Last week, former mayor of New York City, Rudolph Giuliani, created a bit of a stir when during a dinner at the 21 club he said, ““I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America.” Since then, the question of President Obama’s love of country or lack thereof, has been debated along ideological lines.  The Right has mostly agreed that much of the president’s rhetoric does not reflect a belief in American exceptionalism. The Left has mostly accused Giuliani of being a hateful racist.

I offered my two cents here.

I think it important to jump back into the discussion, if only to remind everyone that it is not just the Left who speaks and behaves in a way to make one question their love of Country.  There is certainly plenty of that conduct to go around.

For instance there are a number of Americans who take pride in flying the confederate battle flag.  Alas, many of these folks mingle among Conservatives, using Conservative ideals as cover for their anti-American ideals.  Yes!  Anti-American.

The Confederate flag doesn’t represent love of the union of states, but celebrates the belief in DIS union.  The flag they fly is not the flag of THIS country, but of a nation that engaged in a bloody five year war against this United States. I am unclear as to how Obama’s decision to not wear a flag pin is a vulgar expression of national hatred, but the flying of the flag of a rebel nation is a demonstration of love.

There are also people in this country who declare their love of this country, but preach racial superiority and seek to divide our nation along racial lines.  The belief in a superiority based on race is in direct contradiction to the ideals of a nation “conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” How is this any less of a desire for a fundamental transformation of this country and its ideals?

Then, too, there are some in this country who rob from the public coffers, who lie and cheat, who lobby the government to protect their interests while ignoring the interests of others. There are those who undermine our system by abusing the public trust, all in order to enrich themselves.  If this is not treasonous, nothing is.

As the fellas on the street say, “if we gon’ talk, let’s talk!” And if we are going to begin a national conversation about who loves and who does not love our country, let’s talk about EVERYBODY!