Paranoia, Will Destroy Ya

Loyalty Day seems to me to be a stupid holiday whose time is long since past, but it is not evidence of the Bush/Cheney/Ashcroft cabal forcing us to become uber-patriots. Although the White House did release this press release:

Ours is a Nation of people who demonstrate their patriotic loyalty through service to our country. Whether born on American soil or abroad, Americans appreciate patriotism and loyalty to our country. President Woodrow Wilson said, “Loyalty means nothing unless it has at its heart the absolute principle of self-sacrifice.” Americans affirmed this sense of loyalty for their homeland during and following the attacks of September 11, 2001. Brave rescuers died while saving others.

Here is a Clinton release:

“Loyalty Day” is an occasion on which we reaffirm our allegiance to our country and our devotion to the ideals on which it was founded. Our government “by the people” respects and protects the natural rights and freedoms of all citizens, without favor, and deserves our abiding fidelity.

For more than 200 years, people from around the world have immigrated to America, bringing their dreams and aspirations to a country that prides itself on its democratic ideals. There is no greater testament to the success of our system of governance than people’s desire to be a part of the great American experiment. Our Founders designed that system on the principles of individual liberties and rights of self-determination. Our Nation stands as a beacon of hope for all those who embrace these ideas.

Hold onto your Third Reich analogies, Dems,as this is the history:

While the concept came into being quite early in the ’30s giving rise to various functions, it took until 1949 to proclaim the observance of Loyalty Day. And this was when forty nine states and territorial governors joined in. Thanks to the efforts of Senator Karl Mundt of North Dakota and Representative James E. Van Zandt of Pennsylvania. In May 1, 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower made it a day of national observance.

The always reasonable and wise Tacitus states it best:

Wow. Um. So, happy Loyalty Day!

I’m trying, but I can’t justify this.

It seems harmless, pointless, and worthless to me.