It's Memorial Day. Let's stop for a moment and remember those who have given their all so we can enjoy our barbecues today.
And let's contemplate the possibility that there's another facet of patriotism in addition to standing behind our armed service folks as they fight to keep us safe. David Broder quotes Bob Kerry, former Nebraska governor and senator,
The patriotic and heroic stories I heard in my youth caused me to believe that my nation was never wrong and that my leaders would never lie to me. When the sand of this foundation blew away, I lost my patriotism. In the second half of my life, I rebuilt this foundation on something sturdier: the observation that Americans at their best can be unimaginably generous and willing to put their lives on the line for the freedom and well-being of others.
In 1773, Founding Father Benjamin Rush wrote,
Patriotism is as much a virtue as justice, and is as necessary for the support of societies as natural affection is for the support of families. . . . It comprehends not only the love of our neighbors, but of millions of our fellow creatures, not only of the present but of future generations.
There's a lot to do, both here and abroad, and I can't think of a better way to counteract the narrow-minded hate we've seen so much of recently than to get on with volunteering to make others' lives better.
It's also time to ratchet up our international presence.
Clearly, we are the world's dominant power. Militarily, we have no head-on competition. With the F-22 and Joint Strike Fighter in the air, aircraft carriers and other powerful surface ships at sea, and the Special Operations fighters and the coming Land Warrior system on land, we hardly need war-fighting allies.
Economically, we stand alone in the world. Regional groups such as the Pacific Rim and European Union show signs of emerging power, but for now the US dominates; as the dollar goes, so goes the world.
So, what's to fear? We found out on September 11 that the barbarians at the gates can hurt us. We also discovered a serious undercurrent of dislike and distrust throughout the world. Dominance builds frustration and, inevitably, outright hostility.
Building long-term national success requires paying a complex level of attention to all three areas of international relationships: military, trade, and what could be called world citizenship. We have the first two down pretty well; there's a lot of work to do on the third.
Time passes; expectations rise. It's no longer good enough to subjugate the known world with military power the way Rome, Alexander the Great, and Genghis Khan did, and we know that economic domination isn't enough, either. I don't think my grandchildren will have a happy life in this country if we don't start paying a lot more attention to our world citizenship duties.
10:04:16 PM 
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