Insane is when people stop believing in their rights. Insane is when cities scoff at the law and the US Constituiton. Insane is when people believe that government holds dear their interests.

Obviously you have know idea what is at stake or the consequences of not standing up. You have no sense of patriotism, no sense of education, and no sense of right and wrong. The final authority in a representative republic is the people...not the elected...Mr. A.

"The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
Ronald Reagan
40th president of US (1911 - 2004)

claim that I have no sense of patriotism.

I have served this great country, my friend. I have spilled blood on the battlefield so that fools like you can spout their nonsense on idiotic blogs like these.

Who are you to pick and choose the laws which you obey? You, sir, are an immoral man who does not follow the teachings of Jesus and doesn't deserve the freedoms that I fought so hard on the battlefield to preserve for you.

Have some respect for those superior to you.

Fred Anderssen

You think just because you served in the military you are superior? Give me a break. Maybe when you were young, there was a draft. But todays day, it is a all volunteer force.

I chose not to volunteer. I chose college, family, and supporting dimwit have-not's by paying my taxes so others could have what they wouldn't work for.

I chose to stick my neck out on the limb and defend peoples rights out of my own pocket. All the people I have helped and defended when municipalities or their employees have stripped other of their rights or trodded over them, I have done so at my own expense.

So I may have never trumped through a swamp and shot the enemy...but that is not the definition of a patriot. A patriot is someone who feels patriotism, support for their country. Patriotism covers such attitudes as: pride in its achievements and culture, the desire to preserve its character and the basis of the culture, and identification with other members of the nation.

Personal patriotism is emotional and voluntary. The patriot adheres to certain patriotic values, such as respect for a flag.

But sir...I am a Christian first. Then I am an American. God Bless this nation, and my the American people feel God in their hearts and do the right thing.

As for you...you are wrong again. As usual.

"The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
Ronald Reagan
40th president of US (1911 - 2004)

The more I read the more I get the sense Fred that you have no clue what the heck you are talking about. Fighting in a war does not in itself make you a patriot.

Embracing anything blindly always carries risks. The urge to marshal unity can slide into unquestioning obedience: my country right or wrong. Teddy Roosevelt once said, "Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country."

That's where the concept of patriotism gets tricky in a democracy, especially in the United States. Loyalty to this country can't mean loyalty to any particular ethnic, cultural, or political group, and it must go beyond "soil." At its core the United States is not just a patch of land or a group of people, but a set of ideas.

Which ideas?

My list includes at least these four--perhaps you have more:

#1 The rule of law--no one is subject to anyone else's arbitrary whim. Instead, everyone must abide by the same uniform set of publicly posted rules.

#2 Democracy--people get to have a real say in making those rules and in choosing their own leaders.

#3 Freedom--people have the right to pursue their own lives however they see fit, so long as they don't hurt others.

#4 Inclusion--the benefits of freedom, democracy, and the rule of law belong to all American citizens, regardless of how they look, what they believe, or any other arbitrary criteria.

Taken seriously, these core principles imply certain duties. The duty to vote for example. It's not just that we get to vote. If this country belongs to us citizens, none of us is exempt from a responsibility to help run it. Forming opinions and expressing them is not just a right but an obligation.

It's patriotic to pay attention to how things are going in the country, to seek out good information, to vote, to insist on clean elections, to campaign for issues, to run for office, to raise one's voice. Critics who dwell on ways that America falls short of its ideals are not being un-American. They're doing necessary American work. If they're wrong, their criticism will lose steam--that's the American faith: that truth has power.

While we as citizens can debate on what it means to do one's patriotic duty, I think the definition is pretty straightforward. In the end, when distilled to its essence, the definition is dependent on the term "patriotic." What does it mean? According to the Random House Unabridged Dictionary (2006), being "patriotic" is:

1. characteristic of a patriot

2. expressing or to be inspired by patriotism

Thus, it becomes necessary to understand what it means to be a patriot. Based on the same source, being a "patriot" is:

1. a person who loves, supports, and defends his or her country and its interests with devotion.

Thus, a political commentator may feel that it's his/her patriotic duty to assess the country's stance on foreign and domestic policy. An educator may feel it's his/her patriotic duty to help students ready for the future. An athlete may feel it's his/her patriotic duty to partake in international competition.

As you can see, patriotic duty can manifest in a variety of ways. However, the foundation of each is that the individual believes that he/she is acting in the best interest of the country. The main point is that the citizen does not act in a way that harms said country. Support, love, and devotion for what one's country stands for is in the end, what drives an individual to do what they do.

Finally, in an election year, one's "patriotic duty" is often said to be to vote. To vote is to respect the history that granted us that privilege. To vote is to help the State choose a leader that will be a positive for the nation. Whether or not your candidate wins is beside the point. The point is that you used the voice that was given you. Thus, even if you end up on the losing side, you nonetheless took part in (and contributed to) the patriotic process.

So just because you fought in a war does not make you any more patriotic than mndapa1. Thank you for your service to this country but mndapa1 does a service as well to this country and just because you do not like it does not mean it is any less patriotic than your service. Maybe you are suffering from PDSD or some other symptom that makes you disagree with everybody that doesnt live, breath and preach what narrow liberal view you share?

what war did you fight in, Mr. Liar? What blood did you spill for your country, Mr. Liar? How dare you say I'm not a patriot. I would give my LIFE for this country, sir. And I have given most of what makes me a "man" for this country. What have you done? My private parts are part of the soil of a God-forsaken communist land like vietnam so that fools like you can spout your nonsense on the internet. You need to THANK me for your freedom of speech, sir. I have defended it with my very life!

Fred Anderssen

P.S. You call me a liberal, but I just need to quote something a great man once told me:

"To be cursed by the devil is to be truly blessed."

Thank you. Now move on.

Its hard not to see a liberal discourse when you are full of venom for something we didn't do to you.

Are you aware that you are not the only one ever injured at war for the good of the country.

As for me and my brother, my dad and uncle are vietnam vets. I have two uncles who are vets from Korea. They dont have the same attitude as you.

The love this country and have moved on with their lives. War was part of their past..not their present or future.

"The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
Ronald Reagan
40th president of US (1911 - 2004)

and you mistake that because you supposedly fought in a war that makes you more patriotic than the next guy.

Patriotism requires that one obey the laws and commands of one’s country, especially in times of war when the state’s survival and interests are presumably in the greatest degree of peril. In his book Patriotism, Morality, and Peace, Stephen Nathanson identifies five key tenets which characterize the extreme patriotic position:

1. A belief in the superiority of one’s country
2. A desire for dominance over other countries
3. An exclusive concern for one’s own country
4. No constraints on the pursuit of one’s country’s goals
5. Automatic support of one’s country’s military policies

Must have missed the fighting in war piece. But you are a military man as are many in my family and as the youngest son of a korean/vietnam veteran I was pushed to go to school not the military but I could have chosen either. Neither decision makes many any more patriotic than the next. I fly my flag proadly, cross my heart, stand for the flag, stand for the color guard, am an avid Sons of American Legion Member as is my son. I contribute to our local legion. I beleive in a strong military and strong national defense without it we have nothing. If you thing for one instance you are more of a patriot than I you are mistaken. Members of my family have fought in every recent war to every distant war. There is more than just fighting in war there is fighting to protect our rights at home including the the Constitution and most importantly the 2nd amendment with gives you ultimately the protection of blabbing your mouth with the 1st.

But I don't see you criticizing Obama as not being a patriot - a Senator until criticized wouldnt even wear the U.S. pin on his suit. Or his lack of military experience, his stance on the 2nd amendment....etc, etc.

On 11/18/2007 Obama said, “Probably the strongest experience I have in foreign relations is the fact I spent four years overseas when I was a child in Southeast Asia.”

Obviously, he will be drawing on this “strong” experience when dealing with foreign in policy and this patriot and his liberal allies if elected will make the U.S. a more dangerous place to live.

Always, no matter the time in history or the year of election, foreign policy is the most important public policy factor in a presidential election (but not always the most important politically, unfortunately). It’s the sort of thing serious thinking people ought to agree on. Domestic policy lies irrelevant if national security is left unchecked. The left chides Bush for being diplomatically inept. Whether you agree with Bush’s actions, at least Bush was able to justify and confirm his diplomatic posture through the use of force. If we get Barack Obama, not only will he be diplomatically inept, he will refuse to use force (remember, he has already taken the nuclear option completely off the table), which further marginalizes his diplomatic advances, and has the added bonus of diminishing the stature of the United States in the process.

I don’t want our country to necessarily be liked. I am perfectly fine with being feared and respected - being “liked” is a high school emotion. With an Obama presidency, we will be hated not for our arrogance, but for our weakness, and the world would suffer because of it. The Bush presidency has deposed two of the planet’s most awful regimes, both in one term. Given odds, I would take the under on two terms of Obama.

the first comment was from a letter to the editor that thinks that statement...not me.

"The government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."
Ronald Reagan
40th president of US (1911 - 2004)