Nationalism and its effect on Politics

Nationalism was one of the factors that triggered WWII. This feeling of being so proud about your country, made everybody think about themselves no longer as individuals but as a collective entity. Those were the times when nationalism reached its highest expression and Germany is the best example we can have. There’s no better example to use in order to explain why they were so convinced about them being the “pure” race and the only one that should’ve been left in Earth. Today, I am pretty sure that Mexico is one of the countries with the highest level of nationalism; we love to be Mexicans and to take our flag around the world, despite of the negative aspects our country has.
I think we all want to believe that we’re the best. We all like to think that we have the best opportunities; that the best decisions are taken within our borders, etc. But is this good or negative? How are we supposed to manage these emotions that interfere with our important decisions whenever we need to take them?

Nowadays, multiculturalism is a way of life. We have such a great example here in Tec, with foreign teachers that provide a rich diversity to our High School. But I wonder if any of us is being objective whenever we say “this country is better than that one”. In my opinion, no country can be better than other, it just might be better in some aspects, but at the same time it might be worse in others. But are we truly taking this into consideration? Do we have evidence under our judgments that can support us whenever we compare the different ways of life?

Politics is determined by the relationships between sovereign entities. Several advances have made possible the interaction between countries all over the world. This is what makes our world spin. So I can’t stop thinking that when powerful leaders of different countries meet, they can’t avoid that pride they have, and they can’t take decisions 100% effectively. They are just so proud and defenders of their nationalism that what they say is partially headed towards their prestige and not about what the best option for everybody as part as the human race would be.
And let’s not go that far. We can see this often if not in our daily lives, at least in the news report. We see people from different cultures fighting against each other in the streets, or discussing religious topics, or defending their economic system, or yelling to each other about who is better. Why can’t they just be neutral and compare positive and negative alternatives? Because of that inherent emotion of belonging to a group.

So, should nationalism be encouraged in any country? Should it be banned? I think that the key is in being in the middle of excess and defect. Don’t be so blind about your identity as if it were the best one, but don’t think either that it’s not worth anything. Learn to be proud of your nationality but at the same time value the other ones, because tolerance is a key word in our globalized world. This would be an optimal point in our personality because our life is determined by our relationships. We, as humans, are supposed to co-exist in society, so we should learn to do it in a world that has so many different opinions and above all, learn not to be guided by feelings and emotions but by positive statements. Let’s find that equilibrium point.