Patriotism is a weird thing in the US.
People go to the mat defending an old drinking song, and two words
inserted in the national anthem during the height of 1950's paranoia.
There is so little that is uniquely US culture that people lose their
minds defending stuff that is not really "traditional." Christmas is a great example of something that was not traditional, especially at the time of the "founding fathers."
The US is a
nation with a history always under the influence of capitalist culture,
which is a homogenizing culture-less process. Trump's popularity is
rooted in US culture-less capitalist culture - people, who feel at-risk, fear
losing something that they never had, but the elite tell you things
were better when this non-existent past existed. I understand why it
happens, but that still doesn't take away from the fact that US politics
are insane.
I may be wrong, but I think there are few nations that have
such widespread displays of their flag, and peppered throughout the
year. People have to fly the damn thing because they are afraid of
losing what they never had. It is a symbol of US paranoia more than it is a symbol of pride and solidarity.
