Neil Turkewitz
Aug 22, 2017 · 2 min read

Thanks David. And yes, a good piece. However, he does seem to “infer” something that in fact is quite explicit. He writes that: “These new Ideological Nations represent a threat to traditional nationalism, and ultimately a destabilizing force to the nation-state.” But the “threat to traditional nationalism” is not an undercurrent — it is an avowed and explicit theological foundation of the dominant cyber-libertarian ethos of Silicon Valley. Why does he not cite to John Perry Barlow’s Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace which begins: “Governments of the Industrial World, you weary giants of flesh and steel, I come from Cyberspace, the new home of Mind. On behalf of the future, I ask you of the past to leave us alone. You are not welcome among us. You have no sovereignty where we gather.”

I agree with him completely that nationhood (and the definition of patriotism) is an idea rather than a place, and have myself written about this in response to those who questioned Colin Kaepernick’s patriotism. See, for example:

“Colin Kaepernick thinks that as a Nation founded on principles of freedom, fairness and tolerance, we can do better. That we can be better. Oddly, this desire for self-improvement as a society and a nation is characterized by some as a rejection of America. So let’s stop for a second and think about what America is, and what it stands for. We are not just a land mass. If we were, we would be no different than any other conglomeration of dirt in the universe. I would argue that America is an idea — an idea that it is possible to have a society in which all ideas are tolerated, where there is no ruling class, where every individual has the ability to rise (or fall) based on his or her abilities and not by virtue of the circumstances of their birth. More than anything — and putting aside the historical anomalies surrounding the meaning of this, where all men are created equal. A land where the pursuit of happiness is deemed so central to our national fabric that it was written into our Constitution.”

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    Neil Turkewitz

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