Abstract
As opposed to blind patriotism, a moderate form of constructive patriotism has been depicted in previous research and empirically observed. The major distinction between blind patriotism and constructive patriotism lies in the latter’s capacity for criticism. Our research suggests, however, an additional distinction dividing constructive patriotism into two forms: one form is capable of practical judgment (hence, political constructive patriotism), and the other form is critical on grounds of ethical issues (hence moral constructive patriotism). This study then seeks to examine which sort of patriotism prevails within society during wartime; of special interest, for that matter, are the suggested variations of constructive patriotism. Two diverse cases have been chosen in order to examine the reactions within a democratic society: The American case of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the Israeli case of the 2006 war in Lebanon. A substantive content analysis has been employed, surveying social processes through a variety of articles in an American and an Israeli daily newspaper. The findings reveal that in both cases among expressions of constructive patriotism, those of political constructive patriotism form a vast majority and only a few of them express moral constructive patriotism. It therefore seems that constructive patriots are not necessarily as moral as they might seem to be at first glance, even though they criticize state and society. The case of war in particular proves how on moral grounds criticism is important, but not enough.
Highlights
Ear Witness in MetullaJuly 2006 was no easy time for Israel, certainly not for its north borderline inhabitants: thousands of rockets were launched towards the villages, many of them hitting built-up areas
Considering the fact that all of the articles were published during wartime, on the face of it one might find those occurrences of blind patriotism to be quite few
The fact that the vast majority of expressions are those of political constructive patriotism leaves us with something to brood over: it seems that constructive patriots are not necessarily as moral as they might seem to be at first glance: 55% of the political constructive patriotism cites in the American case and 56% of the political constructive patriotism cites in the Israeli case criticize the way the leadership had run the war regardless of its moral consequences
Summary
Ear Witness in MetullaJuly 2006 was no easy time for Israel, certainly not for its north borderline inhabitants: thousands of rockets were launched towards the villages, many of them hitting built-up areas. Choppers flying to and fro across the border were constant evidence of injured soldiers being urgently delivered to hospitals. This was not the first war this country had known, but perhaps for the first time after many years Israeli army forces were encountering a highly motivated and professionally trained enemy, and Israeli civilians had to experience daily exposure to the hazards of rocket artillery. The two case studies that have been chosen for this research are diverse ones, leaving little room for comparison: The American 2003 invasion of Iraq and the Israeli 2006 war in Lebanon. On the Iraqi side approximately 9000 combatants and 7300 civilians had been killed
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