https://www.quora.com/Patriotism-is-the ... -said-this
Q: "Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious." - Oscar Wilde. What message was Wilde trying to convey when he said this?
A: Not dissimilar to Einstein’s statement that nationalism is the measles of humankind.
But Wild does say something extra, and of importance.
Let’s say you’re, at heart, an angry and selfish person. You feel a bit of shame about it, but not enough to change your ways. You feel like killing people all the time, but society constrains you with fear of imprisonment. You want to appear as a functioning member of society and yet find legal means or socially acceptable means to express your anger, hatred, racism, bigotry, and violent tendencies. What do you do?
Well, you’re not about to seek help in the form of therapy, so you turn into a jingoistic, self-righteous, flag-waving, religious radical (“When devils will the blackest sins put on, they first suggest with heavenly shows.”)
But that’s not enough, you still want to express your viciousness. How?
Become a cop. A dirty cop. Become a soldier and butcher innocent people to the tunes of death metal. At the least, get on the Internet and troll the hell out of tree-hugging, gay-loving, climate-change blowhards and blare out how Uh-meri-cuh is the best friggin’ place on earth and anyone who doesn’t think like you do is a bloody traitor and deserve to die.
Churchill?
