Science & Technology

A Different Understanding of American Patriotism | Deval Patrick | TED

American democracy cannot be great until it is good, says lawyer, Harvard professor and former governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick. A self-identified patriot, Patrick stands behind the fundamental values and civic ideals that he believes make the US unique — and outlines how the country has strayed from those same edicts. Calling for a collective…

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American democracy cannot be great until it is good, says lawyer, Harvard professor and former governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick. A self-identified patriot, Patrick stands behind the fundamental values and civic ideals that he believes make the US unique — and outlines how the country has strayed from those same edicts. Calling for a collective patriotism free from cynicism and fatalism, Patrick underlines the urgency to reset national aspirations in order to save democracy.

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44 Comments

  1. Nathan Knucklesandwich

    March 9, 2022 at 4:39 pm

    The Democrat led hypochondriac mentality that breeds corruption and deceit is what’s wrong with America. Pushing racism and pointing fingers while doing the same or even worse is their agenda. Division and control through passing laws that benefit lobbyists not their constituents has brought us here. Globalists that play our politicians like finger puppets is discussed in our Constitution. They tell us what to do in times like this. All enemies foreign and DOMESTIC should fear the ever growing population of patriots that are united by freedom. This guy did a lot of talking without saying anything.

  2. Dmitri Zaslavski

    March 9, 2022 at 4:47 pm

    I don’t agree that even USA has enough resources to follow your ideology and in times of crisis there is no unity ever.
    But nevertheless I liked this speech.

  3. JASON MILLER

    March 9, 2022 at 4:56 pm

    It’s patriotic to surrender your sovereignty and degrade your nation.

  4. sevgi

    March 9, 2022 at 4:59 pm

    🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

  5. JASON MILLER

    March 9, 2022 at 5:02 pm

    Large majority of the people flooding the border are economic migrants not refugees and you know that but are being deceitful and making an appeal to emotions.

  6. gabi po

    March 9, 2022 at 5:04 pm

    the american people is so separated that ted dosent show the like buton number btw the us gov is for the companies not the people and i dont live there remember the us is not on the “good”

  7. Dan Introcaso

    March 9, 2022 at 5:07 pm

    You are full of hot air

    • Josh Garcia

      March 9, 2022 at 5:54 pm

      We all are ☺︎

  8. American Heart

    March 9, 2022 at 5:15 pm

    This is why I don’t like Ted anymore.

  9. Janice Stevenson

    March 9, 2022 at 5:17 pm

    “It’s time to shout kindness, compassion, justice…” Thank you for this inspiring talk.
    I share a quote from Steps to Knowledge that seems relevant to the Governor’s remarks:
    “Today I will not try to get even with God. Do not try to get even with God by being a miserable person, for God only knows you as part of Creation. Do not try to get even with God by making the world destitute, for God created a world of beauty and opportunity. Do not try to get even with God by refusing to love and accept yourself, for God still knows you as you are…” When we act out of a belief system of cynicism, fear and mistrust, aren’t we telling God that we don’t accept what God created within us? For God did not create this belief system and when we can look objectively at it, we can see that it is a set of fixed ideas that our minds have created based on our conditioning, not on reality. “Do not accept this structure as your reality, for the outward manifestation of your mind is a structure that you have imposed upon it. Yet its real inward harmony and nature seek only to be expressed. To enable this to happen you must have an adequate structure in the mind to enable the mind to express itself in the physical world without restraint or distortion.” This is the mind God gave us, not the one we made up for ourselves. Then we can speak, even shout from a place of freedom and truth for kindness, compassion, and justice. Isn’t this preferable to anger and fear? (excerpts from Steps to Knowledge, Marshall Vian Summers)

  10. Muxlisa Ziyatova

    March 9, 2022 at 5:25 pm

    Great

  11. Moises Flores

    March 9, 2022 at 5:29 pm

    Don’t know what everyone’s problem is with what he’s saying. It’s surface level but, technically true.

  12. Josh Garcia

    March 9, 2022 at 5:37 pm

    Absolutely.

    This is not a moral issue either as it is painted too often to get people to fight about it. It’s a logical issue.

  13. suffist

    March 9, 2022 at 5:56 pm

    “Why would you like to be black?” Emm!!! Affirmative Action for one. Diversity hiring for two. More lenient sentences, also you are allowed goFundmee’s, while we are not. Allowed to have Black Nationalism, while we are demonized for it. You have a history month we don’t, but neither does anyone else. You get your bail posted by members of congress we don’t, you get your bail posted by BLM we don’t.

  14. Deepak Arya

    March 9, 2022 at 6:31 pm

    Someone is running for POTUS

    • A W Brakeley

      March 9, 2022 at 8:26 pm

      He already has before. Doesn’t make his point any less valid.

  15. Doug G

    March 9, 2022 at 6:52 pm

    As long as you can prove your an American citizen you can vote. Period

    • Em Em

      March 9, 2022 at 8:51 pm

      No. In some states, you can’t vote if you have a felony criminal record.

    • Abby Mishmish

      March 9, 2022 at 10:18 pm

      You’re*

  16. InMaTeofDeath

    March 9, 2022 at 7:14 pm

    Why do people believe it’s ok to tell someone not to dis the video when they haven’t watched all of it yet but at the same time they believe it’s ok to praise it without having seen the whole thing either?

  17. TMacZ65

    March 9, 2022 at 7:15 pm

    The best parts of our Democracy will be preserved.

  18. Blow Me

    March 9, 2022 at 7:18 pm

    America doesn’t want a relationship with black people, when are you going to understand that? How many hints do you need?

  19. Scarletpooky

    March 9, 2022 at 7:28 pm

    Patriotism isn’t “my country is great”, it’s “I want my country to be great”.
    The difference being the willingness to admit when things are bad, and work to make them better.

    • Pandaboi

      March 10, 2022 at 1:44 pm

      To go further.
      Patriotism: “I want my country to be great”
      Nationalism: “My country is great (maybe perfect)”
      Fascism: “My country is the greatest. Other countries are populated by mere savages”.

  20. Ward Atkins

    March 9, 2022 at 8:29 pm

    I have generations of family members who served in the armed forces part due to the draft but my Grandfather still promoted and supported going to the military . Coming from Mississippi he knew about the racism ” I think it was a way out of our hard condition” but my family a military background going back to DAMN EVERY AMERICAN WAR although I can only go back to WW2 but I’m sure my grandfather has family before him who served. I guess that makes me patriotic “

  21. Louis Young

    March 9, 2022 at 9:58 pm

    “When did we learn to shout our anger and to whisper our kindness? It’s completely upside down.”

    Good point. 👏👏🙂

  22. Hey Jude

    March 9, 2022 at 11:22 pm

    Gov. Patrick, you have here said, far better than I ever have, a message that I have been trying to get across in countless debates for many years. For me it began in the wake of the second Iraq war, when we began wiretapping our own citizens without warrants, torturing people in secret facilities around the world, detaining people without any kind of process or charges in Guantanamo Bay. “America is better than this,” I would say. But I prefer your very apt “we cannot be great without being good.” I will be quoting you.

  23. Rhizometric Reality

    March 9, 2022 at 11:38 pm

    Capitalism is the vilest of poisons

  24. William Myers

    March 10, 2022 at 12:17 am

    Eh from Canada There once was a President named BIDEN Who lied and was always HIDING He saw a nice PLACE Told the people their SAFE But he ran off, now the people are DYING My condolences to the Ukrainian People

  25. Fish

    March 10, 2022 at 1:33 am

    As a Chinese immigrant, this video sums up my love for this country better than anything I’ve ever seen 🙂

  26. Jacob Lewis

    March 10, 2022 at 2:30 am

    A lot of liberal crap unfortunately. Glad TED is allowing comments again though.

  27. The amazing Bartman

    March 10, 2022 at 5:44 am

    I don’t get why Americans are patriotic, America is one of the worst countries in the world, nearly every major conflict in the past 100s of years were the consequence of American actions, how can you guys still be patriotic

  28. Ally Ip

    March 10, 2022 at 7:44 am

    Great speech, but hard to realize because as soon as “those people” begin taking your jobs and your space in the Ivy League schools, most of these social justice warriors would begin to cry not fair. It is hard to act good. Let us act on what we preach.

  29. PARADOXICLES

    March 10, 2022 at 9:06 am

    Patriotism, is a synonym for Stockholm syndrome. Government is terrorism, by definition, the use of fear and violence as a means of coercion. The only way to have TRUE peace, freedom, and prosperity, is with anarchy.

  30. Monsieur P.

    March 10, 2022 at 9:43 am

    “A deadly assault to overturn an election…” He must be referencing the certainly high number of collateral deaths which occurred during the rioting and “protesting,” following the election of Trump, since we all know that not a single death resulted from the January 6th, so-called “insurrection…” Also, in order for any “insurrection,” to have taken place, it must be proven that A FACTION inside the U.S. government, AT the Capitol conspired to overthrow their own colleagues.

  31. Aubrey Thomas

    March 10, 2022 at 12:17 pm

    I’m moved!!!! When did we as Americans learn to whisper the good and violently scream out the bad? But the good people stay out of it. 33% of the country is misinformed… 33% overrun the capital. The good people hope justice is served while 33% destroy the country that they were tricked into destroying.

  32. clement wong

    March 10, 2022 at 2:43 pm

    Great great speech. He just hit all the right notes to convince us that democracy, equality and frredons are worth fighting for.

  33. Jerry Polverino

    March 10, 2022 at 4:29 pm

    The USA has started over 80% of the wars since WW 2. One war after another with every one of them started with lies. Our news media is horribly dishonest. The government is COMPLETELY and OPENLY corrupt. Rich individuals and corporations buy the votes of our leadership, while we the people are ignored. Our infrastructure is failing. Our healthcare is the worst in the modern world. Our public education is a horrible failure. Americans are dying from gunfire every hour. Police murder black people on the street.

  34. Levi Efrauim

    March 10, 2022 at 4:58 pm

    Ohmilord- he starts off w/leftist propaganda & lies, then a rant about how much he hates America and what’s wrong w/the US of A. Thanks, Duvall. You made your message clear in your opening 2m.

  35. Gaasuba Meskhenet

    March 10, 2022 at 9:37 pm

    If voting is a civic duty, give people the free time to get informed on the issues. no more evictions from primary residences!!

  36. Gaasuba Meskhenet

    March 10, 2022 at 9:39 pm

    End the sabotaging of inherited wealth! no more evictions from primary properties!

  37. dave weil

    March 11, 2022 at 1:00 am

    A pretty basic polemic for TED , if you ask me.

  38. Yithmaster

    March 11, 2022 at 9:09 pm

    really would like to know how asking for a photo ID is a threat to our democracy?

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