Darth InSidious

"Everything has a reason, and in the case of religion and patriotism that reason is what I see as a deficiency in character that makes people seek shelter from the big, bad world behind god or the nation. Humans cannot survive by closing their eyes and praying, or singing national anthems and hoping their country will sort stuff out for them. Humans survive by approaching the world with open eyes and open minds, seeing problems that stand in their way and solving them using the tools they have at their disposal. Humans survive through personal achievement, and achievement and the continued existence it brings is the source of pride. Pride is an acknowledgment of life, and it can't be anything but that. When someone says they are proud of anything that is not their own achievement, then it's not pride that they're talking about, but the lack of it. They feel that they should be proud of something (perhaps knowing on some level that pride and life are connected and the lack of one doesn't bode well for the other), but they can't find anything. Patriotism is the fear brought about by a lack of reasons to actually be proud, and as such the lack of an actual life that one has made worth living."

UGH I HATE THEM, DARATHY. More specifically, I hate misunderstandings and faux psychology, like the above. Darth Yuthura, for example, has consistently stuck with the same idea that pride in one's country is equivalent to pride in one's achievements. I don't know, that just seems incomprehensible to me. I tried explaining that they aren't the same thing but of course that got nowhere...

I know you love waving flags around which is why I'm complaining to you.