Why is Nationalism a bad word?

friend of said:

Those who love their own country will soon learn love its people

Those who hate their own country will soon learn to hate its people

It's just that simple. So why is Nationalism getting such a bad rap today in America and abroad the Western nations?

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It is never just the word " nationalism " that some of us have issue with, it is the type of nationalism that we have issue with. To which are you referring to?

Nationalism defined :
AI Generated

Nationalism divides into two primary forms based on what binds a people together. Civic nationalism centers on shared political principles and legal citizenship, allowing diverse cultures to unite under a common "creed" like the Constitution. Ethnic nationalism relies on shared heritage, such as a common language, ancestry, or religion, to define the national boundary.

friend of said:

I'm talking about civil Nationalism, clearly

and i should add that western culture transcends racial barriers, clearly

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Thank you for clarifying. Unfortunately, the United States, at the moment under this leadership, is activly promoting Ethnic Nationalism. Clearly , this is why there is so much push back against it.
Thanks for sharing.
Be blessed.

There's a distinction between patriotism and nationalism. Patriotism is a sense of pride in one's country, but it's a realistic pride that recognizes that there is room to grow and that mistakes have been made in the past. Nationalism is a devotion to a myth that doesn't allow for criticism, and is used as a means of disparaging those who won't get in line with the program. It's rarely about the nation at all, and far more about consolidating power by creating a narrative of "us vs them" and demonizing any who don't fit into the mythical history of the nation. Patriotism is constructive, nationalism is reactive. So it is not the love of country that leads to nationalism being distrusted, but the tribalism and false narratives that accompany nationalist movements.

I think it's about evolution.

At some point we are all destined to become/think of ourselves as a global community, but I also think it's still too soon though, and that until we all resolve some key differences that are still with us as a species, it's never going to happen without maybe destroying/unraveling the whole thing, or doing the exact opposite of what a global community should be, or should be doing, and then setting us back decades, or perhaps even centuries, from ever reaching this point again for a little while maybe, which might mean temporarily repeating some of the darker chapters of our history again temporarily, until we can come to this point again maybe, etc.

But the push against any kind of "nationalism" in any individual nations globally, does I think come from a genuine desire to evolve/change for the better though I think probably, even if it's a little misguided right now, or we are still trying to figure it out still right now currently.

But this is probably also a very, very fragile time/constant threat of a tipping point/reset point for any planet full of quote/unquote "intelligent beings" of a shared similar physical form though always probably, probably as old as the universe itself or this kind of existence/reality probably.

We'll either figure it out, or we won't, and if we don't, then we will probably do the opposite, and repeat some of the darker chapters in our history, until we can get another chance again after a little while maybe, because that's where we are at as a species right now currently.

Hopefully at some point we'lll be able to pull it off eventually, etc. Then "the stars" after that maybe, etc. Assuming we don't destroy ourselves, or this planets ability to sustain our lives between now and then, etc. Which would then set us back a really long time, if there are any of us left, or that are able to survive that kind of thing, etc.

We still have a lot of issues that will need to be solved/resolved between now and then if we're to be successful in it ever, etc. Key differences and extreme selfishness/self-centeredness, and all of that, etc. Being overly individualistic doesn't help with that either, etc, which is the most prominent in the west, or in western culture right now mostly, etc.

God Bless.

friend of said:

There's an invective against Western-sphere patriotism too.

Why? Why do citizens of a country want said country to fail?

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There's certainly an oppositely oriented myth that the West has historically been agents of oppression with no vindicating features, but that's a deeper philosophical issue known as Critical History where everything is understood as a dynamic between an oppressed majority and an oppressive elite. But the existence of such a myth does not vindicate nationalist movements that create mythical national histories in order to seize power.

Maria Billingsley said:

Thank you for clarifying. Unfortunately, the United States, at the moment under this leadership, is activly promoting Ethnic Nationalism. Clearly , this is why there is so much push back against it.
Thanks for sharing.
Be blessed.

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Under current leadership, the USA is NOT promoting Ethnic Nationalism.