The Conservative Definition of Good Citizenship

In recent weeks I have found myself discussing current affairs and politics with people of the conservative persuasion and I have taken note of an interesting pattern of thinking that they possess.

It seems that to a conservative a good American citizen is one who blindly follows the leadership and does not upset the status quo. Apparently it is a seditious act to exercise one's right to freedom of expression and downright treasonous to question authority.

I say this because on various occasions I have had the audacity to speak my mind on such issues as the war on terror, immigration and the abuse of power by law enforcement. Mind you, I am not one who would ever support the overthrow of the government nor would I advocate violence as a means to get my point across but as an American I feel that I have every right to question the government and our leadership when I feel that something is not being done in the best interest of our country.

Just the other day while enjoying a nice cup of coffee at a local coffee house I entered into a discussion regarding the burning of the American flag during protests. The conservative I was speaking with felt that these people should be beaten and jailed and to hell with the fact that people are allowed to burn the flag. I tried to explain that I agreed that burning our flag was a despicable act but until a law is passed to ban such activity then we must accept that some people choose to partake in this activity.

And when I voiced my displeasure over wiretapping and the Gitmo fiasco the conservative turned on me and told me that if I cared about my country then I would just accept that these things are to be a part of the sacrifice citizens must make in this day and age. He went on to say that if I was against keeping America safe then perhaps I should find another place to live.

Excuse me, but I am not quite ready to voluntarily relinquish my freedoms just yet and especially when it has been almost 5 years since 9/11 and I have yet to see and credible evidence that another attack is imminent. People, given a long enough timeline I am quite certain we will be attacked again but I seriously doubt we will see it any time soon. In the meantime, Bush and Cheney keep playing to peoples fears and use this as an excuse to abuse their power more and more. Word to your mother.

Conservatives want blind ignorance to be the key trait of good citizenship. Sorry, I can't do it.

Tagged For: Politics * America * Citizenship