I too am proud to be a citizen of the greatest country ever. I just want it to stay that way. Way too many people worked way to hard to see it going the way it is at the moment. True patriotism is doing what is right for the country. Sometimes that means being against the present political order. Example is Zimbabwe -- who is the greater patriot? The party hack who is bulldozing shanties and running off productive white farmers (supporting their President, right or wrong) or the opposition leader willing to face jail, torture and death to say that Mugabe is a nutcase? Same analysis applies to Cuba. Same analysis applies here. Not to say that Bush equates to Castro or Mugabe: He clearly does not. But to say that just following by itself is not patriotism. Following what you believe to be right for your country is patriotism, and sometimes that is to go against those presently in power. Sometimes it is to follow those in power to the end of the earth. At the moment, my best judgment is to go against.

That is what I think is so misleading about the argument -- people confuse following Roosevelt in WW2 (which I happen to believe was 100% correct and had many relatives fighting in -- I am not old enough myself) with following Bush today (which I believe has made us weaker and has deteracted the military from the role it should be playing -- wiping out existing terrorists, not creating training grounds for new ones).