Professor Michael D Pendleton reportedly views Patriotism, the fuel of nationalism and the foundation of Politics, in this revealing way:
“The world is experiencing an outbreak of identity politics, for the most part nation, race, religion, gender, or socio-economic group based. This crisis of identity explains much of the rise of populism and the contemporary difficulty of governing in many democracies. I argue that humanness trumps nation, race, religion, gender and socio-economic group. Humanity has a higher call on our allegiance than all these identities.
In my opinion, Patriotism is the same as Racism and Sexism except that in the name of Patriotism you might ordered to fight and be fought against, kill and be killed. And remember that should war come there will be no more talk from brave voices like Greta Thunberg of climate change, just nuclear winter.
We are first and foremost Human Beings and Global Citizens. As much as no reasonable person today regards the earth as flat, I believe that no reasonable person in the future will regard Patriotism as virtuous.
Like race and gender, patriotism is not a good reason to identify exclusively or semi exclusively with the group, in this case the nation, or to treat people of other nations differently. It’s just another 'ism', as morally wrong as racism and sexism.
If you’re looking for naive, bleary-eyed internationalism you won't find it here. World federation, government or even UN Security Council minus the veto is decades, perhaps even a century away. What you will find is the case against patriotism and what can sensibly be done to move individual’s allegiance from country to world.
You can make a huge difference by simply adopting a more skeptical view of anything smacking of patriotism or nationalism. None of this thinking is new.
Here's an example:
Count Leo Tolstoy, author of 'War and Peace' and 'Anna Karenina’ clearly articulated the idea of patriotism as war mongering when he wrote against the background of a possible war between Great Britain and The United States over which was to control Venezuela in 1896:
"Obviously, to avoid war, it is necessary, not to preach sermons and pray God for peace..., but to destroy the root of war. And that is, the exclusive desire for the well-being of one's own people; it is patriotism. Therefore, to destroy war, destroy patriotism".
Michael D Pendleton
University Professor, Perth
"One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors."
-Plato
“Always do the right thing; this will gratify some people and astonish the rest.”
-Mark Twain