On this date in the year 1775, the most prominent Man of Letters of his era, Dr. Samuel Johnson, “dined at a Tavern, with numerous company,” according to his biographer James Boswell, who was among the company. The conversation turning to wild animals, Johnson announced that “we are told, that the black bear is innocent; but I should not like to trust myself with him.” Shortly thereafter, “Patriotism having become one of our topicks, Johnson suddenly uttered, in a strong determined tone, an apophthegm, at which many will start: `Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.’” (James Boswell, Life of Johnson, Oxford, 1991, p. 615)
Johnson’s eminently sound advice about black bears is, sadly, not widely cited. But his vexing dictum regarding patriotism remains one of his most widely quoted (actually, it’s usually misquoted) pronouncements (Johnson rarely simply speaks; he pronounces, in what invariably comes across in Boswell’s lively transcriptions as “strong, determined tones”; if you are as charmed by that kind of thing as I am, you will enjoy Boswell’s Life as I do). Boswell, who spends a good chunk of the 1784 pages that make up my edition apologizing for, explaining, and otherwise spinning Johnson’s remarks hastens to add that “he did not mean real and generous love of our country, but that pretended patriotism which so many, in all ages and countries, have made a cloak for self-interest.”
Of course, for most of us, patriotism is an unhappy necessity, like lawyers and mole-traps. It’s usually sitting in the corner of the closet underneath the ever-increasing pile of stuff that needs to go to the dry cleaners, only to be rushed out, polished up quick and tied to the car antenna, stuck to the trunk with magnetic backing, or emblazoned on a t-shirt whenever the Commander-in-Chief deems it time to let loose the dogs of war for a bit of sport and exercise, which nearly every President does at least once in his term. Seriously: how patriotic were you feeling on September 10, 2001?
Hah! I can tell you–not very! The Onion had your number–you were just as absorbed as I was in “the Gary Condit scandal and Britney Spears’ skimpy outfit at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards…. shark attacks [and] what’s-his-name, that Little Leaguer who was too old to play… the DVD release of Joe Dirt, the latest web-browsing cell phones, and how-low-can-you-go hip-hugging jeans, … the latest developments in the Cruise-Cruz romance.” Damn, I’d forgot all about Joe Dirt. Anyway: days later, of course, We All Came Together As One, jacked-up on patriotism the likes of which had not been seen since Team USA beat the Russians at Lake Placid, we were absolutely mainlining the stuff, and we pretty much agreed as One with the Roman poet Horace that dulce et decorum est—it is a sweet and fitting thing, to die for one’s country—and decided, as One, to commence an eight year bombing campaign against Afghanistan that would thereby deliver a great many unwilling and unappreciative Afghanis to precisely such a sweet and fitting fate.
Not to worry; they’re quite used to it. Their nine year war against the Russians took 1 million Afghan lives. left 1.2 million disabled, and created 7 million refugees, and I won’t even get into the stuff about the kids; which was followed by an ongoing civil war, during which, Human Rights Watch (July 2001) noted, “ all major factions have repeatedly committed serious violations of international law, including killings, indiscriminate aerial bombardment and shelling, direct attacks on civilians, summary executions, rape, persecution on the basis of religion, and the use of antipersonnel landmines.” A few months later, the United States, unpersuaded that these most wretched of people had suffered enough, decided to unleash an endless stream of 2,000 lb bombs on their stone age villages.
You may also recall that it was considered decidely unpatriotic to cast aspersions on these bombing runs, as Bill Maher did on September 17, 2001, resulting in being dropped by a number of sponsors and then ABC itself. Maher’s back on the air, having properly atoned for his sins and explained, pace Boswell, that he “like[s] the flag plenty,” as well as “the freedom it represents” (cited in White, below). Whew. Maher’s an avowed atheist—but at heart he’s a patriot! Like Johnson.
And like Cyndi McCain, who wanted everyone to know that “I am proud of my country … I am very proud of my country … I just wanted to make the statement that I have and always will be proud of my country.” Got it, Cindi. This statement was of course a dig at Michelle Obama, but Michelle is also a patriot, as a campaign spokesman explained: “Of course Michelle is proud of her country, which is why she and Barack talk constantly about how their story wouldn’t be possible in any other nation on Earth.” Yeah, my wife and I talk constantly about that too. Obama himself has taken pains to ensure us all that John McCain is also a patriot: “I would never challenge him on his patriotism.” Obama should know, because, wouldn’t ya know it, both he and Hillary are also patriots!: “Both Barack Obama and John McCain are great patriots who love this country and are devoted to it. So is Hillary Clinton. Any suggestion to the contrary is flat wrong” (Ret. Gen Merrill Tony McPeak).
And in case you weer wondering, Mormon Mitt Romney loves both America –“The American people are the greatest people in the world. What makes America the greatest nation in the world is the heart of the American people: hardworking, innovative, risk-taking, God- loving, family-oriented American people”—and Jesus: “I believe Jesus Christ is my savior. I believe in God. I’m a person of faith and I believe that’s the type of person Americans want.”
To be honest, I’m as confused by all this as is Curtis White, who asks, “What if you neither love America nor hate it? What if you simply don’t have any idea what `America’ is?” (The Spirit of Disobedience: Resisting the Charms of Fake Politics, Mindless Consumption, and the Culture or Total Work, PoliPoint, 2007, p. 187). Mitts’ definition, for example, would seem to exclude lazy, non-entrepreneurial, risk-averse, agnostic singles, as well as those who really don’t give a damn about whether the person in the oval office is a person of faith or not. Meaning me. Is Mitt Romney, with whom I have pretty much absolutely nothing whatsoever in common beside the fact that our paths crossed when we each spent a few years in Massachusetts, my fellow citizen? Would I lay down my life in battle so that he might live to continue to enjoy the fruits of liberty, not to mention the many other fruits that accrue to those born with a silver spoon in their mouths and a lifetime spent polishing an image? I suspect I have more in common with half the population of Baghdad than I do with Mitt. White again: “Our national character is more riven than Sybil’s personality. Religion, race, class, gender, and education all fracture us. We as a people are not one. And maybe it’s a bad idea to try be to be `one’ (as our `united we stand’ international militarism would seem to demonstrate).”
Now, back in the day we didn’t have to just take the candidate’s own unsworn word on this stupefyingly idiotic matter of patriotism, back when Congress actually established a Committee whose sole purpose was to formally validate—or, more likely—invalidate—a citizen’s patriotism. It was called the House Committee on Un-American Activities, lead by Senator Joe McCarthy. One of those hauled before the Committee was the great black actor and singer Paul Robeson, whose testimony is astounding in its sheer audacity (and which resulted in the revocation of Robeson’s passport, effectively ending his absolutely brilliant career). Here’s a snippet:
Mr. ARENS: [quoting from a speech by Robeson] “I do not hesitate one second to state clearly and unmistakably: I belong to the American resistance movement which fights against American imperialism, just as the resistance movement fought against Hitler.”
Mr. ROBESON: Just like Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman were underground railroaders, and fighting for our freedom, you bet your life.
Robeson was committed to an ideal far more expansive than chest-thumping patriotism. He was a fighter, you bet your life, and he was born 110 years ago today.
