Why are you so bothered, Brewer, if you think their opinions are wrong?
Lord knows there's enough "America's Great!" people that you should be able to finds forums stuffed with them. Finding those sorts of people on an atheism forum, where things like non-conformity and independence are held as important values, well, that's going to be more work.
Those of us who have lived in foreign countries as well might know a thing or two that informs our opinions of America. In these sorts of conversations, the parochial don't hold much sway with me -- whether they're Americans who've never left their home state pronouncing on Europe, or vice-versa.
My understanding of patriotism, the only one I hold, is that I love my country enough to tell the truth about it in the hopes of repairing what I see as flaws. And let's face it -- we Americans have built a country that is every bit as flawed as most other countries.
Lord knows there's enough "America's Great!" people that you should be able to finds forums stuffed with them. Finding those sorts of people on an atheism forum, where things like non-conformity and independence are held as important values, well, that's going to be more work.
Those of us who have lived in foreign countries as well might know a thing or two that informs our opinions of America. In these sorts of conversations, the parochial don't hold much sway with me -- whether they're Americans who've never left their home state pronouncing on Europe, or vice-versa.
My understanding of patriotism, the only one I hold, is that I love my country enough to tell the truth about it in the hopes of repairing what I see as flaws. And let's face it -- we Americans have built a country that is every bit as flawed as most other countries.
