is what we're now calling every subsequent anniversary of 9/11. It's one thing to have a little news tidbit every year on December 7th that Pearl Harbor was attacked on this day, but it's another entirely to create a new holiday dedicated to subservient conformity commemorating the day common sense smacked us all upside the face and told us we're not invincible. Eerily, I can definitely see the tying thread to Michael Moore's 'culture of fear' point.
Speaking of which, his movie isn't entirely true, but sometimes fictional works make the best case advocating some kind of human progress.
So on this day, I will not be celebrating Patriot Day, or be any more happy to be in this country than I would any other day of the year. Nor will I proclaim I'm "proud to be an American," or that we're blessed by God. It's a privilege to exist in a land that supports basic human rights, no matter how flawed we are, and any American shouldn't proclaim their pride at being here. That takes it for granted. If there were a song "I'm thankful some other self-righteous bitch didn't rape my wife and daughter right in front of me," [as happens in less privileged countries] I'd happily sing that on a day like this. Or any other day of the year, for that matter.