Patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel does clings

My Spanish classes are going great. I haven´t really learned too many new things yet but it´s only been two days. And I suppose it is good to reinforce what I already know. Plus of course I just dig the idea of being in a class with 12 other people from all over the world and being able to trade stories and perspectives. But by some strange twist of fate there are 3 (including me) gringos from Seattle in the class. I think this is just becuase they`ve all figured out that heading south for the winter is the best way to escape the rain.

I´ve come to the conclusion that I have to find some other materials I can study by myself if I actually plan on becoming fluent in this language. Reading the Spanish newspapers here seems like great practice, but I need something more challenging. Class is only 4 days a week and two hours a day, so that leaves me with a pretty good amount of free time. But this friday we don´t have class. It´s the 30th anniversary of the last military coup in Argentina, which also serves as an excuse for yet another holiday. They sure do love their holidays here.

We started talking about the history of Argentina in class today. In 1976 the last vestigages of Peron´s government (actually by that time it was the government of his 3rd wife and some European fascicts) fell to a military coup. 30,000 Argentineans disappeared in this incredibly bloody conflict; their bodies were never recovered. The government has never fessed up to what exactly happened. Countless babies were seperated from their families and adopted with no idea of their actual lineage. This continues to be a huge issue in this country, marches and protests are planned for friday. They also seem to love marching and protesting things here.

In class we had a nice long conversation about our nations and their history of military coups. The Polish guy told of the years under communism, the Belgian girls told of being occupied during World War II. The guy from Sudan and the Korean girl didn´t have to say anything, we all knew the history. The three of us from the US just looked around and said no, we´ve had the same functioning democracy for over 200 years now. The longest continuous form of government in the world. Sure there was the Civil War somewhere in the middle, but we kissed and made up, even if us Yankees do still make fun of the Red-Necks, and vice-versa.

It´s amazing to think that the land that would become the United States of America had so much in common with the rest of the Western Hemisphere during the 1700´s, yet we´ve had such a vastly different outcome. We were all settled lands, rich in natural resources, built by slaves with a common oversear in the form of the European colonial powers who had also managed to kill all of the natives or beat them into submission.

But it was only the United States that was able to cast of the shakles of imperialism and emerge as not only a functioning democracy but also a world super power. Why is that? What made us unique?

The Protestant Work Ethic? I don´t buy it, I´ve met lots of Catholics in South America who know how to work hard.

Access to a huge land mass and natural resources? Have you seen Brazil on a map? It`s massive and they have thing you need to build a country, besides a stable functioning government.

Slaves to do that hard work? Nope, they had them throughout North and South America, except maybe the Canadians, I don´t really remember.

The Industrial Revolution? Hey they knew about the steam engine in the South, news travels fast, even in those days.

The only thing I can think that we had that they didn´t is a bunch of old rich white guys with a nifty idea. They had all read their Plato and Aristotle, Descartes and Hobbes, Locke and Rosseau. And they decided to form a Representitive Democracy for the first time in the world since the Greek city-states. A form of government that was for and by the people, which protected the rights of the individual and did not blindly bequeth power to the state, but instead maintained checks and balances. A pretty revolutionary idea, huh?

And what do you know, not only did it work amazingly well, but in the 200 years since the idea has spread throughout the world. Even if the French won´t admit it these days, their cherished ideas of ¨Liberty, Equality and Fraternity¨ owe as much to de Tocqueville and the US as they do to Voltaire.

But never have these ideas really catch on in South America. They like their powerfull figureheads and have had their run of strong men and dictators. Sure most countries here are now ¨democratic¨ even if they happen to be run by Socialists like Bolivia or ex-military officers who were originally elected and have now managed to cement their power hold like Venezuela. And the Argentineans that I´ve met are immensely proud of the fact that they´ve been a functioning democracy since 1983 and the terrible aftermath of The Falklands War. Imagine the party they´ll have when they hit 25 years, a quarter of a century! For as much as I like the people I´ve met here, their governments are a sad sad tribute to the worst aspects of humanity.

And let´s be honest. It´s not the same in the US, no matter what you might think of our government. The notion of the frail and doomed individual who is more valuable and important than the timelessness of the state and the greater common good does not exist in down here. Not only is the individual not cherished, he is just something to be stepped on in the path towards glory.

But the truth is the state doesn´t matter. Empires rise and fall and make for little more than fascinating history. But the individual is immortal, inspires us to exist and transcends humanity altogether.

For this reason, moreso than any others, I can still be a proud citizen of the US of A. For everything that is wrong with our country, for every petty annoyance I rant about, for every travesty I ignore and every complaint that I have made in this blog and other places, I feel secure knowing that my right to be an asshole is protected in writing, under bullet proof glass, for what might as well be eternity, at the Smithsonian.