How patriotic are you?

I think it's very hard to feel patriotic about Britain as well as its individual countries. In part because the Government has actively worked against it and condemned it. We are supposed to be a multi cultural society - that is cultures which come from other countries like India, Pakistan, Somalia, you name it. The belief is all cultures are equal; none must dictate. That kind of policy doesn't really allow for any kind of 'Britishness'. I see more foreign flags around London than the British ones.

Are you serious? I think that's one of the best things about Britain. Our multi-culturalism has led to a diverse, equal people from all different creeds; not just one boring social background. If there is anything for me to feel patriotic about, other than British music, it would be our multi-cultural society.

ahaha i bet you copied and pasted that name!

yeah i get the impression the accent is dying out, like the younger generation has weaker accents than the older people? i hope not becuase its my favourite accent in the world, girls with welsh accents, it makes me weak at the knees!

I get involved in patriotism - flying the Union Jack, Jubilees, Armed Forces Day, God Save the Queen, red telephone boxes and all that. It's rather good fun. I don't take it too seriously though - I appreciate that if I was born in any other country in the world, I'd be equally attached to it; I'm certainly no nationalist nor am I particularly tied to the politicisation of "British interests" and all that rubbish.

I get involved in Scottishness a bit too. I know the words to Scotland the Brave and never refuse a Burns' Supper.

Are you serious? I think that's one of the best things about Britain. Our multi-culturalism has led to a diverse, equal people from all different creeds; not just one boring social background. If there is anything for me to feel patriotic about, other than British music, it would be our multi-cultural society.

Americans feel 'patriotic' - they have their flag everywhere, everything is about Americanism, the American dream, their Constitution etc...their whole way of life is about being very proud in who they are.

I think it's very hard to feel patriotic about Britain as well as its individual countries. In part because the Government has actively worked against it and condemned it. We are supposed to be a multi cultural society - that is cultures which come from other countries like India, Pakistan, Somalia, you name it. The belief is all cultures are equal; none must dictate. That kind of policy doesn't really allow for any kind of 'Britishness'. I see more foreign flags around London than the British ones. We're also in the EU - our laws are made in Brussels in part; we are encouraged to think of ourselves as 'European' if anything, rather than British. European doesn't mean anything because it is not a country. Sure, we're in the continent of Europe but we're not Italian. But the ultimate aim - which is absolutely explicit - of the EU is to become a super country in every respect; it has its own flag, its own anthem, its own currency, its own army (well nearly, it has SAFE and is working towards a proper EU army)...so England is really a country within a country within a country which is encouraged to be European and multi cultural.

I do feel 'English' and 'British' simply because of social practices in this country from tea and crumpets to companies like Waitrose and Argos, to general British restrained politeness compared to other countries. But I feel like it is difficult to feel particularly so and feel nationalism sucked out of me.

let me guess youre from a market town in buckinghamshire with a white population of 99.9% ?

I agree with your general sentiment that having some diversity is a good thing.

But with respect, this is the kind of rubbish I wrote in my general studies exam years ago to get a very high A because that's what they wanted to hear. I mean to say, I've written very pro multi culturalism essays in the past so I do understand your point of view.

'Equal people from all different creeds'

I don't get this at all to be honest - creeds refers to religious beliefs. If you're Christian you believe these religions are wrong. If you're an atheist you should be against organised religion which worships deities. This point does not seem to have merit to me.

'Multi culturalism' is really just a buzzword.

There is nothing wrong with embracing other cultures. We all love Italian, Indian restaurants, the Notting Hill Carnival, Brick Lane etc

But there's a problem with letting other cultures take precedent over any existing ones in Britain. I have to think very hard what British culture actually is because it can be so stamped out. I lived in East London for years which can be like living in India.

In America, they have a whole range of people from different nationalities but all under an American culture. Everyone identifies themselves as an American, not a Pakistani immigrant as they do in Britain.

It's all about social conditioning and British people are programmed NOT to be patriotic but to accept a European and multi cultural identity to promote social cohesion, whilst Americans ARE programmed to be under an American identity.

I love London, I would not choose to live elsewhere (indeed it's true people worldwide tend to end up living something like 50 miles from where they were born), but I hate the politics in this country and of the EU.

Nope, Stoke-On-Trent actually; which has a really high ethnic minority population

Despite being from England, I don't particularly like the country tbh. It's decent, but I hope to move to Spain (particularly Catalonia) at some point in my life.

why catalonia if you don' t mind me asking?

Just because I'm not religious doesn't mean i'm automatically against it, why should it?

You make it sound as if American patrionism makes them superior to us. America is a relatively young nation, compared to Britain at least, therefore it makes sense for their people to be patriotic. Also, would you want to sing 'God Save The Queen' every morning at school? Yuck.

So any British culture has to revolve around white people? That seems absurd; why can't multi-culturalism itself count towards a nations culture? Can you identify, specifically, which aspects of British culture are infringed upon through multi-culturalism?