On July 4th, we celebrate the blessings of liberty which we enjoy as
Americans. Let's all display a flag, shall we?

Patriotism is "love and devotion to country. The questions are how we
love it and how we express our devotion."

There is a great article in Time magazine by Peter Beinart on patriotism
(July 7 issue). I can't do it justice by summarizing it. Nevertheless, I'll try
with the aim to entice you to read the article itself. He wrote and I
paraphrase liberally:

     American patriotism wears tow faces. Conservatives prefer the
   patriotism of affirmation. Liberals choose the patriotism of dissent.
   Conservatives think that being born into a nation is like being born into
   a family. You love it because it is yours. Liberals think patriotism is a
   struggle to narrow the gap between American ideals and America's
   reality. To conservatives, the devotion to America must come first,
   struggle to improve it is secondary. To liberals, America must earn our
   devotion by making good on its ideals.

     Both brands of patriotism have defects. Celebrating America too
   unabashedly risks becoming self-righteous and turn patriotism into
   nationalism. However, loving America purely because of its ideals could
   lead to switching allegiance to other nations too easily.

      America needs a mixture of both brands, because love of country
   requires both affirmation and criticism.

Many Asian Americans are personal embodiments of this ideal
mix. We give America our primary allegiance*. At the same time, we are
engaged in a great struggle prodding America to fulfill its core value --
equal opportunity for all Americans.