Patriotism - does a passport make you British? (Patriotism)

Member Name: buju9

Product:	Patriotism
Date:	30/06/08 (88 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: see review

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Patriotism has become quite an obscure concept within Britain since joining the EU, we have basically given our country over as if it is not actually a country anymore but rather a state within Europe.
Firstly I believe patriotism is over in Britain because to become British you don't actually have to do anything, if you come from another country and live in Britain for a while you are automatically British and can recieve a British passport, or you could just marry someone who is British. So are you British if you have a British passport or do you have to be born and bred here? Personally I think you have to be born and Bred in Britain as well as your parents, and I know to many people that is quite an ignorant way of looking at it, but I think there needs to be a point where all "propper" British people stand up and be counted, as to care anything about our country then I think our country should care about us.
I have been born and Bred in Wales, therefore I consider myself to be Welsh as I am sure anyone born in England would consider themselves to be English and the same for Scottish and Irish, however anyone who feels to be half this and half that count themselves as British, or if they have been given a British passport then they are British.
Yet I do also believe that Patriotism and Nationalism can fall close to and coincide with racism, which I don't agree with, as if you are strongly Patriotic then you would actually find it quite offensive for someone who has managed to achieve British citizenship to count themselves as equal with you, also to what degree is being Patriotic racist? In this world full of political correctness being proud of where you come no doubt from the governments point of view is racist.
However the Government is doing something quite the opposite of patriotism in Iraq at the moment. Patrioatism defined in the dictionary is defending one's country, however for us to go into Iraq we are not by any stretch of the word being partiotic to our own country we are defending America's assets, and also people from our country are dying in this war, so how is that helping our country?
We have a situation in this country where I many people are quite apathetic about it from the British point of view, however if you look at each individual country there is a strong sense of National pride, which really is a good thing.

Sorry I've lost the plot with what i was saying. I will have to come back and go over it again, because I don't think what I have said soo far really completely covers what I was trying to say. Thank you for reading anyway.

Summary: see review