First off, check out my handle. Yes, I am in fact a visiting liberal. I understand that most of you won't agree with me on many ideological issues, and vice versa. I peruse Free Republic to get an idea of how conservatives think, because I honestly believe we should try to understand one another better.
That being said, this particular article inspired me to comment for the first time. I see the term "America-Bashing" used regularly in reference to liberals, and it honestly confuses me.
I love America. I grew up here, I've lived here all my life, and I wouldn't choose to live anywhere else unless I absolutely had to. But this doesn't - at least for me - equate to loving the government of America, or its policies. To me, love of America means supporting it when it's in the right, and correcting this country when it veers off course.
When the American revolution happened, this country's first patriots knew what it meant to love the British people and hate the British government. The first Americans basically were British, and thought of themselves as such. But the government had become too greedy, too powerful, too overbearing, and was punished for it.
We have a better system of punishing the government now. We remove our officials from office peacefully during elections. If they are criminal while in office, we remove them immediately and put them in jail. We replace them with, hopefully, better people. But we aren't beholden to them... They are beholden to us.
Now, it happens that you and I disagree on who in our current government are worthy individuals and who are not. We also strongly disagree on current foreign policy. You believe we are largely on the right course, while I believe we are not.
But what in that leads you to believe I actually hate America? Does a mother who corrects her child's misbehavior hate her child? No. She does it not despite her love, but because of it.
Disagree with me all you want... Disagreement is one thing that makes America great. But don't accuse me of hating my country.
So I take it that you didn't actually read the article, which is an analysis of the Marxist response to the failure of Marx's essential thesis - that the constant squeeze on the bottom line caused by competitive enterprise would force capitalists to immiserate the working class to such a degree that revolution becomes inevitable.
No immiseration - no revolution. No revolution - no socialism.
Thence the move to condemning America as the immiserator of the world.
So as an itinerant 'liberal', are you for or against that analysis?
Or else what?
Quite an ego you have there. America is not a "child" to be admonished, much less punished, especially by someone whose value system (liberalism) is antithetical to all America stands for.
The true political test, imo, is not 'love" for america, but an individuals support for and defense of our Constitution, as it is written.
Do you support the concept that the USA is a constitutional republic, and that the majority does ~not~ rule?
Do you support the concept that we have an individual right to bear arms that is being infringed by every level of government?
Do you support the concept that every level of our governments are misusing their 'police powers' to abridge our rights to life, liberty, or property, without using due process?
This list is far from complete, but please, feel free to tell us that as a liberal, you can pledge an oath to support & defend the Constitution as per the above concepts.
The fact that you are actively working to destroy it?