I can’t tell if patriotism is waning. For sure it is not like 9-11. Thank God. But overall it appears to be steady.
My business grows an average of 10 percent, annually, some years more and some years less. This year is going to be a wash. After 9/11 and then the war, patriotism grew to a new level and now has plateau. This is typical.
In my 30 years of business I have seen patriotism grow and plateau over and over again. Never really backsliding. In the 70’s it was the Bicentennial Celebration, in the 80’s it was Reaganism and Bruce Springstien’s “Born In the USA” album, the 90’s brought Desert Storm and now at the turn of the century is terrorism.
I believe we all learned from the Vietnam War to be nice to the men that serve. It is not their fault we are at war. I believe we all learned through 9/11 to be patriotic. Life is fragile. But whether you are for or against the war, expression of patriotism is for everyone and it isn’t waning just leveling off. Typical.
