President Donald Trump continues
to take flack for his “America First” stance. The latest person to find fault
with putting one’s country first is French President Emmanuel Macron. During
his speech at a ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of
World War I, he slammed Trump’s “America First” position.
“Patriotism” is the exact opposite of
nationalism: Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism. By putting our interests
first, with no regard for others, we erase the very thing that a nation holds
dearest, and the thing that keeps it alive: its moral values.
My first thought as I read the above
statement was that of a mother or caregiver. The first responsibility of every
mother and caregiver is to themselves. They must take care of themselves in
order to be able to care for children or other people in need. A mother may get
by on four or five hours of sleep for a few nights in order to care for small
children, but a continual schedule of such sleep deprivation will take a toll
on the mother’s health.
I visited with a sister-in-law
yesterday who shared a recent experience of saying “no” to an associate. This
good woman gives love, food, time, and support to many people and has done so
for many years. She cared for her ill husband and paralyzed son for numerous
years until they each died this year, so she and her family are in a state of
mourning and grief. However, the family has dealt with numerous other emotional
stresses during the same period of time. Deaths of extended family members and
a daughter’s stressful divorce are just a few of the problems. She finally
realized that she had to step back in order to take care of herself and her own
family.
There is a limit to how much
stress any individual can handle. What good would my sister-in-law be to
herself or her family if she fell to pieces? Who takes care of the children
when the mother is too ill to get out of bed? The same is true for every nation
in the world. Who takes care of a particular nation when it has given everything
it has to help other nations?
Ben Shapiro posted an interesting rebuttal to Macron’s claim. He says that it “has a sort of European charm” but
is both “false” and “dangerous.” He continues his post with this explanation.
Nationalism, when opposed to patriotism,
can indeed be terrible. It can suggest that the interests of one nation
override the interests of every other nation, that imperialism and colonialism
are worth pursuing out of love of blood and soil. But when combined with
patriotism, nationalism can also be a bulwark against tyranny. Nationalism can
stand up to international communism. Nationalism can refuse to bow before the
dictates of multiculturalism, which suggest that all cultures and practices are
of equal value.
Patriotism is a philosophy of national
values: It is a statement that your nation has values that are eternal, true
and noble. American patriotism prizes God-given individual rights protected by
limited government. Were America to lose God-given individual rights protected
by limited government, it would no longer be America. But patriotism doesn’t
mean that it is the job of America to spread our values everywhere else to the
detriment of our own national strength. Our patriotism encompasses American
nationalism: We believe that America must come first so that America can be
strong enough to promote her values where appropriate.
Shapiro continues with a longer
explanation. Suffice it to say that he does not agree with Macron. Shapiro says
that nationalism “isn’t the problem. Lack of values is. And mistaking
anti-nationalism for a value system in and of itself endangers free citizens
who hold worthwhile national values dear.”
I agree with Shapiro that Americans
have the right and the responsibility to put America first, meaning to take
care of America’s and American’s needs before those of other nations.
Patriotic
Americans wish to keep the United States strong in order to be a leader to the
world and to show an example of how America’s values are the foundation for
America’s power.
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