I think the US celebrates nationalism through a sl...

2009-07-07T09:37:42.727-04:00

I think the US celebrates nationalism through a slightly different vein. Like the "love it or leave it" kinda of mentality. In the US - "if you're not one of us, you're against us". In Quebec, it seems to be more of a show of force - "We are Québécois, look how awesome we are!".

I think we'll never see a streak of nationalism ala Quebec (or any other country) because of the nature of our country. There are so many core tenants that seem to need to be in place to support nationalism, and as a country setup as a melting pot, it is going to be hard to distill and refine those tenants. In all other countries, it has been the basic commonialities - religion, language, history - that serve as the glue for nationalism. In the US, we have meta-representations of those cores, but not every individual is here in the US for the same reasons.

We've had moments of it in the past, but it took extraordinary external forces (I'm looking at you, 9/11) to bring the country together a little bit. But just as quickly, those values have faded away and brought us back to pre-event levels.

I had a thought this morning, as I was offered coffee for 2.5 euro on an Air Lingus flight between Dublin and Paris - why the hell does the US still have its own currency? All these proud and old nations were able to bury the hatchet and start at a common ground. And judging by the fact that it took me $250 USD to make 150 Euros shows how strong such a coalition can be (it was closer to $242-ish, and that includes the $8 exchange fee, but you get the drift).

Comments on Hall's Stream of Consciousness: Les Fêtes Nationaux

I think the US celebrates nationalism through a sl...