[Rob The Badger]

Originally Posted by native texan

I would have to disagree with you. First of all, I think it's a little simplistic to narrow the causes of war to those 3 items. How about ignorance, envy and hatred? Surely, those have caused wars, too. Second, there is a difference between nationalism and patriotism. And, there is such a thing as moderation. If patriotism, nationalism, religion, or anything else, are carried too far, then there's bound to be trouble. Simply being proud to be an American, or an Englishman or a Canadian, is not going to start a war. Kind of like the difference between being a fan and being a fanatic. Also, IMO comments like "you can mmmmmmm all you want, it's the truth" don't go a long way toward ensuring peace, do they? Regardless of where one is from, if one thinks one is right no matter what someone else says, that can lead to problems.

That's my 2-cents worth.

I hate to do this. But here I am.

Fan is a derision(is that a word?) of Fanatic. They are the same thing.

I don't think you can be a nationalist without being a patriot or vice versa to whatever degree.

Religion causes ignorance and hatred and in some cases envy.
How else do you explain the death of Matthew Shepard.

Western conservative Christianity and Catholicism mostly are the (not definite article) sole cause of most modern hatred. I honestly believe that.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm a globalist. I'd rather celebrate what "we as a people" have acheived, rather than "we as a nation" have acheived. Far more important if you ask me.

NB: I apologise for brining Mathew Shepard up as a point to strengthen my argument, but I feel very strongly about this.