Are These America’s Last Days?

To anti-patriots, the symbol is more important than our values.

How to Tell Patriotism From Anti-Patriotism

I write this in the waning days of either my America or of Trump’s. It is less than one week from the election and I don’t know what kind of country this will be. I’m hoping for the America of my birth, but I’m terrified.

You may think I’m overreacting. Perhaps you’re a Trump supporter, or perhaps you’re an optimist who believes the United States strong enough to withstand eight years of even a madman’s rule.

I am not an optimist. I’ve long understood we have both patriotism and anti-patriotism in this country, and the anti-patriots have been winning. Both sides claim to love America, but to know the difference, you need only ask someone what makes America great.

A patriot’s answer will go something like this: America is great because it’s a place where we are guaranteed basic freedoms by our Constitution and Bill of Rights. We follow the rule of law. We have checks and balances designed to keep any one group from amassing too much power. Our founders explicitly set out to build a country where people could worship or not worship as they pleased and where, at least in theory, everyone has the same rights.

An anti-patriot’s answer will go something like this: I’m proud to be an American, the best country on Earth. We’re a Christian nation, and our…