The Voice Of One Crying Out In Suburbia

Does Patriotism mean anything anymore?

I read the Salt Lake Tribune daily to see what is happening in Mormondom without a mormon censor's filter, and came across this editorial by Holly Mullen.

Now she is a pretty liberal gal, especially for Utah. What is disturbing is the trend amongst the Dems to cry about having their patriotism questioned, when no one in fact has done so. Her entire article talks about how wonderful the opponents of the Patriot Act are in the face of questions about their patriotism. As proof of this, she offers one quote at the very end of the article:

" 'I don't want any of the tools locked in a box so I can't get to them and use them when I need them,' Warner said.

Fine. Just don't reach for a sledgehammer when a ball-peen might do."

Now maybe it is just me, but where is he questioning anyone's patriotism? From this quote she drags out the age old liberal bogeymen of rightwing totalitarianism:

"We have a history of such in this country and a hefty portion of readers remember it: McCarthyism and the blacklistings; the late FBI director J. Edgar Hoover's penchant for wiretapping and spying on dissidents; Nixon's "enemies list."

Now the argument about the fact that Commies were INDEED seeking to subvert this nation can wait until a different day. But U.S. Attorney for Utah Paul Warner seeing to have every possible tool at his disposal to prevent another 9/11 being compared to some malicious plot to discredit the opponents of the Patriot Act? Hmmm, a bit of overreaction anyone? Does anyone doubt that if we suffer another terrorist attack that Mullen and her ilk will be jumping all over Bush for "not doing enough" to protect us?

By the way, what is fair game when questioning patriotism? Is anything unpatriotic anymore? Is the left the sole arbiter of what is or is not an attack on patriotism? I find it funny that those who most vociferously complain about flag waving, jingoistic types like me are the ones most sensitive about being labelled unpatriotic. I'm not being defensive, you are being defensive!