It has been 248 years since we founded this great country, America. It has been 248 years since those before us declared that it had become “necessary for a people to dissolve their political bands” and decided that “whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.”
What an extraordinary idea.
But what has become of the United States of America since then? Should we continue to love our country even if we can’t stand it? Can we still claim to be patriots even as we face the worst election year in our history?
Patriotism is in decline
If you feel like Americans love America a little less than they used to, you’re not imagining much. According to polls, patriotism has declined, especially among young people. In a 2023 Wall Street Journal survey, only 38% of Americans said patriotism was very important to them, down sharply from 1998, when 70% said patriotism was very important.
It’s worth noting that patriotism isn’t the only thing that’s declined. The same survey found that Americans now care much less about the things that almost everyone else used to care about; the importance of religion, children, and community has also declined sharply.
The retreat from traditional values is particularly pronounced among American Generation Z, born between 1997 and 2012. It’s disheartening to see that the next generation of leaders is not just anti-patriotic but anti-everything that gives meaning to life, except money. Apathy is not a value, but Generation Z seems to think it is. (Good luck with that; reconsider.)
Generation Z has a major problem:The growing gender gap has become political and is destroying our relationships.
Anti-American sentiment also appears to be on the rise. People are more open about their disdain for the country than ever before. Or at least, social media is giving them a more obvious platform to express how much they dislike America.
Even the protests that took place this spring on college campuses across the country were a mix of anti-Semitism and anti-American ideas. It is disheartening to see twenty-somethings at one of the world’s best universities trying to take down the American flag. This is perhaps the height of privilege.
Around the world, opinions about America are mixed. A 2021 Pew Research Center poll found that people outside the country view the United States positively on some dimensions—like its cutting-edge technology, entertainment industry, military power, and top-tier universities—but negatively on others, like its nascent health care system, discrimination, and the state of its democracy.
America is not perfect
America isn’t perfect, to be sure. But my concerns as a millennial are probably different than those of Gen Z. There’s a huge generational divide about what governments should and shouldn’t do, rooted in political ideology and other things. I tend to lean toward “the best government is the one that governs the least,” so I’m in favor of a smaller government that exists to provide Americans with the foundation and backbone to succeed, not one that prioritizes welfare.
In this regard, I think the U.S. government is much bigger than it needs to be, spending taxpayers’ money endlessly. Aside from a massive increase in defense spending during World War II, non-defense spending as a percentage of gross domestic product has been rising for a century. The federal debt is monstrous, and not only is it currently affecting inflation, which has driven up the cost of everyday goods for Americans, it is also going to hurt this country in the long run.
I am a Republican woman.Progressives are wrong about what I believe.
Taxes are also extremely high, although they have declined from the rates in effect between the 1940s and 1960s. Recall that Americans in the original colonies revolted against the taxation of tea, a less serious grievance than our current tax rates. It was just one of many examples in a “long series of abuses and usurpations” that led them to believe it was “their right…their duty to throw off such a government.”
I have no doubt that the Founding Fathers would be sickened by what we, the American taxpayers, have allowed to happen. If taxes don’t raise your blood pressure, look at the deductions from your paycheck and see if that doesn’t stir up even a tiny bit of righteous indignation, Boston Harbor style.
Some taxes are good and necessary. They provide for the defense and general well-being of Americans, but the wealthiest among them pay more than their fair share and even the middle class taxes are too high.
America is still great
While we can complain about all the things we do in the United States (taxes, racism, poverty, health care), the macroeconomic benefits of being American far outweigh our problems. In fact, some of these benefits are so taken for granted that we probably don’t even acknowledge them as such. They’re a given.
The U.S. Constitution provides a set of parameters, checks and balances, to prevent a power-hungry dictator from turning the country into a living hell. If you think Donald Trump or Joe Biden are power-hungry dictators, you can convince yourself of that by knowing that I have the freedom to write this column: if either of them were really a dictator, you wouldn’t be reading this because I would have been sent to a gulag long ago.
The United States values not only its own free people, but others as well. With the help of our allies, we consistently hold evil regimes in check, from Nazism and Soviet Communism to the terrorists of the Islamic State and Russian strongman Vladimir Putin. Evil leaders still exist, but they have not conquered the world, in large part because Americans have served and continue to serve on the front lines of freedom.
Our own freedoms—freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and my favorite, the right to “appeal to the government for redress”—are different from those enjoyed by much of the world. While there are limits, and there should be, religious freedom and the freedom to speak out for one’s beliefs or against one’s own government are paramount and unrivaled. Sure, Russia has extraordinary architecture, but you can be imprisoned and poisoned for disagreeing with Putin. I’ll take freedom for $500, any day, Alex.
These freedoms, combined with America’s free market, have propelled America to extraordinary success by most measures. From its robust economy and massive military, which protects freedom rather than destroys it, to its thriving entrepreneurs, America leads in many areas.
Gen Z has become skeptical of innovation, capitalism, and wealth. It’s ridiculous. America has more billionaires than any other country because of the innovations we all benefit from. In fact, “America’s 806 billionaires are now richer than half the population,” is the headline in Mother Jones. I suppose a liberal would read that and feel angry, maybe even anxious. I think that’s great.
Wealth allows Americans to be generous, to help those living in poverty, and to continue to invent incredible things. Just one example: in 2022, Americans gave nearly $500 billion to charity, making them the third most generous country in the world.
This year’s election is a nightmare. We’re forced to choose between a committed narcissist and an incompetent old man who refuses to leave the stage. It’s not great. America has its share of problems, but it could be much worse. This too shall pass.
America is still a great place to live and prosper. It’s so great that you can complain about it all you want and still live here.
I am so glad that 248 years ago a host of patriots, far braver than I, had the foresight to declare themselves independent of tyranny and to “form a more perfect Union.”
Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist for USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four children. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.
