Patriotism?
Arriving back at Singapore yesterday, I could not help but admire the quality and efficiency of our airport in comparision to that of most other countries. Not that I like to compare, but the constrast is stark upon touching down. There's just something about Changi which makes it stand out. The atmosphere (I'll bet they had quite a couple of interior designers designing the place), the amount of shops, and the slick, hassle-free way you can just walk out of the airport without waiting for a long time to clear the immigration. I suppose you can say that there was a swell of national pride in me then, but prior to that, I had a rather different feeling when I first touched down on Singapore soil. It's more of a sense of relief at finally being home.
Its difficult to explain, but while the world outside is certainly more attractive than Singapore in a way, there is just that sense of relief when you're finally back. The weather here's terribly warm and humid, not to mention boring (I think I'll certainly enjoy a temperature climate more than a tropical one. It'll probably be troublesome, but I think its more interesting to have different moods in different seasons of the year (= .) ; there's a ton of work to do when you're back, but somehow you feel relieved in a sense. Perhaps I was just relieved at being back in a place in which I'm familiar with, a place in which I grew up in, a place in which I knew where to find what. This feeling along with the upsurge of national pride later made me quenstioned once more about patriotism.
Patriotism... loyalty towards one state.. What is it exactly that makes us loyal to the state? Why are we loyal to.... certain people, certain organisations? I guess its because we feel.. in debt to that particular organisation or person,and we feel its just right for us to repay it. Our loyalty is but the least we could do after what the person or organisation has done for us. That is what I feel towards AC, and I suppose that's why we always want AC to be the best - because we're loyal to it and we always want to see its flag fly high. I suppose the same applies to nations. Yet, there is a big difference between the two. People have killed in the name of patriotism, but I don't suppose anyone has ever done so for an institution/school.
The big question then is... why the difference? Certainly not because the nation has done more than an institution/school in making you the person you are... but perhaps because when people fight to defend a nation, they do so to defend their homes? Their material possessions, their values and their beliefs. Of course, the glaring difference is that no school has a military arm or weapons or anything close to that. Patriotism... something often touted as a value desired for.. but is it truly beneficial for the human race? Is it not because of patriotism that countries are divided? Is it not because of patriotism that wars are fought? National pride, territorial claims, fights over resources to name a few. All in the name of the state. In the words of Bertrand Russell, ' Patriotism is the willingness to kill, or be killed for trivial reasons'. Personally, I've always thought that patriotism is what divides us as a human race. Consider the amount of energies we've wasted in attempting to outwit each another when these could have been put into something more constructive, something which can further the human race. (I suppose it can be argued that competition advances the human race, but not when you spend so much time trying to devise new and better ways of killing each other). Sounds idealistic perhaps, but yes; I suppose I am to a certain extent, someone who believes in these ideals. Ideals to further the human race as a whole, to reach for the stars and beyond. It's human nature to not trust what we do not know.. and I guess that's one of the problems with the idea of countries. Mistrust exists between us all, and it divdes humanity. There is nothing wrong with being loyal to one country, but to be willing to kill for it is. At least in my opinion anyway. Being loyal means standing up to help and defend it in times of crisis, but defending does not equate to killing. Being loyal means working to keep the flag flying high, but you do so not by making other flags fly lower. We all want the organisation to which we are loyal to do better than the rest, but the competition should never become hostile. The other side is not necessarily worse off than us, just different. The absolute belief that one's country is better off than another is but one reason why wars have started. Absolute truths, indeed, may just be the bane of humanity. There's a lot to go on about this, but I shall not go further for the time being.
Patriotism is good only as long as we do not go to extreme ends to further the country's needs. By extreme ends, I refer to anything, be it economically, politically or militarily, which will affect another country in a negative manner. To do so is to simply commit crimes against humanity. There is.. nothing wrong with patriotism in its most basic essence, but many have commited crimes against humanity in its name. Patriotism creates rivalry among countries and so threatens to divide humanity... but if at the end of the day, we can look beyond this narrow definition of loyalty and realise that we all belong to the human race, then there is no harm. Friendly rivalry will serve naught but to bring humanity to greater heights; but it is a fine line to draw. Lose sight of the fact that the rivalry is friendly, and patriotism will divide humanity as it has always done. Lose sight of it, and patriotism would be the bane of humanity.
'If I knew something that would serve my country but would harm mankind, I would never reveal it; for I am a citizen of humanity first and by necessity, and a citizen of France second, and only by accident.' - Montesquieu
Its difficult to explain, but while the world outside is certainly more attractive than Singapore in a way, there is just that sense of relief when you're finally back. The weather here's terribly warm and humid, not to mention boring (I think I'll certainly enjoy a temperature climate more than a tropical one. It'll probably be troublesome, but I think its more interesting to have different moods in different seasons of the year (= .) ; there's a ton of work to do when you're back, but somehow you feel relieved in a sense. Perhaps I was just relieved at being back in a place in which I'm familiar with, a place in which I grew up in, a place in which I knew where to find what. This feeling along with the upsurge of national pride later made me quenstioned once more about patriotism.
Patriotism... loyalty towards one state.. What is it exactly that makes us loyal to the state? Why are we loyal to.... certain people, certain organisations? I guess its because we feel.. in debt to that particular organisation or person,and we feel its just right for us to repay it. Our loyalty is but the least we could do after what the person or organisation has done for us. That is what I feel towards AC, and I suppose that's why we always want AC to be the best - because we're loyal to it and we always want to see its flag fly high. I suppose the same applies to nations. Yet, there is a big difference between the two. People have killed in the name of patriotism, but I don't suppose anyone has ever done so for an institution/school.
The big question then is... why the difference? Certainly not because the nation has done more than an institution/school in making you the person you are... but perhaps because when people fight to defend a nation, they do so to defend their homes? Their material possessions, their values and their beliefs. Of course, the glaring difference is that no school has a military arm or weapons or anything close to that. Patriotism... something often touted as a value desired for.. but is it truly beneficial for the human race? Is it not because of patriotism that countries are divided? Is it not because of patriotism that wars are fought? National pride, territorial claims, fights over resources to name a few. All in the name of the state. In the words of Bertrand Russell, ' Patriotism is the willingness to kill, or be killed for trivial reasons'. Personally, I've always thought that patriotism is what divides us as a human race. Consider the amount of energies we've wasted in attempting to outwit each another when these could have been put into something more constructive, something which can further the human race. (I suppose it can be argued that competition advances the human race, but not when you spend so much time trying to devise new and better ways of killing each other). Sounds idealistic perhaps, but yes; I suppose I am to a certain extent, someone who believes in these ideals. Ideals to further the human race as a whole, to reach for the stars and beyond. It's human nature to not trust what we do not know.. and I guess that's one of the problems with the idea of countries. Mistrust exists between us all, and it divdes humanity. There is nothing wrong with being loyal to one country, but to be willing to kill for it is. At least in my opinion anyway. Being loyal means standing up to help and defend it in times of crisis, but defending does not equate to killing. Being loyal means working to keep the flag flying high, but you do so not by making other flags fly lower. We all want the organisation to which we are loyal to do better than the rest, but the competition should never become hostile. The other side is not necessarily worse off than us, just different. The absolute belief that one's country is better off than another is but one reason why wars have started. Absolute truths, indeed, may just be the bane of humanity. There's a lot to go on about this, but I shall not go further for the time being.
Patriotism is good only as long as we do not go to extreme ends to further the country's needs. By extreme ends, I refer to anything, be it economically, politically or militarily, which will affect another country in a negative manner. To do so is to simply commit crimes against humanity. There is.. nothing wrong with patriotism in its most basic essence, but many have commited crimes against humanity in its name. Patriotism creates rivalry among countries and so threatens to divide humanity... but if at the end of the day, we can look beyond this narrow definition of loyalty and realise that we all belong to the human race, then there is no harm. Friendly rivalry will serve naught but to bring humanity to greater heights; but it is a fine line to draw. Lose sight of the fact that the rivalry is friendly, and patriotism will divide humanity as it has always done. Lose sight of it, and patriotism would be the bane of humanity.
'If I knew something that would serve my country but would harm mankind, I would never reveal it; for I am a citizen of humanity first and by necessity, and a citizen of France second, and only by accident.' - Montesquieu
posted by Jun Yi at 10:23 PM
1 Comments:
Hmm, no.. In my opinion, there can be no just war. We have no right to take away the life of another person; even if he wishes to take ours. In the case of dire self-defence, we should only attempt to disarm and not kill. If we should die in the process, then its regretable but at least we go forth with our heads held high and our conscience clear.
In the scenario you described, perhaps then the country could merge with another? In a form of a federation perhaps? Sovereignty would be violated, yet what is sovereignty but another name of pride? If all the countries in the world could lay down their pride and self-interest to form a large federation of humanity, then the world would be a much nicer place. And.. I suppose one can also, as in all things, pray for guidance from God in such situations.=)
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