Patriot
n. One who loves, supports, and defends one's country. [French patriote, from Old French, compatriot, from Late Latin patri ta, from Greek patri t s, from patrios, of one's fathers, from pat r, patr-, father; see p ter- in Indo-European roots.]
This is a word bandied about by certain political parties in the United States as if only conservative Right-wing Americans have the right to call themselves Patriots. That is untrue. Where that idea came from, I am not certain. Perhaps it is a holdover from the Vietnam era, when war protestors were considered the antithesis of patriotic. It might have been true in some respects then too, or it might not have.
It is certainly not true today.
Theodore Roosevelt said, “This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless we make it a good place for all of us to live in.” Think about that. Love of country is not limited to those who stand on the mall in Washington DC and yap about taking America back. Back from whom? The rest of us? We love our country too. We vote, we fight in wars, we worry about the future. We are patriots too.
We might not let them have it back.
