Nothing to be ashamed of in showing patriotism

A post by popular Chinese mainland writer Guo Jingming on his Weibo account Sunday night has caused quite a stir.

The post said, "Go ahead and think of me as a blind supporter of China. I am the one who cried when seeing the national flag rising in Tiananmen Square. I am the one who sobbed when watching the Olympic Games and hearing the Chinese anthem. I am also the one who burst into tears when I saw pictures on the Internet of Chinese people protecting the torch during the Beijing Olympic torch relay. You don't have to doubt that people like me do exist. There are indeed many problems in my country, but it doesn't affect my love for it.''

Within a few hours, this post had been forwarded tens of thousands of times. In the comments, there were supporters as well as opponents.

The affection Guo expressed was highly popular among Chinese. But it seems that the post was written with a "difficult determination'' and became such a hot topic. Isn't that strange?

There are many posts on Weibo condemning patriotism. Besides, many over-interpret the differences between the Party, government and country, claiming that being patriotic means being loyal to the authorities. These voices have found some momentum, making some reluctant to express their patriotism amid fears that they will be attacked online.

Can China go without patriotism? Definitely not.

Deeply rooted patriotism will not be overpowered by any kind of interests. It is the spirit that has been most advocated by intellectuals throughout history.

Till now, patriotism has been respected by mainstream society. Its naturalness, from a historical perspective, goes beyond political purposes. It is perfectly justified.

Rather, those who oppose patriotism have a clearer political consideration. They want to break the close relationship that the Party and government have with Chinese society, or even try to create confrontation between the Party, the government and the country.

Guo is one of the most popular young writers in China. He is known for his outspokenness and has a mixed reputation, yet he seldom discusses politics. This time he led the way to controvert the opinions on the Internet and publicly announced his patriotism, which surprised many netizens.

Guo's candidness will not be the last. It would be odd if no one resists the voices of counter-patriotism. We expect more people to break the silence and readdress patriotism.