Free Republic

Is nationalism a good thing or a bad thing? Some people say that nationalism is bad, whereas patriotism is good. In the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, "patriotism" is defined as love for one's country or devotion for it, even to the point of sacrifice. It seems that there is no excess of patriotism in this sense, as it's always positive. The Merriam-Webster gives this example of use of the term: "You may not agree with him politically, but no one can question his patriotism." The two examples offered by the same source for "nationalism", on the other hand, are: "The war...

A lot of noise has been generated by Vladamir Putin’s negative stance on homosexuality, and by the (falsely so-called) moral posturing and preening in the West as we resolve (courageously!) to be represented at the coming Winter Olympics in Sochi by homosexual athletes. That’ll show him. Actually, it won’t show him anything. What makes Putin tick? What’s his game? What is he up to in all this? His basic ideology—after Putinism—is nationalism. He is therefore not interested in developing an international consensus on exploring sexual identities. He would be if something like that could be played out to Russia’s advantage,...

Defense Document Suggests Colonists Fighting British Rule were members of “extremist movement” (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today that it has obtained educational materials from the Department of Defense (DOD) depicting conservative organizations as “hate groups” and advising students to be aware that “many extremists will talk of individual liberties, states’ rights, and how to make the world a better place.” The documents repeatedly cite the leftwing Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as a resource for identifying “hate groups.”

The project of European integration, advanced by politicians and elites of defeated nations in the wake of the Second World War, was founded on the belief that nationhood and national self-determination were the prime causes of the wars that had ruined Europe. There were disputes as to who started it: Napoleon? Bismarck? The French Revolutionaries? The Revolutionaries of 1848? The Reactionaries and Monarchists? Metternich? Talleyrand? Garibaldi? Fichte? Wagner? Louis XIV? But, however far back you went, in the eyes of the post-war political survivors, you came across the demon of nationalism, locked in conflict with the pure spirit of Enlightenment....

First published on FrontPage Magazine. By Enza Ferreri Beside the birth of Prince George, the most significant event to take place in Britain over the last few months has been the incredible rise of a small party opposed to immigration, multiculturalism, the European Union, same-sex marriage — in short, all the things loved by the main parties and ruining Britain. Coming almost from nowhere, with support of barely 5% of the population, the UK Independent Party (UKIP) had a historical victory in November 2012, achieving a record second place in the by-election held in the northern town of Rotherham...

PROGRESS OF NATIONALISM IN THE UNITED STATES. BY EDWARD BELLAMY, AUTHOR OF "LOOKING BACKWARD." Technically, the term Nationalism, as descriptive of a definite doctrine of social and industrial reform, was first used in 1888 by clubs made up of persons who sympathized with the ideas of a proper industrial organization set forth in "Looking Backward," and believed in the feasibility of their substantial adoption as the actual basis of society. Nationalism, in this strict sense, is the doctrine of those who hold that the principle of popular government by the equal voice of all for the equal benefit of all,...

"Why did the Soviet Union disintegrate? Why did the Soviet Communist Party collapse? An important reason was that their ideals and convictions wavered," China's new leader, Xi Jinping, told a closed meeting of party elite in Guangdong province. "Finally all it took was one quiet word from Gorbachev to declare the dissolution of the Soviet Communist Party, and a great party was gone," said Xi, according to notes obtained by The New York Times. "Everyone is talking about reform, but in fact everyone has a fear of reform," said Chinese historian Ma Jong. "The question is: Can society be kept...

I'm An American, AND PROUD AS HELL!Thankfully I was born an American. Born in the greatest nation in the history of the world. But I became an American, slowly and decisively over my entire life, and these were but a few of my moments of decision; When my 92 year old great Grandfather, an immigrant for the bowels of depravity in Italy stood in a crowded church basement and took the pledge of allegiance to his beloved country to finally become a citizen, after struggling to overcome illiteracy and poverty, and raise a fine and honorable family. He had to...

Those of us who pay attention to such things will have noticed a difference between the BBC coverage of the Golden Jubilee in 2002 and of the present Diamond Jubilee. Ten years ago, the coverage was adequate, though reluctant and even a little stiff. This time, it has been gushing and completely uncritical. There are various possible reasons for my observation. The first is that I was mistaken then and am mistaken now. I do not think this is the case, but feel obliged to mention it. The second is that Golden Jubilees are rare events, and Diamond Jubilees very...

All hail, or should we say ‘heil,’ the rise of the Golden Dawn fascists in Greece. It’s all the rage (literally) in the streets of Greece these days. They now hold 21 seats in the Greek government – about 7% of the controlling body – and combined with the Communists, that control is closer to 20%. And their influence is not only growing there, but in Europe and the US. The darkness is rising once again and the Golden Dawn is telling those in power they should fear them now and indeed, they should take those threats to heart. Golden...

When it comes to American exceptionalism, Mitt Romney is going all in. His book “No Apology: The Case for American Greatness” is a love song to the idea that this country merits “the protection of Providence” and has a singular “calling” to be a beacon for freedom. A major theme for him on the campaign trail is the nation’s divine destiny, a heritage Romney said has made him “stand a little taller, a little straighter” when overseas. But what Romney doesn’t say is that, for followers of his made-in-America religion, Mormonism, exceptionalism isn’t political metaphor. It’s theology. The faith’s sacred...

During the latter part of the nineteenth century a coalition of moralists and social reformers sincerely thought that giving political power to women would eliminate all traditional social evils. After all, men had always ruled, and women were supposedly inherently more moral and more religious than men. Maybe this would fix everything. Thus the push for women's suffrage. And when it was all over, women were just like the men. I am going to suggest something absolutely outrageous. But it's been knocking around in my mind for a while, and I hope that the example of women's suffrage will show...

And the demonization of Serbs, Israelis, patriotic Americans, and the ongoing attacks against capitalism.The definition of "nationalism"--Webster's New World Dictionary 1982: a) devotion to one's nation; patriotism. b) excessive, narrow, or jingoist patriotism; chauvinism.the doctrine that national interest , security, etc. are more important than international considerations.the desire for or advocacy of national independence.  The definition most Americans would certainly agree with are,- 1. a)-devotion to one's nation; patriotism and all of # 2 & 3. But certainly not 1. b)-excessive, narrow, or jingoist patriotism; chauvinism.jingo- "a person who boasts of his patriotism and favors an aggressive , threatening , warlike foreign policy; chauvinist"-...

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said ahead of a meeting Friday with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak that he would warn his Israeli counterpart about the global economic consequences of a military strike on Iran's nuclear program, adding that he still favors sanctions and diplomacy over a strike.

In a clip from his interview with WSJ's Simon Constable, Dr. Nouriel Roubini insists that it was the policies of George W. Bush that caused the current U.S. economic crisis.

Classical political economists like Adam Smith or David Ricardo never used the term “economy” by itself. They always used the term “political economy.” For classical economists, it was impossible to understand politics without economics or economics without politics. The two fields are certainly different but they are also intimately linked. The use of the term “economy” by itself did not begin until the late 19th century. Smith understood that while an efficient market would emerge from individual choices, those choices were framed by the political system in which they were made, just as the political system was shaped by economic...

Resource nationalism is biggest risk to miners: report Sun Aug 7, 2011 2:11pm GMT LONDON (Reuters) - Resource nationalism is the biggest threat facing the mining sector this year and next as governments seek to take advantage of higher commodity prices to try to restore fragile finances, advisory and accountancy firm Ernst & Young (E&Y) said on Sunday. "Because the mining and metals sector rebounded quickly from the global financial crisis, it became an early target to help restore treasury conditions," the firm said. E&Y said it had identified at least 25 countries in 2010/11 that had increased, or announced...

Tell me who you are and I can tell you how you see the past. That vanishing country falling away behind us. Are we on the way up or the way down? Are we better off than we were four years ago, or forty or four hundred? Is this the best of times or the worst of times? The answer lies inside you. It is defined by your values. For some capacitive touchscreens and infinite channels mean a brighter future. For others, the values of home and family, dignity and country, that were lost matter more than the swipe pass...

The final Space Shuttle mission ended last week, amidst calls for Washington to cut spending. The Shuttle program cost over $200bln, not to mention 14 lives, while giving little in return. Clearly a Shuttle launch was a majestic site; no one had ever assembled a machine so complicated that had to perform perfectly. Still, at over $400 million per pop, these are expensive warm-fuzzy moments. The Shuttles’ accomplishments were few. They launched satellites that could have been delivered to orbit cheaper by unmanned rockets. They built a space station that replaced an existing station – both of which served no...

The live leak online manifesto of Anders Behring Breivik