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Entry: Nationalism is What We Need Now--The Case for an "Unpatriotic Conservatism" Link: http://www.takimag.com/site/article/nationalism_is_what_we_need_now_a_case_for_an_unpatriotic_conservatism#23429 Post contents: I don't disagree with Scott that nationalism can play into the hands of many evil causes; again, I'm not simply reversing the values and saying that nationalism is always good and patriotism is always evil. I'm saying that neither idea is an unmixed good. Let me ask this question of my interlocutors: do you really think George W. Bush is a nationalist, with his preference for open borders and mass immigration and small concern for national sovereignty? Scott raises the question of the cause of the Iraq War. There are lots of kinds of causes. The weight of my argument does not rest on the idea of the American public causing the war in the sense of instigating it. My point is that the hybristic patriotism of the public (and conservatives) was necessary for its continuation and for Bush's re-election in 2004. Scott is correct that the public's error was in trusting Bush and his cronies. But why was the public inclined to make that mistake, and why are many conservatives inclined to continue making it? I find some kind of patriotism -- perverted or excessive -- is involved. If I read my interlocutors correctly, they suggest that this motive or tendency should be called nationalism instead. But it doesn't look like nationalism to me. It looks like love of country taken in the wrong direction. Good motives can lead to bad policies. Sent at: 2008 05 16