What does your country mean to you?
Asked by
pleiades (
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March 3rd, 2013
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31 Answers
Home, a safe place (until 9/11 anyhow), mostly good people, diverse people, gives aid to everyone. I have 2 countries, USA and Australia and I am proud to be of both of them. Sometimes I don’t agree with the politics, but there is no place in the world that is perfect so I’ll stick with these two.
It’s home and it’s familiar and it’s where I belong. I like the hills and the rivers and the city streets. I like the rough edged kindness of the people and I even like the weather. Even the rain.
Sometimes great pride and something worthy of honor.
Sometimes acute embarrassment and shame. Both of these are largely due to the actions of our government and our leaders, and the way the portray America.
As a country, it’s where I was born and have made my home. The land and most of the people – I am glad to live here. But sometimes even good citizens do stupid things.
It’s the location in which, through no fault or choice of my own, I happened to be born.
It’s a place with little unique culture to speak of, and an absurdly bloody and violent history for its short years.
Tim Minchin sums up my feelings nicely in his song, “This Is My World”.
I’m not sure I actually see much of a country here anymore. There’s so little “we” to be found here, no sense of common purpose, no sense of working together for each others’ benefit, no willingness to tackle big problems. Instead of a country, I see a well armed feeding frenzy.
@thorninmud: Oh man, that hurts. I was just going to say a nation of Pied Noirs who are trying to find someone lower than themselves to oppress.
I certainly concede that there are numerous good things about my native country, but this is the way that I tend to conceptualize it when thinking in terms of history or politics.
A lot, but not to wear it on my sleeve.
Terrible frustration much of the time at this juncture; but much love of its beauty too.
I’m not a big fan of country (meaning nation). I’m more of a fan of country (meaning the area around where you live). Sure, I can be swayed by the TV announcers during the Olympics, and I’m always in favor of good ol’ USA, but I think it is stupid to separate people around the world when we would all be much more better off remembering how much we are the same.
The area around me I know better. I know the people and the geography. I know the culture. I know who is doing what where. So I get a sense of identify from that.
The sense of identity I get from my country as nation is more of a made-up thing. It’s marketing. I don’t like being marketed into something. It’s not even real, since there are many people in my country who do things I don’t approve of. So it’s hard to identify with them. They don’t seem like the kinds of Americans I want us to be.
It ain’t perfect, this old U.S.A of ours, but oh man, I thankful to have been born here, and, though I’ve flirted with moving to other countries, I intend to die here. Why? Because notwithstanding all the fear-mongering by the extreme Righties, I believe we’re got a pretty damned good deal.
My country, the USA, means very much to me. I love the history about the brave people who gave their lives to make this a free country, which gives me the many liberties I enjoy.
To me, our democracy means that all political parties are ever-evolving and argumentative, and hopefully we the people will benefit from that. I love our variety of people and languages and food, our melting pot of cultures, talents and dreams.
Our land is as varied & beautiful as our people, with astounding natural landscapes and features. Sure our government leaves something to be desired and conspiracy theories and secrets abound, but for a regular person like me, I can’t imagine living anywhere else permanently.
The best country in the world, in my opinion. I love Canada.
The U.S. is a marvel of varied topography. I am constantly amazed. The people are equally varied. It’s large enough to be broken into separate countries and sometimes I think it should be. If our government doesn’t start working together, it may happen in the future. I love my country, but I don’t think we’re managing it very well.
@Sunny2 Our politicians are all so incredibly corrupt and our government so secretive, I can’t imagine anything less than a minimum-wage salary to keep kickbacks and earmarks from ruining our country. Whichever party is in control.
Man. Everytime someone asks what I think about my country, I always wonder what they are talking about.
I don’t have a country. I am a citizen of the earth.
I find it interesting that the only responses that received more than 2 lurves are the ones criticizing their respective countries. (with the exception of @Pachyderm_In_The_Room which is not critical???) Wonder why that is.
People agree, yet are afraid Big Brother is tracking responses?
Mine was a reference to Ultravox, so whatever.
@tinyfaery So are the hyena that steal its prey from the predator who worked for its food.
Uhh…I’ll take that into consideration next time I talk to a hyena.
@pleiades
And so are the multinational capitalists that deny workers the deserved fruit of their labour.
I can’t even begin to answer this question. I was born in one. Chose to live in another, and then ended up stuck in a third. I have three countries. I am fond of all three for different reasons. I dislike things about all three for very different reasons. I would never, ever, call any of the three, ‘My country’, but there is one that I have the closest and fondest feelings for. I wouldn’t say I had a country, but I do feel that I had a home.
If I try to answer this futher, I am just going to cry, so I have to stop now.
@ragingloli I saw two men fishing on a pier. Both started at 1pm, it took one 2 hours for one of the fishermen to capture 5. The other man stayed an additional 3 hours to catch 5 fish.
Then, later that night, I watch 3 buddies climb onto the rocks that kissed the tide. They spent 30 minutes grabbing crabs and storing them in buckets.
@pleiades
Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
I’ve been further even more decided to use even go need to do look more as anyone can. Can you really be far even as decided half as much to use go wish for that? My guess is that when one really been far even as decided once to use even go want, it is then that he has really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like. It’s just common sense.
Thank God I live in a country where my reflection of how hard I work is the result of my pay scale.
Excelling at “lessons learned”.
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