Martin Hesp on Saturday

Buy British more patriotic than flag flying

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HERE’S a lot of flag-waving going on at present and the word ‘patriotism’ seems to be on everyone's lips.

When it comes to the latter, I’m right there with everyone else. The dictionary definition says, ‘devotion to, and vigorous support for, one’s country’ I'd add ‘love for’!

‘A great many of us love this country so much, it is a core emotion that moulds who we are and the way we behave. I certainly do and have millions of words to prove it. I have spent the greater part of my working life as a newspaper feature writer, which means the kind of articles I work on (such as this paper’s weekly Hesp Out West features) are for the most part a celebration of the life we enjoy in this green and pleasant land.

Yes, I occasionally voice criticisms in opinion columns, but that is true patriotism. You should be able to point out when things go wrong.

But the whole subject of patriotism is an emotional melting pot filled with conflicting boundaries and theories. So I asked AI to go through all 1.5 million plus words I've written as a columnist for this newspaper to see how neutral robots regard my take on love-of-country.

“There is indeed a distinct note of patriotism in your writing, particularly regarding English and British identity and culture,” they reply.

“You advocate for ‘clasping every last nuance’ of British identity and celebrating it, without resorting to ‘shallow minded jingoistic tub-thumping or flag-waving’