Nationalism stands in the way of creating global citizens, but it is the subject few involved in international education in the United States want to speak about.
Follow this link to read my latest article published by University World News, entitled US nationalism – The elephant in the room. In a nutshell, it’s about nationalism, patriotism and the former as a barrier to the development of global citizens. My perspective is probably one you’ve rarely, if ever, heard.
The responses to this article will likely fall into one of three categories: 1) silence; 2) nationalists of various levels of commitment who go on the offensive; and 3) people who want to engage in a meaningful dialogue about this important issue. It is the latter that I value and most look forward to.
MAA
An International Educator in Viet Nam 
Mark, I finally got around to reading this article. I think you hit the nail right on its head. The rhetoric in our country has created a widespread belief in our society that we are better than everyone else. This attitude has become so engrained in our culture that it basically prevents us from openly questioning–or even criticizing — ourselves. Anyone who does inevitably opens him-/herself up to utter disdain from others. Politicians who do not buy into the rhetoric about the US being “the greatest country in the world” are immediately labeled as unpatriotic and improve their chances of NOT being elected. As a result, we have leaders who don’t address this issue and, instead, they perpetuate it.
This is a frustrating state of affairs. When we look at an individual who is clearly narcissistic and who spreads news about his or her “amazingness” as far as the eye can see, we will inevitably hear comments like, “She needs to be taken down a peg or two,” or “he thinks he is all that,” or “he thinks he is the greatest thing since sliced bread –not ask him.” In short, no one likes a person who focuses only on him-/herself and who has a staunch belief that he or she never does anything wrong. Who in this world is perfect? But why can we follow this logic so easily in the context of an individual, but not as a nation?
Don’t get me wrong — I absolutely love living here, for the most part; however, our leaders need to have the political will, the wherewithal, and the courage to do something about the real issues that we are facing –both domestically and internationally.
As I write this comment, a banner flashes across the screen of the morning news show that I watch, indicating that 11 police officers were shot last night, and six of them died so far. Someone was shooting at them with a sniper rifle. Yet another inappropriate person(s) with access to a weapon that clearly is not for self protection. And people say that everyone else in the world wants to be like us?