American Patriotism: New England vs. Virginia vs. Ethno-Linguistic
There are, broadly speaking, three kinds of American patriotism. There is Kentucky, which is the standard ethno-linguistic nationalism of soil and blood (think: age of Andrew Jackson). There is Virginia, which is a peculiar form of libertarianism-of-adoption: "we" have come here so that nobody else can boss "us" or those we adopt to become "us" around (think: Thomas Jefferson). And there is New England, which is the utopian nationalism of election: those who elect to come here and help "us" to build utopia are "us", and are very welcome as long as they commit to building the City Upon a Hill.
To no one's surprise, I like the third kind. And here is its root, in John Winthrop's Arabella Sermon:
John Winthrop: From "A Model of Christian Charity": "We are entered into covenant with Him for this work...
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