America. Love It or Leave It!!!

My favorite right-wing criticism is the "America, Love It or Leave It" motif. Anything that might criticize what they see as American values means that you hate the country and should move to Canada or Cuba or North Korea or whatever.

This is pretty effective rhetoric. By letting them get away with it, we allow them to gain legitimacy for their viewpoints by grounding them in a particular understanding of "America."

It's hardly surprising that my American Revolution post has garnered similar remarks, particularly in comments. See here, here, here, here, here, and here. So I'm going to play that game too.

America is a nation that opposes torture and treating people inhumanly. If you don't like it and if you believe that waterboarding and secret prisons are OK, why don't you leave and move to Guatemala!!!

America is a nation that believes in equal rights for all its citizens, regardless of race. If you oppose affirmative action, you are a racist. If you don't like fighting racism like an American, why don't you move to apartheid South Africa!!!

If you believe in American values of freedom, tolerance, and personal liberty, you must support equal rights for homosexuals. If you hate gays, you are un-American. Why don't you pack your bags and move to Singapore!!!

To be an American, you must support the right of women to have control over their sexuality. If you oppose abortion rights, why don't you move to Nigeria where you can genitally mutilate your daughters!!!