Progressive Patriotism

A friend of mine was upset the other day, because her best friend accused her of being unpatriotic in the political commentary she posts on Facebook. My friend often writes about problems in America like the growing poverty rate, corporate greed, gun violence, poor access to health care and political corruption. She was told, in essence, that America is the greatest country on Earth with more freedom than any other country and that anyone who complains about America is not a loyal, patriotic American. I have a very different perspective. I think the suggestion that it’s somehow unpatriotic to discuss…