Liberals and Conservatives Both Love America, but in Different Ways

I have grown quite weary of hearing the same old tired arguments that people on the left hate America. Conservatives love to tout that they are the true patriots and that Liberals seek to somehow destroy America in some fashion, it's never really clear what it is that we advocate that leads to that supposed destruction. The truth is that both sides love their country; both Liberals and Conservatives are patriotic. However, they are patriotic in different ways from one another. There cannot be a better example to delineate this difference than looking to how both sides react to dissent, both from popular politics as well as from within their own party.

The Difference in Maturity

Liberals love their country the way that an adult loves something. While their love is honestly unconditional, they are willing to tell the person that they love when they are doing something wrong. When conditions are negative, they react by working to make a change and help the situation become better. They give support that is based on the nature of the relationship rather than on the particular environment of the moment. This is the way that an adult reacts within a relationship of love. Honest disagreement is evidence that they actually love the person/country; not that they hate it. They want the country to be better than it currently is, to live up to its potential. Hate is demonstrated by apathy within a relationship moreso than it is action. True patriotism is striving to force the country to maintain its principles and become the best it can. If Liberals truly hated this country they would be indifferent to it and see to create society under a different organizing principle.

Conservatives love their country the way that a small child loves its parents. The relationship is based on what is going on that moment only. On one hand they see no wrong in what their parents do. A small child isn't able to decide to love a parent more or less based on the character of that parent. Children love their parents even if they beat them, molest them, or abandon them. This is the same as Conservatives. They define patriotism as blind adherence to authority and never allowing in the possibility that anything the country has ever done is wrong. They define dissent and disagreement as hating one's country and not being patriotic. Unlike Liberals they are quick to move their allegiances away from the country and into those small outlets of political agreement that serve as the basis of their identity.

The Reaction to Dissent

When there is dissent with the national direction among Liberals, their response is to create grassroots efforts and make political arguments to convince the democratic electorate to their point of view. This is the foundation of the Change movement and the election of Barack Obama. Many Liberals saw the Bush administration as a mark on what the true character of America is and chose to correct this by pushing that very political system to work for them. They fought for democracy to see the light in how they saw it. And as we all know, were rewarded when Obama was elected with an over 60% majority.

When there is internal dissent in the party, the reaction is much the same. The party is treated as a marketplace of ideas and many of the same dynamics of persuasion and democracy reign. They become the subject of serious debate amongst those in similar political influence. What ideas ultimately form the direction of the party are based on pragmatism and democracy; those same principles that govern the country as a whole.

Conservatives, on the other hand, react to dissent in a wildly different way. When they disagree with the direction of the nation, they redefine that which they do not agree with as being anti-American. The love America when they agree with its national direction and hate it when it operates under different principles. This is similar to a small child beaming with delight when he gets a new toy and throwing a screaming temper tantrum in the cereal isle when they don't get what they want. This is evidenced in the recent Tea Party protests that occurred. There was no unifying principle behind them, just a general distaste with a nation that no longer agreed with their radical agenda. They decried tyranny from a leader that had not been in office long enough to effect the ramifications of his new policies; they protested a tax code that their former president had implemented without realizing it. This is similar to Gov. Rick Perry of Texas hinting at secession because he disagrees with the president. It is also similar to Glen Beck publicly advocating violent uprising on his TV show from thinly evidenced threat scenarios that have no real grounding in the actual politics of the country.

Reaction are no calmer in response to dissent within the party; in fact at times they are more harsh. Internal dissent in Republican politics is not permitted in any format. Having a different opinion is grounds for being expelled from the party, no longer able to receive their political support. De facto leader Rush Limbaugh will relentlessly campaign against everything that is you, making up stories to destroy your political career for the egregious act of thinking for yourself. Often, the national party will respond by backing a primary candidate to beat you in the next election.

The internal and external politics of the Democratic and Republican parties are disparate at best. Their dynamics make it difficult to understand from both ends what it is actually like to be a member of the other side. Republicans think that Democrats hate America because were one of them to disagree with the will of the party it would be understood by the rest of the Republicans as an affront to their vision of America and thus anti-American. The sides are completely different; seeking to understand the culture of both parties is a particularly difficult task. But when it comes down to it, mature or immature, they both honestly believe that they love their country and are true patriots.