Definition of patriotism (a vocabulary lesson)

     There are those among us who would take it upon themselves to decide who is worthy of being called a patriot.
     So let us dust off the Random House College Dictionary and set down some rules for rhetoric.
     Patriotism:  Devoted love, support and defense of one's country. Loyalty. (No mention of immigration status, ethnic or racial background, gender or sexual orientation, nor of religion or lack thereof).
     Jingoism:  Professing patriotism loundly and excessively; chauvinistic (zealous and belligerent, prejudiced), bellicose (inclined to fight, pugnatious.)
     Guess which definition best describes those who claim to be the best patriots.
     Conservative: Disposed to preserve what is established and resist change.
     Liberal: Favorable to progress or reform; favoring representational government rather than aristocracies. Open minded or tolerant.
     Guess which definition the so-called Tea-party advocates claim as their own. Just for giggles, ask one to explain how the original tea-party crowd could be called conservative if they wanted to change the government.
     Democracy: A system of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.
     Republic:  A state in which the supreme power rests in the citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen by them.
     Subtle difference between the two; "republicans" are less inclined to have everybody vote on every issue. They like the idea of electing folks to make the complicated choices necessary to form policy.  Guess the party affiliation of the most vociferous critics of government at any level today. Hint: Democrats and moderates are accused of being "leftist" or socialist. The other direction, uh, that would be Right, can in extreme circumstances become totalitarian, or absolutist, or -- under state control.
     Socialism:  A theory or system that advocates the ownership and control of industry, capital, land, etc. by the community as a whole.
     Zealotry:  Undue or excessive, fanaticism.
     Bigotry: Stubborn . . . intolerance of any belief, creed, race or opinion that differs with one's own.
     Guess who today is most .... Oh, well, you get the idea.