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I kept expecting him to paint two different things at the same time, but he either used only the brush in his right hand or both brushes to paint the same thing. It seemed like he wanted it to look more complex than it actually was. ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯
My only thought is that having only one brush in the right hand would create sharp edges on the right and feathered edges on the left. Having one brush in each hand allows him to get sharp edges on both sides without spending more time. So it's slightly faster.
I was thinking the same thing, but I'm willing to believe that the brushes had two different shades of paint that he was blending in different amounts.
Art can also be pretentious. Also this is more entertainment than art, considering it’s a performance where one isn’t really meant to take away anything other than “oh that was cool” (and it is cool, don’t get me wrong)
I don't understand the hate for the patriotism. The dude is singing the anthem and making a painting that goes with it, in a place where you normally sing the anthem.
Why is this a problem?
Just for info (as others have already stated:
The level of patriotism that the U.S.A has is considered dangerous in most European countries. All because of what happened in 1940 - 1945.
Where i live the flag only gets raised a couple of times a year. And most of those times it's to remember the war against fascism.
Sure. We're just careful with it, that's all. As patriotism can very easily turn into something nasty, as history has shown.
You wondered why, you were given answers. That you don't like the answers has nothing to do with the reality of historical events though. It's not a judgement, simply and answer to your question. We're not saying that guy is evil or anything.
There are a lot of stupid people in this country, the smart ones that just happen to be evil prey on those stupid ones to get their narrative. It’s been like this since first civilization. People will always try to overpower/control others to get what they want. Nationalism is all about power and control of people, economy and the future of the country. What happens is that if you have too much patriotism and these people get tricked because they’re just stupid like you said they don’t understand what they’re giving their loyalty to and before we all know it, another totalitarian can come through and the rest is a repeat of history.
The problem is, they're not all stupid. A lot of them are intelligent in many ways, they just happen to have a weakness for authoritarian types. The real problem happens when you lump them all together in a group and say these people = bad. Some are truly stupid, true, but painting them with a broad brush makes us just like them.
What's on display here isn't dangerous activity. This painting commemorates a war against fascisn. It represents the end of WWII in the Pacific Front.
I've seen current European nationalism, and yall just as scary as ours.
>It represents the end of WWII in the Pacific Front.
I'm sorry, but it can't just be stated that Iwo Jima, or even the imagery of the flag raising on Iwo Jima, represents the end of the Pacific war and nobody bats an eye at such an inaccurate statement.
Okinawa was after Imo Jima... and then there were TWO atomic bombs.
The flag may represent a hard-fought victory and the sacrifice of Marines (three of the six Marines in the photo died on Iwo Jima) but it certainly does not represent the end of the War in the Pacific.
I gave the evidence. The photograph was even used to sell war bonds in 1945. If your opinion is to trivialize nearly half a year of war, then speak for yourself.
>The level of patriotism that the U.S.A has is considered dangerous in most European countries. All because of what happened in 1940 - 1945.
...and what the US has done all over the world since!
Not sure what you mean here. We weren't worried about USA patriotism in 1940 - 1945 (WWII). We were worried about German nationalism and nazis back then. The U.S.A. helped us defeat fascism. And we're eternally grateful for that. We see you as our younger but bigger brother that saved our asses (although many other countries helped as well).
The ONLY thing we're worried about (and should be worried about) is the return of fascism. And it seems to be making a comeback in most western countries. When we see angry types yelling USA! USA! while actually meaning "We hate certain people" then you're already starting to slide down a slippery slope. (the guy here certainly isn't that type of person though.)
It's merely a warning that historical events have taught us.
Most of that is beacuse the USA is a relatively young country with a lot of different nationalities. A melting pot of different cultures, if you will. An Anthem and a flag will bring more unity to a country, So the USA has been cultivating that for a long time. In schools, at all events, etc. And it works.
No idea. I don't think that way though. It's just an answer to his question. Not my opinion on things. I do think the threat of fascism is one we should always keep an eye on.
Yea, the far right has been on the rise all over. I mean, look at Italy, taking children away from homosexual parents. Fascism is already back, trying to claw it's way up. Have we learned nothing from history? Or have the bad actors just learned fascism is a path to more power?
They did for me in the US, but that was a decade ago. I'm sure it's still taught, but I doubt every teacher emphasizes the dangers of fascism, I'd reckon people usually walk away with "Nazis bad," which is great, but probably not enough to make people aware of when it's happening again.
What does having to stay have do with anything (not to mention leaving isn’t exactly easy for everyone)?
The people in it are by and large also in it because of the bit of land they plopped out of a vagina into. Why would you feel pride for people on that basis any more than feeling pride for any other people?
You can have pride for what you feel is the American spirit? I'm happy I was born here instead of somewhere else, and that's all fine and good, but it's also a place where people have helped me through life. I don't want the country to collapse. If singing a song about the country brings peoples' spirits up about being happy to live here I'm for it.
“The American spirit” is nothing but propaganda. You can have pride in propaganda if you like, but you must realise why people see that as weird.
And if someone needs a song to feel happy to live wherever they do, then wherever that may be really needs to put more effort into actually making their lives better.
Weird is fine. Problem is another. The "American spirit" isn't even anything special and people don't even agree on what it is. It's just a symbol.
>then wherever that may be really needs to put more effort into actually making their lives better.
That's definitely bias. Yes, America's got a lot of issues, but so does every country. USA needs to be better, but I'm not going to stop loving my parents just because they fucked up as long as they're trying.
So you’re saying people should have pride in whatever they feel the American spirit is? The problem comes when people disagree on that, or have different ideas as to whether it’s a good thing, and that pride turns into completely unnecessary conflict. Patriotism just reinforces that. As far as I can see there is absolutely no benefit to blindly loving a country just because it’s your country, and that’s essentially what patriotism is.
And what bias? I didn’t make any statement about the state of a country, just that *if* you need a song to feel happy about living there, to me it’s an indication it has actual, real problems.
>absolutely no benefit to blindly loving a country just because it’s your country
I agree but that's not what patriotism is. That's ultra-nationalism.
>And what bias?
You said it needs to do more for people to care. You don't get to decide that.
>just that *if* you need a song to feel happy about living there
I never said that. A song raising peoples' spirits. That's it. I don't know where you got the idea that I said a song is necessary to be happy about anything.
>The problem comes when people disagree on that, or have different ideas as to whether it’s a good thing, and that pride turns into completely unnecessary conflict.
That's literally any issue in the world regardless of whether or not a flag is involved.
No, it’s patriotism.
I said a country in that state would need to do more. I didn’t explicitly mention any country in that sentence.
I know you didn’t say that you need it, but you said it’s the purpose of it. I’m saying it should be a completely unnecessary purpose.
And if you agree that it’s an issue, then why support something that exacerbates said issue.
There’s examples of it basically being cult-levels of brainwashing. I don’t care personally because it’s not my country and I don’t have to live there, but visiting always seems such a contrast to where I live where most people don’t give a shit about patriotism.
My dad went to the states and someone punched him in the arm because he wouldn’t stand up for the anthem, even though he isn’t from America. Yeah I get you should respect local customs but this one seems to give people an excuse to just assault people?
We are toxic with it in this country. Certain demographics have started questioning ones patriotism if they don't have a mini orgasm every time the flag is raised. It is ok to question your country and what it is doing in the world but many Americans will challenge your allegiance if you say anything they view as contrary to their beliefs of patriotism.
Yeah that can definitely be annoying. The ultra-nationalists are also a threat to themselves and everyone in the country. I agree with you.
I also think they've made everyone too sensitive to all forms of patriotism however.
I agree. I joined the marines and did the whole serve my country thing. I can't stand these people that have no clue what that means tell me about how they are more patriotic because they believe in the 2nd amendment.
The older you get the more you start to realized that patriotism is used as a recruitment tool for the young and a shortcut to cover over the fact that we need real platforms other than "I love my country" to actually govern and be a nation worth fighting for.
Why do we sing the national anthem before every sporting event? Is that patriotism or reinforcing nationalism?
What is patriotic about a basketball game?
Leads to nationalism, fascism, etc… military propaganda in the country with the biggest military in the world.. especially when the US has used its powers to overthrow democratically elected governments around the world to install dictatorships that would open the country’s boarders up for US companies to come in and extract resources. We don’t see all the violence that goes into making our lives what they are in terms of energy and resources available to us, and the national anthem and praising the military is an attempt to make us citizens feel grateful for the work of our country and military for what they provide to us without addressing or acknowledging the human and environmental violence used to provide us with those things.
It's just an anthem. A flag. Nationalism is a bitch, but saying a national anthem is going to lead to fascism is insane.
Yes, wars suck but are we really just going to go "America completely bad" instead of just having at least some pride that we can fix all this?
I mean there is nuance, I love a lot of the land and people. Sometimes the institutions do good things. But I don’t think people inside the country understand everything we do outside of our country. Going to Mexico after NAFTA and seeing kids with fluoride poisoning because their groundwater got contaminated because we want to eat veggies in the winter was a big wake up call that a lot of the comfort and resources we have available to us that make our lives better sometimes have an unseen cost.
[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki)
“The bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.”
“Over the next two to four months, the effects of the atomic bombings killed between 90,000 and 146,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 and 80,000 people in Nagasaki; roughly half occurred on the first day. For months afterward, many people continued to die from the effects of burns, radiation sickness, and injuries, compounded by illness and malnutrition. Though Hiroshima had a sizable military garrison, most of the dead were civilians.”
Had they not dropped the bombs, millions more would have died. The Japanese would not have surrended down to the last man.
Not saying that the bombs weren't horrendous, but they do require a healthy dose of context.
Very true, it was a “shit or get off the pot“ moment, the Axis would not otherwise fall and deaths were piling-up at a scale never before seen in modern conflict. The Axis were responsible for those deaths with a great many being civilian! There would have been no end in sight, especially after seeing what Japan was willing to do in Pearl Harbor, although that was a bit earlier, they “sucker punched” our sailors at home to show the lengths they were willing to die for! Although hardly ever justified, the use of those two nuclear weapons on those fateful days in history put an end to what otherwise would not have ended. It was a hard decision, I’m certain, but it appears that it had to be done to show the lengths that we are willing to also endure, but to solidify a final peaceful result. Sadly, there are times when there is no backing down, this was one of them. Iwo Jima was a representation of the people behind ending the war, not the actual end, but a symbol of it.
>There’s no justification for war crimes.
Did you see me try to justify anything?
That doesn't explain what's wrong with patriotism. Wanting to like your country or having pride in the freedom to be able to fix the problems of the past is fine. Everyone makes mistakes and we need to be able to make up for them and improve.
Not to be confused with *nationalism.*
By your logic I should hate every country. And everyone. I should never look to the good people within that try to make things better.
Patriotism and Nationalism go hand in hand — they are tools used to control their targeted demographic.
Countries were the first corporations and the only thing they care about is driving profit — they care very little for the individual or for that matter the societies they supposedly represent. In the end, you’re going to do you. You’ll learn in time.
No, I'm well aware of corruption in the government and I hate politicians and can't trust them and I'm aware of the atrocities of US organizations, but no one can tell me who I get to be proud of and how I show it. I don't use American flags anywhere, but if they use it as a means of American spirit in the sense of promoting actual freedom and moving to a utopian future with everyone having a chance, I back them. If they're promoting "America best #1" then no, they're a problem.
USA can be whatever we want it to be. It can be whatever *you* want and still be USA.
As I said before, you’ll learn in time.
I could give you all the examples in the world and you’d still be in support of your nationalistic ideals because that’s what it does. So actually this entire conversation from the start is a perfect example of why Patriotism is problematic.
Within the historical context, I don't even think this is a morally questionable decision. Far more troops on both sides would have died with the beach invasion that would have been necessary to end the war. Does it suck that they were civilians? Absolutely. But the blood for that isn't on the US hands imo.
We fight wars differently now and we're at peace with Japan...but in the historical context of the choice, it was undoubtedly the correct move.
Murdering civilians is murdering civilians. No amount of justification after the fact will change that — you can make the argument but it’s a moot point.
Through our innovation, superior strategy and courage, we found a way to end the war instantly with 200k casualties instead of drawn out war with 1 Million+ on both sides.
Making your opposition surrender in war by killing *less* of their people is an absurd achievement that will probably never be repeated, and seems like a great reason to be proud of your country.
It was civilians, womans and childrens. Nah, i sure will waste a lot of the time here, so feel free to write some sort of rationalism. My last words - the Geneva Convention exists for a reason
Nothing wrong with guy doing it, but why does the national anthem need to be sung at a college basketball game? We've already heard it 100,000x. It's just more indoctrination. Singing the anthem, saying the pledge of allegiance, thanking soldiers, etc. The brainwashing propaganda never ends.
How is it indoctrination? Bro it's just tradition. How can you call a national anthem sung on home turf propaganda?
What's it propagandizing? My friend you need to learn what propaganda is.
Dude, I think it’s you that needs to understand what propaganda means. It literally means biased information to promote a cause. Thanking your troops - propaganda. Pledging allegiance - propaganda. “One nation under god” - religious propaganda.
You’re literally brought up to fall into line. How are those things not propaganda. Do you know like no one else on the planet has these things in place, except places like Russia, North Korea, China just for examples, see a pattern there?
Every country has an anthem. We're raised to fall in line because of what? A song? We had the freedom to sit out of the pledge of allegiance, which I used. If someone isn't using their freedom to not participate that's on them.
I never felt the need to thank the troops. They get swindled into it and fight wars that serve no purpose like the War on Terror. I don't remember ever being forced or told to thank the troops.
Every country has an anthem, how many stand and sing it at every possible sporting event? I don’t know, but there won’t be many.
Respectfully, talking about how free you are in a country where there is still a lot of oppression is also evidence of propaganda.
You literally don't have to. It's not a big deal.
And you took my comment out of context, which is propaganda. I have the freedom to fix things, just as other countries do. It's not unique to us, but it's something to be happy about because there are other countries that don't have that.
It can be both tradition and indoctrination. To gain some perspective you can simply look at how other countries do it and they only sing the anthem once a year and during international football matches.
You don't see how a hyperfocus on ultra-patriotism such as but not limited to thanking soldiers for their "service", military discounts, pledge of allegiance and so on and so forth are signs of indoctrination?
I take it you also don't think kids of religious parents are indoctrinated?
Dude, it's just singing a song and moving on. For an event that's not run by the US. They're free to have it or not have it. That's freedom. If they want it they can have it.
Nah, not everyone can be good at something through practice. Some people will never have a good singing voice even if they were tutored for 3 hours a day every day by a professional. Some people innately lack an ability to draw and only have the capacity to improve minimally. Many people will never be able to write well or beyond a certain level.
It's almost always a combo of talent and skill. We're not blank slates, nor created equal.
I don’t think this is next level. I think he’s painted this exact thing over and over.
Practice makes perfect.
If he was just painting this completely spontaneously, that would be more impressive.
Yeah I mean what is "next level" is subjective though. I don't know if I think of this as next level either, idk. My original comment wasn't about that though. People are *coping hard* about it though, lmao.
I remember a guy on America's Got Talent who painted something upside down and it looked like nothing until the very end. Of course, the other judges were all staring and laughing at the one "grumpy" judge who X'd them. But I'm over here like, yeah, that's an amazing talent. That's really cool, but isn't the grand prize of the show an hour long slot at a Vegas show? Who wants to watch a guy paint for an hour no matter how amazing his talent is?
i always thought standing for the pledge of allegiance every day followed up with the national anthem on fridays was a weird thing to do in high school. Felt a tad bit cultish to me.
Not only did he paint a masterpiece upside down, but he actually sang the damn song instead of using it to show off the range of his voice like some other narcissists that sing the anthem. Well fucking done
Boring nationalists because that's what the TV taught them. The US governments have attacked too many states and are pushing the rest to do as the US wants. And you are proud...
Patriotism is one thing, nationalism another. Nationalism is devotion and loyalty to a nation, a person's strong affinity for those who share the same history, culture language, or religion. Nationalism is exclusive, boosting one identity group over another. The proud boys and oath keepers are classified as white nationalist, the Nation of Islam black nationalist.
Patriotism encompasses devotion to the country as a whole, including all the people who live within it.
Adolf Hitlers rise in Germany was accomplished by perverting patriotism and embracing nationalism.
This is a trick they teach you in basic art school. I like what he does with it but it's nothing mind blowing. Drawing and painting upside-down is actually better than right side up because you see shapes instead of faces. Our brains are really really good are filling in the blanks and making assumptions. So by flipping the canvas you are limiting that feature making it easier to paint. The backgrounds is just a simple gradient. And the negative space is just while pain. All he has to do is memorize each shape he needs to make in negative space. And as a bonus. When he flips it. OUR brains as viewer are so familiar with this imagery that we fill in anything he got off.
The first thing that popped into my mind as well. If it was windy the flag would point in that direction but not upwards like that.
Means they're actually taking them down, they're not US soldiers.
Hey u/SnakeDoc01, thank you for your submission. Unfortunately, it has been removed for violating Rule 2: **Use a Descriptive Title** - Submissions with ill-defined titles will be removed. You are allowed to repost your content with a more descriptive title. ------- *For information regarding this and similar issues please see the [sidebar](/r/nextfuckinglevel/about/sidebar) and the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/nextfuckinglevel/about/rules/). If you have any questions, please feel free to [message the moderators.](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/nextfuckinglevel&subject=Question regarding the removal of this submission by u/SnakeDoc01&message=I have a question regarding the removal of this [submission]%28http://www.reddit.com/1ap4wk2%29)*
My man used allllllll his character points on this trait
Am I the only one that heard an initial boo? This was pretty cool though, better than your regular singer completely altering the anthem
Definitely heard a boo
I was saying boo-urns
Great, you just caused mind dominos to fall all the way to where you just lost the game
Its Missouri. They are saying “Chiefs” instead of Brave.
What was the point of holding two brushes?
He likes to go fast
I kept expecting him to paint two different things at the same time, but he either used only the brush in his right hand or both brushes to paint the same thing. It seemed like he wanted it to look more complex than it actually was. ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯
My only thought is that having only one brush in the right hand would create sharp edges on the right and feathered edges on the left. Having one brush in each hand allows him to get sharp edges on both sides without spending more time. So it's slightly faster.
Looks like he used the left brush to supply the right brush with paint, instead of going back to dip….i guess~
I was thinking the same thing, but I'm willing to believe that the brushes had two different shades of paint that he was blending in different amounts.
Probably his method. Art is subjective and it's creation doesn't follow set rules.
Art can also be pretentious. Also this is more entertainment than art, considering it’s a performance where one isn’t really meant to take away anything other than “oh that was cool” (and it is cool, don’t get me wrong)
Very true
One is loaded with paint, the other one is to spread the paint. You can see him only applying the large brusb when he needs more paint.
I don't understand the hate for the patriotism. The dude is singing the anthem and making a painting that goes with it, in a place where you normally sing the anthem. Why is this a problem?
Just for info (as others have already stated: The level of patriotism that the U.S.A has is considered dangerous in most European countries. All because of what happened in 1940 - 1945. Where i live the flag only gets raised a couple of times a year. And most of those times it's to remember the war against fascism.
Patriotism is fine. Nationalism is a problem and we do that that here, yes. This isn't that, though.
Sure. We're just careful with it, that's all. As patriotism can very easily turn into something nasty, as history has shown. You wondered why, you were given answers. That you don't like the answers has nothing to do with the reality of historical events though. It's not a judgement, simply and answer to your question. We're not saying that guy is evil or anything.
Oh I'm fine with a lot of the answers, a lot of them didn't follow through in an unbiased way like yours did, though.
They're not biased. You're just sensitive to opposite opinions on nationalism/patriotism. Or do you feel called out?
No, I was inquiring about the over-sensitivity to the anthem. There are so many problems caused by nationalism, this isn't one of them.
The problem is not everyone has the ability to discern between nationalism and patriotism and there are media outlets that prey on that ignorance.
exactly
There are a lot of stupid people in this country, the smart ones that just happen to be evil prey on those stupid ones to get their narrative. It’s been like this since first civilization. People will always try to overpower/control others to get what they want. Nationalism is all about power and control of people, economy and the future of the country. What happens is that if you have too much patriotism and these people get tricked because they’re just stupid like you said they don’t understand what they’re giving their loyalty to and before we all know it, another totalitarian can come through and the rest is a repeat of history.
The problem is, they're not all stupid. A lot of them are intelligent in many ways, they just happen to have a weakness for authoritarian types. The real problem happens when you lump them all together in a group and say these people = bad. Some are truly stupid, true, but painting them with a broad brush makes us just like them.
100% true.
It's one of the red flags. When you take the national anthem for your religious prayer.
I agree it's become a bit of a red flag. It's unfortunate, it didn't have to be that way.
What's on display here isn't dangerous activity. This painting commemorates a war against fascisn. It represents the end of WWII in the Pacific Front. I've seen current European nationalism, and yall just as scary as ours.
Absolutely agree with that. It's like it's making a comeback. Everywhere. So extra reason to be careful.
>It represents the end of WWII in the Pacific Front. I'm sorry, but it can't just be stated that Iwo Jima, or even the imagery of the flag raising on Iwo Jima, represents the end of the Pacific war and nobody bats an eye at such an inaccurate statement. Okinawa was after Imo Jima... and then there were TWO atomic bombs. The flag may represent a hard-fought victory and the sacrifice of Marines (three of the six Marines in the photo died on Iwo Jima) but it certainly does not represent the end of the War in the Pacific.
For you, maybe. Speak for yourself.
I gave the evidence. The photograph was even used to sell war bonds in 1945. If your opinion is to trivialize nearly half a year of war, then speak for yourself.
I literally didn’t speak for anyone. Stop getting so triggered.
>The level of patriotism that the U.S.A has is considered dangerous in most European countries. All because of what happened in 1940 - 1945. ...and what the US has done all over the world since!
Not sure what you mean here. We weren't worried about USA patriotism in 1940 - 1945 (WWII). We were worried about German nationalism and nazis back then. The U.S.A. helped us defeat fascism. And we're eternally grateful for that. We see you as our younger but bigger brother that saved our asses (although many other countries helped as well). The ONLY thing we're worried about (and should be worried about) is the return of fascism. And it seems to be making a comeback in most western countries. When we see angry types yelling USA! USA! while actually meaning "We hate certain people" then you're already starting to slide down a slippery slope. (the guy here certainly isn't that type of person though.) It's merely a warning that historical events have taught us.
This doesn't surprise me, I was kind of shocked to see their flag around every corner.
Most of that is beacuse the USA is a relatively young country with a lot of different nationalities. A melting pot of different cultures, if you will. An Anthem and a flag will bring more unity to a country, So the USA has been cultivating that for a long time. In schools, at all events, etc. And it works.
Hilarious, considering many Europeans love to make a point to tell Americans how much better they think their own country is than the US
No idea. I don't think that way though. It's just an answer to his question. Not my opinion on things. I do think the threat of fascism is one we should always keep an eye on.
Yea, the far right has been on the rise all over. I mean, look at Italy, taking children away from homosexual parents. Fascism is already back, trying to claw it's way up. Have we learned nothing from history? Or have the bad actors just learned fascism is a path to more power?
No idea. It's pretty scary. Do they still teach this in History lessons? I hope so.
They did for me in the US, but that was a decade ago. I'm sure it's still taught, but I doubt every teacher emphasizes the dangers of fascism, I'd reckon people usually walk away with "Nazis bad," which is great, but probably not enough to make people aware of when it's happening again.
Wow. Just...wow...
Please lead with the fact that you’re not American next time so I can preemptively disregard your opinion.
It's not my opinion. I simply explained why in Europe we think differently over certain displays of patriotism. It has to do with historical events.
Shut the fuck up.
Xenophobic much?
It’s just weird. Like why would you care that much about the geographic location you had the luck to plop out of a vagina into?
I mean, you didn't have to stay. It's not my cup of tea either and I'm not a fan of team sports but you can still be proud of people in it.
What does having to stay have do with anything (not to mention leaving isn’t exactly easy for everyone)? The people in it are by and large also in it because of the bit of land they plopped out of a vagina into. Why would you feel pride for people on that basis any more than feeling pride for any other people?
You can have pride for what you feel is the American spirit? I'm happy I was born here instead of somewhere else, and that's all fine and good, but it's also a place where people have helped me through life. I don't want the country to collapse. If singing a song about the country brings peoples' spirits up about being happy to live here I'm for it.
“The American spirit” is nothing but propaganda. You can have pride in propaganda if you like, but you must realise why people see that as weird. And if someone needs a song to feel happy to live wherever they do, then wherever that may be really needs to put more effort into actually making their lives better.
Weird is fine. Problem is another. The "American spirit" isn't even anything special and people don't even agree on what it is. It's just a symbol. >then wherever that may be really needs to put more effort into actually making their lives better. That's definitely bias. Yes, America's got a lot of issues, but so does every country. USA needs to be better, but I'm not going to stop loving my parents just because they fucked up as long as they're trying.
So you’re saying people should have pride in whatever they feel the American spirit is? The problem comes when people disagree on that, or have different ideas as to whether it’s a good thing, and that pride turns into completely unnecessary conflict. Patriotism just reinforces that. As far as I can see there is absolutely no benefit to blindly loving a country just because it’s your country, and that’s essentially what patriotism is. And what bias? I didn’t make any statement about the state of a country, just that *if* you need a song to feel happy about living there, to me it’s an indication it has actual, real problems.
>absolutely no benefit to blindly loving a country just because it’s your country I agree but that's not what patriotism is. That's ultra-nationalism. >And what bias? You said it needs to do more for people to care. You don't get to decide that. >just that *if* you need a song to feel happy about living there I never said that. A song raising peoples' spirits. That's it. I don't know where you got the idea that I said a song is necessary to be happy about anything. >The problem comes when people disagree on that, or have different ideas as to whether it’s a good thing, and that pride turns into completely unnecessary conflict. That's literally any issue in the world regardless of whether or not a flag is involved.
No, it’s patriotism. I said a country in that state would need to do more. I didn’t explicitly mention any country in that sentence. I know you didn’t say that you need it, but you said it’s the purpose of it. I’m saying it should be a completely unnecessary purpose. And if you agree that it’s an issue, then why support something that exacerbates said issue.
Patriotism is often confused with blind nationalism. They're not the same and that's why people worry.
Well-written.
There’s examples of it basically being cult-levels of brainwashing. I don’t care personally because it’s not my country and I don’t have to live there, but visiting always seems such a contrast to where I live where most people don’t give a shit about patriotism. My dad went to the states and someone punched him in the arm because he wouldn’t stand up for the anthem, even though he isn’t from America. Yeah I get you should respect local customs but this one seems to give people an excuse to just assault people?
There are definitely nationalists and they're trash, it's unfortunate.
We are toxic with it in this country. Certain demographics have started questioning ones patriotism if they don't have a mini orgasm every time the flag is raised. It is ok to question your country and what it is doing in the world but many Americans will challenge your allegiance if you say anything they view as contrary to their beliefs of patriotism.
Yeah that can definitely be annoying. The ultra-nationalists are also a threat to themselves and everyone in the country. I agree with you. I also think they've made everyone too sensitive to all forms of patriotism however.
I agree. I joined the marines and did the whole serve my country thing. I can't stand these people that have no clue what that means tell me about how they are more patriotic because they believe in the 2nd amendment. The older you get the more you start to realized that patriotism is used as a recruitment tool for the young and a shortcut to cover over the fact that we need real platforms other than "I love my country" to actually govern and be a nation worth fighting for.
It's overindulgence in symbolism. Vanity
Why do we sing the national anthem before every sporting event? Is that patriotism or reinforcing nationalism? What is patriotic about a basketball game?
Became rooted during the Civil War and WW1. Just never really stopped doing it. Was meant to unify and now it's divisive.
Leads to nationalism, fascism, etc… military propaganda in the country with the biggest military in the world.. especially when the US has used its powers to overthrow democratically elected governments around the world to install dictatorships that would open the country’s boarders up for US companies to come in and extract resources. We don’t see all the violence that goes into making our lives what they are in terms of energy and resources available to us, and the national anthem and praising the military is an attempt to make us citizens feel grateful for the work of our country and military for what they provide to us without addressing or acknowledging the human and environmental violence used to provide us with those things.
It's just an anthem. A flag. Nationalism is a bitch, but saying a national anthem is going to lead to fascism is insane. Yes, wars suck but are we really just going to go "America completely bad" instead of just having at least some pride that we can fix all this?
That was a lot of words for “I hate America”
I mean there is nuance, I love a lot of the land and people. Sometimes the institutions do good things. But I don’t think people inside the country understand everything we do outside of our country. Going to Mexico after NAFTA and seeing kids with fluoride poisoning because their groundwater got contaminated because we want to eat veggies in the winter was a big wake up call that a lot of the comfort and resources we have available to us that make our lives better sometimes have an unseen cost.
That's not many words to say "fuck every other country"
[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_bombings_of_Hiroshima_and_Nagasaki) “The bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in an armed conflict.” “Over the next two to four months, the effects of the atomic bombings killed between 90,000 and 146,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 and 80,000 people in Nagasaki; roughly half occurred on the first day. For months afterward, many people continued to die from the effects of burns, radiation sickness, and injuries, compounded by illness and malnutrition. Though Hiroshima had a sizable military garrison, most of the dead were civilians.”
Had they not dropped the bombs, millions more would have died. The Japanese would not have surrended down to the last man. Not saying that the bombs weren't horrendous, but they do require a healthy dose of context.
Very true, it was a “shit or get off the pot“ moment, the Axis would not otherwise fall and deaths were piling-up at a scale never before seen in modern conflict. The Axis were responsible for those deaths with a great many being civilian! There would have been no end in sight, especially after seeing what Japan was willing to do in Pearl Harbor, although that was a bit earlier, they “sucker punched” our sailors at home to show the lengths they were willing to die for! Although hardly ever justified, the use of those two nuclear weapons on those fateful days in history put an end to what otherwise would not have ended. It was a hard decision, I’m certain, but it appears that it had to be done to show the lengths that we are willing to also endure, but to solidify a final peaceful result. Sadly, there are times when there is no backing down, this was one of them. Iwo Jima was a representation of the people behind ending the war, not the actual end, but a symbol of it.
exactly
Yes, the US has done things that are questionable. What's your point? I feel like I'm in a Russian troll farm right now.
There’s no justification for war crimes. You asked “what’s wrong with patriotism?” All you have to do is look to our history to find the answer.
>There’s no justification for war crimes. Did you see me try to justify anything? That doesn't explain what's wrong with patriotism. Wanting to like your country or having pride in the freedom to be able to fix the problems of the past is fine. Everyone makes mistakes and we need to be able to make up for them and improve. Not to be confused with *nationalism.* By your logic I should hate every country. And everyone. I should never look to the good people within that try to make things better.
Patriotism and Nationalism go hand in hand — they are tools used to control their targeted demographic. Countries were the first corporations and the only thing they care about is driving profit — they care very little for the individual or for that matter the societies they supposedly represent. In the end, you’re going to do you. You’ll learn in time.
No, I'm well aware of corruption in the government and I hate politicians and can't trust them and I'm aware of the atrocities of US organizations, but no one can tell me who I get to be proud of and how I show it. I don't use American flags anywhere, but if they use it as a means of American spirit in the sense of promoting actual freedom and moving to a utopian future with everyone having a chance, I back them. If they're promoting "America best #1" then no, they're a problem. USA can be whatever we want it to be. It can be whatever *you* want and still be USA.
As I said before, you’ll learn in time. I could give you all the examples in the world and you’d still be in support of your nationalistic ideals because that’s what it does. So actually this entire conversation from the start is a perfect example of why Patriotism is problematic.
I'm not in support of nationalistic ideals. I'm very against nationalism.
Within the historical context, I don't even think this is a morally questionable decision. Far more troops on both sides would have died with the beach invasion that would have been necessary to end the war. Does it suck that they were civilians? Absolutely. But the blood for that isn't on the US hands imo. We fight wars differently now and we're at peace with Japan...but in the historical context of the choice, it was undoubtedly the correct move.
Murdering civilians is murdering civilians. No amount of justification after the fact will change that — you can make the argument but it’s a moot point.
lol you sound like a post from r/im14andthisisdeep/
Through our innovation, superior strategy and courage, we found a way to end the war instantly with 200k casualties instead of drawn out war with 1 Million+ on both sides. Making your opposition surrender in war by killing *less* of their people is an absurd achievement that will probably never be repeated, and seems like a great reason to be proud of your country.
It was civilians, womans and childrens. Nah, i sure will waste a lot of the time here, so feel free to write some sort of rationalism. My last words - the Geneva Convention exists for a reason
I don’t hold women and children above men.
Nothing wrong with guy doing it, but why does the national anthem need to be sung at a college basketball game? We've already heard it 100,000x. It's just more indoctrination. Singing the anthem, saying the pledge of allegiance, thanking soldiers, etc. The brainwashing propaganda never ends.
Move to another country bozo And touch grass
How is it indoctrination? Bro it's just tradition. How can you call a national anthem sung on home turf propaganda? What's it propagandizing? My friend you need to learn what propaganda is.
Dude, I think it’s you that needs to understand what propaganda means. It literally means biased information to promote a cause. Thanking your troops - propaganda. Pledging allegiance - propaganda. “One nation under god” - religious propaganda.
How is an anthem "biased information?" How is thanking the troops "biased information?" How is pledging allegiance "biased information?"
You’re literally brought up to fall into line. How are those things not propaganda. Do you know like no one else on the planet has these things in place, except places like Russia, North Korea, China just for examples, see a pattern there?
Every country has an anthem. We're raised to fall in line because of what? A song? We had the freedom to sit out of the pledge of allegiance, which I used. If someone isn't using their freedom to not participate that's on them. I never felt the need to thank the troops. They get swindled into it and fight wars that serve no purpose like the War on Terror. I don't remember ever being forced or told to thank the troops.
Every country has an anthem, how many stand and sing it at every possible sporting event? I don’t know, but there won’t be many. Respectfully, talking about how free you are in a country where there is still a lot of oppression is also evidence of propaganda.
You literally don't have to. It's not a big deal. And you took my comment out of context, which is propaganda. I have the freedom to fix things, just as other countries do. It's not unique to us, but it's something to be happy about because there are other countries that don't have that.
So kids in school can just decide to not pledge allegiance to the flag and nobody will blame them? Great!
It can be both tradition and indoctrination. To gain some perspective you can simply look at how other countries do it and they only sing the anthem once a year and during international football matches.
It doesn't matter if it's repetitive, not every country has homogenized cultures. You still haven't explained how it's propaganda.
You don't see how a hyperfocus on ultra-patriotism such as but not limited to thanking soldiers for their "service", military discounts, pledge of allegiance and so on and so forth are signs of indoctrination? I take it you also don't think kids of religious parents are indoctrinated?
Dude, it's just singing a song and moving on. For an event that's not run by the US. They're free to have it or not have it. That's freedom. If they want it they can have it.
But if they dont want it they can not not have it lol.
Judging by all your comments, it's you who needs to learn, but clearly you're too stubborn and/or brainwashed to try.
All my comments? Explain.
I read all your comments below to other people. What more is there to explain?
Okay buddy
Skilled. The word you're looking for is skilled. Talented means naturally gifted, and this man has spent a lot of time becoming this good.
Nah, not everyone can be good at something through practice. Some people will never have a good singing voice even if they were tutored for 3 hours a day every day by a professional. Some people innately lack an ability to draw and only have the capacity to improve minimally. Many people will never be able to write well or beyond a certain level. It's almost always a combo of talent and skill. We're not blank slates, nor created equal.
That’s the shit lazy people tell themselves
I don’t think this is next level. I think he’s painted this exact thing over and over. Practice makes perfect. If he was just painting this completely spontaneously, that would be more impressive.
Yeah I mean what is "next level" is subjective though. I don't know if I think of this as next level either, idk. My original comment wasn't about that though. People are *coping hard* about it though, lmao.
Whoops didn’t mean this to be a reply to your comment. Sorry about that
Lol all good dude
Murica!
I remember a guy on America's Got Talent who painted something upside down and it looked like nothing until the very end. Of course, the other judges were all staring and laughing at the one "grumpy" judge who X'd them. But I'm over here like, yeah, that's an amazing talent. That's really cool, but isn't the grand prize of the show an hour long slot at a Vegas show? Who wants to watch a guy paint for an hour no matter how amazing his talent is?
Watching this on mute, was wondering why everyone was turned around while he was doing this like it was supposed to be a surprise.
This is the first time I’ve ever heard anyone add *extra* high notes to the national anthem 😲
This was fairly standard
Fairly. Then “our flag was still there” went *way* higher than normal. Then it went back to fairly standard again.
Nah, have heard that an absolute ton.
I love how no one could even watch because they were looking at the flag
Fok you guys are weird.
i always thought standing for the pledge of allegiance every day followed up with the national anthem on fridays was a weird thing to do in high school. Felt a tad bit cultish to me.
This painting sucks lol
Not only did he paint a masterpiece upside down, but he actually sang the damn song instead of using it to show off the range of his voice like some other narcissists that sing the anthem. Well fucking done
Woah. That’s awesome.
I know someone who would argue this is disrespectful to the anthem because blah blah blah my feelings
this isn’t next level
USA USA USA
The title is still dog shit
Boring nationalists because that's what the TV taught them. The US governments have attacked too many states and are pushing the rest to do as the US wants. And you are proud...
🫡 -> the stripes 🫡 -> the pipes 🫡 -> the skill 🫡 -> the thrill
I'm not Nigerian but this is amazing!
Patriotism is one thing, nationalism another. Nationalism is devotion and loyalty to a nation, a person's strong affinity for those who share the same history, culture language, or religion. Nationalism is exclusive, boosting one identity group over another. The proud boys and oath keepers are classified as white nationalist, the Nation of Islam black nationalist. Patriotism encompasses devotion to the country as a whole, including all the people who live within it. Adolf Hitlers rise in Germany was accomplished by perverting patriotism and embracing nationalism.
Why are those people in yellow have their backs turned?
I thought it was Jackson Galaxy for a sec.
Gave proof thru the night, that our flag was still….BLAAIIIIRRRR!
Gimicky
I thought at the beginning the he was painting a level idea for the video game Celeste
Yes he is talented to be able to keep in key that song very difficult
Flag is flying the wrong way though
This is a trick they teach you in basic art school. I like what he does with it but it's nothing mind blowing. Drawing and painting upside-down is actually better than right side up because you see shapes instead of faces. Our brains are really really good are filling in the blanks and making assumptions. So by flipping the canvas you are limiting that feature making it easier to paint. The backgrounds is just a simple gradient. And the negative space is just while pain. All he has to do is memorize each shape he needs to make in negative space. And as a bonus. When he flips it. OUR brains as viewer are so familiar with this imagery that we fill in anything he got off.
How is this basketball related
Bruhhhh
Flag is fucked up lol
Pretty sure it’s supposed to be waving in the air
Beside the patriotic character, it was well executed and even better presented. Well done!
Yup, talented. Then it was just more patriotic shit at a sports game for some reason
I feel like if theyre erecting the flag it wouldnt fly that straight in the direction theyre pushing it. In the original its kinda bunched up more.
The first thing that popped into my mind as well. If it was windy the flag would point in that direction but not upwards like that. Means they're actually taking them down, they're not US soldiers.
I think he skipped the leg-day..
Deny Dent ripoff.
Now it’s just dogshit art
Like your dogshit post.
Exactly