Does a spectrum exist between protest and mob? If so, where do the women who descended upon Trump wearing pussy hats fit in? Protestors or mob? What about me individually? I watched and approved of this as a demonstration, though I was not vocal about it. This is as opposed to the ”Not My President” nonsense. That was when Trump was president seven years ago, and history books still record it. So my position was right then to say, ”No, the reality is that he is your President, and you must decide what to do about that.”
What about patriots? I do not believe a patriot can be a protestor. A group of patriots is not a mob but rather our armed forces.
You don't believe a patriot can be a protestor? American history is full of protests, seen as forging our essential national character. The defining image of the original Patriots was the Boston Tea Party, a mobbish act of property destruction. One of the most celebrated moments of the Civil Rights protest movement was explicitly an appeal to patriotic ideals.
"One white woman, who watched King’s speech on TV, apparently changed her mind about the nature of the civil rights movement, telling a journalist for the Atlanta Constitution that 'after it was over, I was proud of the Negro and proud of America. I’d thought they were just going to criticize us white people. He made my country seem so beautiful I felt like I wanted to shake his hand.'"
In fact, not surprisingly, the word is much older than that, per the American Heritage Dictionary:
"French patriote, from Old French, compatriot, from Late Latin patriōta, from Greek patriōtēs, from patrios, of one's fathers, from patēr, patr-, father"
And no, words, including "freedom fighter" and "terrorist" have real meanings, not ones we make up because we like them. Otherwise, communication breaks down.
I think you're right about the word origins. My thinking goes along the lines of, ”Individuals bound together in a shared reality provided by our Constitution and Bill of Rights”. When I see individuals obviously opposed to our rights, wanting to alter these rights, they are talking about trying to change my reality, and I hope most of our shared reality.
I think my reality is broader than even I think. A good poll question to answer that would be, ”Do you support nullifying all Constitutional Amendments and declaring Donald Trump to be President of the United States?”. Anyone who answers that with a yes is not living in the same reality as me.
They're not patriots. We are patriots. I remember learning the Bill of Rights in middle school. My basic understanding, by my own reading, has changed little since then, but is more nuanced. I see what you're saying though, as an individual in Chile cold be a patriot for Chile, etc.
Does a spectrum exist between protest and mob? If so, where do the women who descended upon Trump wearing pussy hats fit in? Protestors or mob? What about me individually? I watched and approved of this as a demonstration, though I was not vocal about it. This is as opposed to the ”Not My President” nonsense. That was when Trump was president seven years ago, and history books still record it. So my position was right then to say, ”No, the reality is that he is your President, and you must decide what to do about that.”
What about patriots? I do not believe a patriot can be a protestor. A group of patriots is not a mob but rather our armed forces.
You don't believe a patriot can be a protestor? American history is full of protests, seen as forging our essential national character. The defining image of the original Patriots was the Boston Tea Party, a mobbish act of property destruction. One of the most celebrated moments of the Civil Rights protest movement was explicitly an appeal to patriotic ideals.
www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/08/28/when-protest-is-patriotic/
"One white woman, who watched King’s speech on TV, apparently changed her mind about the nature of the civil rights movement, telling a journalist for the Atlanta Constitution that 'after it was over, I was proud of the Negro and proud of America. I’d thought they were just going to criticize us white people. He made my country seem so beautiful I felt like I wanted to shake his hand.'"
In fact, not surprisingly, the word is much older than that, per the American Heritage Dictionary:
"French patriote, from Old French, compatriot, from Late Latin patriōta, from Greek patriōtēs, from patrios, of one's fathers, from patēr, patr-, father"
And no, words, including "freedom fighter" and "terrorist" have real meanings, not ones we make up because we like them. Otherwise, communication breaks down.
I think you're right about the word origins. My thinking goes along the lines of, ”Individuals bound together in a shared reality provided by our Constitution and Bill of Rights”. When I see individuals obviously opposed to our rights, wanting to alter these rights, they are talking about trying to change my reality, and I hope most of our shared reality.
I think my reality is broader than even I think. A good poll question to answer that would be, ”Do you support nullifying all Constitutional Amendments and declaring Donald Trump to be President of the United States?”. Anyone who answers that with a yes is not living in the same reality as me.
They're not patriots. We are patriots. I remember learning the Bill of Rights in middle school. My basic understanding, by my own reading, has changed little since then, but is more nuanced. I see what you're saying though, as an individual in Chile cold be a patriot for Chile, etc.