That Vonnegut's book - "Cat's cradle" comes to my mind, when i see all the happy patriots/nationalists/racist etc. Not sure if it was directly related, since i read it many years ago, but if you have read it, you will know what i am talking about.
Had to visit Wiki, to find the words he came up with ( these are not actual words, but something he made up for the book ):
karass - A group of people linked in a cosmically significant manner, even when superficial linkages are not evident.
granfalloon - a false karass; i.e., a group of people who imagine they have a connection that does not really exist. An example is "Hoosiers"; Hoosiers are people from Indiana, and Hoosiers have no true spiritual destiny in common, so really share little more than a name. I see nations, football club fans, co-workers, etc., as a
granfalloon, using the above definition. I find it stupid to connect myself to a group of random people, and adjust my
personal/private opinions/beliefs according to
their rules and traditions. This goes so far, that i don't keep contact with my family, only my mother, and only because she loves me very much. The rest of my family are not my friends, I have nothing in common with them as a PERSON, and that is why i don't wish to be friends with them. An idea of taking decisions based on my nationality or heritage is utterly ridiculous to me.
Now that being said, I still believe in common traditions and etiquette as a means of establishing a safe and trustworthy environment for strangers. This is very important! Otherwise it would be impossible to keep a society running. We need common language, common gestures, common literature/history, etc., otherwise it would be too stressful and complicated to finish your daily chores.
Might not make sense for most of you, but it makes perfect sense to me
Make you own way in life, do what you truely love, however stupid or worthless your way is in other's eyes, and you will have nothing to regret.
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Don't flame me too hard, i know it's a bit controversial
Just my personal thoughts on the subject, very rough on the edges, and it wasn't my intention to insult anyone. Cheers!