National Pride

Having Pride in your nation because you believe that the government and population do the right thing and maintain a good society, then there is no issue. However, blind patriotism based solely on the fact that it is your country, regardless of how the government behaves or how the people respond, can only lead to trouble. It is necessary to take a look at the way the country is run and the status of things about before claiming pride in, "Yes, I love my country", and that is the only way a country can have "healthy pride".

It does inhibit logical thinking as exemplified by the pervasive attitudes in the bible belt that unwaveringly support Bush and War and all that his administration does. This is the path of least resistance, i.e., to have unfailing faith in the person that's "leading" you. This stance promotes minimal critical thinking on the part of the followers and grants maximum control to the "leaders".

But as you get closer to the coasts there is more international thinking which generally results in less pride and more activism.

I see this topic in a similar light to abortion, where both sides are very adamant about thier perspective and will likely never adopt an alternative view.

Like positive and negative ions the two views rely on each other to subsist but the problem is that both sides view their side as the positive one.

Camus wrote:

And I should like to be able to love my country and still love justice.

Enough said.

Is having pride in one's country necessary and healthy for a nation?
A country, nation, or organizational body exists by virtue of the willingness of the constituency to form it. Strictly speaking, having pride is not "necessary." Having pride may be an "indicator" of how healthy an organizational body may be, but it does not "induce" healthiness in a nation. It would be like curing yourself of cancer out of sheer belief that you were once healthy rather than of actual changes to your physiology. So, no, pride is not "healthy" or "necessary" for a nation.

Does it (having pride, I presume) inhibit logical thinking about the nation's actions?
It can. I began responding to this awkwardly-worded inquiry using a "one or the other" response to maintain my personal pride instead of considering the unrelated nature of the questions. If I can do it, any representative body can too.

I dont believe having pride in one's country inhibits logical thinking about our country. I believe that many of us have pride in our country but do not support the decisions being made about war and sending troops to countries in turmoil. I believe pride in our country should instill the desire in us to make this a better place for everyone in the USA. We have people in Appalachia that still dont have heat and running water. Perhaps we would be better served spending the monies we are using in other countries on our own.
Pride and logical thinking dont necessarily go hand in hand, in my humble opinion.

I've seen the 'love or leave it' types blogging to this day. Unthinking devotion to your country can lead to a fascist state. Look at Germany and reap the consequences.

I love the USA with my heart and soul. Do I disagree (vehemently) with things the government does? Absolutely and often! That's the freedom we have that many seem to be willing to give up. They're fools and idiots. Protest it or leave it, in my opinion.

Pride means that you value your country over others, because it is better. We should try and be proud of the world, and work to create a great and united Earth for everybody, not split it up into factions.

I think you do need to have pride in your country to have a healthy nation. Do not mistake pride with acceptance of what the leaders of the country are doing. I have no control over what elected officials do once in office. I can try and vote them out at a later time, but that doesn't affect what they do right now.

I am proud of the country I live in. I may disagree with the way some things are being done, but on the whole I thnk everyone is fighting for a better nation. We just have disagreements about how we arrive at the same conclusions.

Pride is not the cause of a great nation.

Pride is the result of a great nation.

If there are parts of a country that its citizens are not proud of, then the citizens must fix them. Having pride in something that is broken, or false, or reprehensible is absolutely illogical as well as unhealthy. Consider cases where this "blind" pride is shoved down the throat of the public, to the detriment of rational thought. Nazi Germany is a great example.

Stemming from healthy national government, people, and actions, true pride is a powerful motivator for people to play a part in the betterment of their country.

Pride in your country can be good, meaningless, or bad. If your pride in your country is based on the principles that define it, then pride is a good thing. If your pride in your country is based on the fact that you were born within its borders, then pride is a meaningless thing. If your pride in your country is based on its strength, then pride is a bad thing.

A certain amount of pride is necessary insofar as it encourages people to work towards longer-term goals. People don't make the rational long-term decisions that would be required to have a growing economy, for instance, out of self-interest alone.
However, national pride, especially if it becomes chauvinism, definitely inhibits logical thinking. "My country right or wrong," is a weak position. People don't like to have their pride wounded, so they'll start to avoid bad news, which leads to self-propagandizing of the sort we are, frankly, starting to see in major media outlets in the US.
Furthermore, excessive pride leads to bad education. Henry Ford invented the automobile? The Wright brothers invented the airplane? Japan surrendered to the Chinese Communist Party? North Korea is a workers' paradise?

You have to get the right balance. Too much pride and either you get over confident, thinking your country can do nothing wrong, and when it does, you get insanely mad, or you do inhibit logical thinking. But then again, too little, and then you have no confidence in your country, and are scared too walk out of your front door.

It is a tough balance to regulate, but some do it. And they are the non-voters.

And inhibition of logic has caused many a revolutions. Think about it, world wars I and II were because one man was killed, by accident. An example of the country does something wrong, and both sides start getting angrier and they start a war. The people get mad because of something their country did, and had lots of pride about living and being a citizen of that place. Changes in a second though.

As one who suffered through apartheid South Africa, when I was proud to be South African but NOT proud of the way it was run, I'd say there should always be a distinction between your own sense of national identity, and critical thinking about the stuff that's going on around you. Blind patriotism no; rootedness, yes.