Sunday, August 21, 2005

The patriotic poor

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Why is it that the poorest of the poor in any country are also the most "patriotic"?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great point. I dont have the answer, or even an opinion on this. Maybe it is to do with the fact that they have nothing to look forward to except their country as a whole. The more material wealth one gets, the more unpatriotic one becomes in some senses. I may be wrong....

gawker said...

Hey Arzan
Yeah, I think you have a point. Its quite a paradox though.

Anonymous said...

Nationalism's breeding ground is often a poor economy, poor prospects and disillusionment. Nazi Germany is the extreme example. Modern day comparisons are the return of fundamentalists in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, etc. Poor people are often easier to sway with nationalism than others since they have less to lose than say the bourgeoisie.

gawker said...

Yes, I agree Patrix, poor people are often less educated as well, so, more prone to jingoistic brainwashing. Also, as lumi pointed out, disillusionment of the poor leads to an embrace of some ideology that the poor hope would lead to a better life, either through religion or nationalism.

Michael Higgins said...

Hi Gawker
Interesting observation.
My guess is that the poor people just want to be pround of something.

gawker said...

Michael : Yes, I think thats one possible explanation too.