When encouraging misbehaviors and protecting extremism is of higher value than patriotism and the general will of the American people we have a growing problem that shreds our fabric and our future. The following is a discussion on the dangers of extremism and its impact on institutional outcomes. There is a moral, fiscal and legal responsibility to ensure we are not encouraging extremism and corruption by rewarding such behaviors with financial and social incentives. One's belief in their own superiority doesn't give them to right to infringe on the rights of others. Reclaiming Patriotism. Let us explore the topic....
I have been using a hypothetical example of extremism, corruption, and targeting, racial and religious minorities with few to no backstops to highlight how corruption and extremism can function together. Corrupt officials take from good officials and harm their institutions and should be discouraged so as to protect those who are doing the right things. While good officials have a benefit in squashing these networks internally they sometimes do not have the proper environment to do that effectively. Taking a stand against corruption is important for institutional integrity. We should applaud patriotic officials who understand the needs of the nation and their role in supporting all the people of our great republic.
In sociology patriotism is something that benefits the whole. One can also include the concepts of American values, social contracts, oaths, the Constitution and charters. The totality of our understanding is based in part in all of these ideas being conceptually blended together well. Collectively they help us define how we should perceive our country and the duties we have to maintain our freedoms. Social transitions are impacting perceptions in some groups. There are different forms of patriotism that we can consider. Understanding the Concept of Patriotism
When patriotism and the purpose of institutions becomes comingled with race, religion, ethnicity, and politics we have a dangerous brew where bad acts are fostered through complacency and silence. In this example, when you are in the 1st class citizen crowd (in group) you can do anything you want to the 2nd citizen crowd (out group). In this case the use of threats, stalking/following, manipulation of the sick, hate rumors, witness/statement tampering, etc. we're rewarded financially despite the criminal attempt to harm. Well known, documented, witnessed, bragged about and in some ways encouraged by a few corrupted local officials. The system defaulted in favor of the clan and their promotion of a homogeneous world view.
There are little to no backstops because such hate is seen as justified (i.e. think of how people justified extreme cruelties during slavery.). On Patriotism and Pride. Federal oversite may be necessary to correct what appears to be an intentional misapplication of justice and encouragement of future criminal behaviors. Those who committed the bad behaviors feel no remorse for their actions and received a green light to engage in such actions. Removing additional unsanctioned competing uses of institutional institutional resources would be helpful.
One might consider a patriot as a person who believes in freedom of speech, freedom of religion, opportunities, civil rights, human rights, strong functioning institutions, etc. In my limited perspective all aspects of our society should be managed for all Americans regardless of superficial differences. The stronger we make our institutions the stronger we become as a nation and better we use our resources (i.e. deficit). That idea of integrity and strong management is seen as radical and not supported as much as it should be in our political arenas. This is where the values of the young are going to decide these issues as to whether shallow in-group patriotism (certain race or religion) is more important than universal patriotism (All Americans).
The Synopsis of the Present: Based on this learning example we are in a place where perpetrators that manipulated their social network, bullied targets, and manipulated the elderly were rewarded. The extremist network went into the back ground for a short time and then came back out with aggressive behaviors. We have three and now four distinct waves of hate which we can discuss later. A few people may have been held to account semi-related behaviors. Community understands the behaviors were poor but are not enforceable at present. There has been a change in leadership based on community pressure over the past few years of various elected positions. The impact of that is likely to grow. This example is not finished yet but we have learned a lot so far about how domestic extremism, corruption, and protections thereof occur. Tomorrow may be a brighter day in our fight against a backsliding democracy.
Of course men/women are not angles and feel entitled to bad behaviors so they may need help keeping their compass true north.
*This is an article for learning purposes and one should take with a grain of salt. A type of thought experiment on freedom of speech, freedom of religion, civil rights, human rights and commitment to the Constitution and good leadership. We are exploring the various facets of dark behaviors like hate, corruption, extremism, and how we bring them back into compliance. It is politically neutral in its approach and can be applied to various situations. The model as it connects to economic concepts and alignment with institutional integrity is being created.
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