treason as if patriotism isn't a serious
subject. Sadly, the people who failed to realize their own false patriotism were also the ones being
scammed by companies.
Clearly,
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