You're being downvoted, but I see no inherent contradiction between patriotism and leftism. So long as patriotism is understood as civic-mindedness and hatred for corruption and hierarchy, and not as xenophobia or exclusion.
I think for a lot of people, especially rural/working-class folk, the allegiance to the idea of their country is too primary to oppose. It's something that needs to be evolved out of, not just abolished outright. You'll only make unnecessary enemies if you tell them to 'abandon your father and mother, Amerikkka sucks, burn the shit down.' That's a message for urban youth, not rural families.
If that doesn't make sense to you - go back to theory. Not all classes are ready to support outright communism, they need a certain progression of change to get there. Or if you're taking the Maoist approach, you have to identify with the concerns of the class you're championing, you can't impose urban cosmopolitanism on a rural inward-looking population; unless you're doing it at gunpoint, I suppose.
Of course, you have to watch out for how patriotism is defined already, what the venerated symbols stand for. The American flag could be associated with a kind of Jeffersonianism, the opposition to central authority, the rights of the little folk who control their own means of production. But it's got a lot of baggage to overcome, and not just racism/imperialism/war - the standard school/media propaganda defines America as liberal and capitalist, so that's what a lot of people will default to.
Yes, thank you. That’s what I had in mind. I just think of Beau of the fifth column and how effective he is at talking to conservatives, particularly rural ones.
You're being downvoted, but I see no inherent contradiction between patriotism and leftism. So long as patriotism is understood as civic-mindedness and hatred for corruption and hierarchy, and not as xenophobia or exclusion.
I think for a lot of people, especially rural/working-class folk, the allegiance to the idea of their country is too primary to oppose. It's something that needs to be evolved out of, not just abolished outright. You'll only make unnecessary enemies if you tell them to 'abandon your father and mother, Amerikkka sucks, burn the shit down.' That's a message for urban youth, not rural families.
If that doesn't make sense to you - go back to theory. Not all classes are ready to support outright communism, they need a certain progression of change to get there. Or if you're taking the Maoist approach, you have to identify with the concerns of the class you're championing, you can't impose urban cosmopolitanism on a rural inward-looking population; unless you're doing it at gunpoint, I suppose.
Of course, you have to watch out for how patriotism is defined already, what the venerated symbols stand for. The American flag could be associated with a kind of Jeffersonianism, the opposition to central authority, the rights of the little folk who control their own means of production. But it's got a lot of baggage to overcome, and not just racism/imperialism/war - the standard school/media propaganda defines America as liberal and capitalist, so that's what a lot of people will default to.
Yes, thank you. That’s what I had in mind. I just think of Beau of the fifth column and how effective he is at talking to conservatives, particularly rural ones.