Ah nationalism....
The loyalty to nations and their flags and songs has lead to things far worse than just standing at attention with the right hand placed over the heart. Nationalistic tendencies lead to conflicting narratives and outright lies. Take the example of the War of 1812. I live in Canada, and I was always taught the "we" won the war (rah, rah, Canada!) My mom was raised in the States and she was taught that America won the war. Funny innit?
Of course this pales in comparison to the violence and bloodshed that's born of nationalistic fervor. But I'm glad to see more and more people waking up from that. And I'm glad that you're writings have been a big part of this awakening.
Nobody wins a war. Except the banksters, crony capitalists and politicians.
Very true. It took me a long time to realize this.
I have American cousins and yes, they believe the US "won" the War of 1812. It's pointless to argue with them and links to online articles validating the British/Canadian win over the US were ignored. In any case, nationalism causes more harm than good as far as I'm concerned.