You’re American, I’m German. Both for the same reasons. Our parents had sex and about nine months later our mother gave birth to us at the right time and place.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m extremely happy not to be born in one of the many countries on earth, where people struggle to make a living, not knowing if they will be able to feed their family the next day. But can you really be proud of that? What was you contribution to your birth?
In Germany, “proud to be German” is a term that is nearly exclusive to neo-nazis and politicians who feel that they didn’t get enough airtime on national TV.
You want to be proud? Achieve something. Spend some time helping the less fortunate, be great at whatever it is you like to do. Try to live your life being a good man. That’s something to be proud of. But nationality?
You can be happy to be American. You can be really, really glad to be American. You are lucky.
One reply on “I don’t get: Being proud to be American”
I couldn’t agree with you more. The very reason why I am soon moving back to Germany, where every person isn’t completely proud of their zero accomplishments in life. Nothing could be more annoying.