November 11, 2018 was the 100th year anniversary to the end of WWI, also known as Armistice Day. During this day an array of Global Leaders, Citizens, and Presidents gathered to honor those who had fallen during this war, as well as celebrate its end. The leaders stood shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, and walked together in order to show a sense of unity between these nations. Yet, our President was nowhere to be seen. He along with the President of Russia both missed this show of unity. Something which is concerning especially with the President's recent comments about nationalism. This leads to the meetings second agenda which was to remind the Nations of the importance of working together to prevent such a devastating tragedy from re-occurring. The President of France specifically addressed this by making remarks, some of which were directed at President Trump's comments regarding his favoritism towards Nationalism. Nationalism is too often seen synonymous with patriotism. While these two words may be in the same vein, their meanings and more importantly their connotations are incredibly different. Patriotism is defined as "love for one's country". This is the reason we, as Americans, are often proud of where we live and what we stand for. Nationalism, however, is defined as "an extreme form of patriotism, especially marked by a feeling of superiority over other countries and cultures." which is something totally different in itself. Nationalism is what led to the build-up of Germany before the start of WWII. Nationalism is what the members of the Alt-Right hide behind when criticized for their ideals and beliefs. So to see our president's actions caused me to also see the importance of the work we are doing as Global Scholars. If the top leadership is not consistently working to bring unity on a global scale, that means the citizens have to pick up the slack. It means people like Jessica Jackley, members of NGO's, even high school students like ourselves, have to work harder to create a better, more unified world.
Poly has had the privilege of having Mr. Pond speak on its campus twice in the last four years. While I, unfortunately, was not present for the first, I was enthralled at being able to attend the most recent one. Pond is someone who can be presented as a role model for just about anything. He started off the night by sharing some details from his past and revealing many of his experiences to the audience. As someone who has survived a horrible atrocity, the fact that Pond is able and willing to share his experiences is inspiring in it of itself. He focused on his survival of the Cambodian genocide and the bullying that ensued after he arrived in America. His own experiences were a true testimony to how powerful stories are, an idea that he has been trying to teach for some time. However, what particularly struck me, was what Pond was doing in his communities. This side of him which takes what he knows and puts into action concrete solution is even more inspiring. He mentioned some work...
I really like this post- an original idea to address the actual differences between patriotism and nationalism. Of course the entry point to this topic- the absence of President Trump from these memorial events- was perfect. You used his non-presence to think about the irony of what others were trying to communicate (and what his absence communicated). When you quote a line (the definition), be sure to list the source.
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