Patriotic Brits

I'm sorry you felt that way and I know you weren't the only one. I guess I felt disappointed about my fellow Americans who felt compelled to vote for him and disappointed in choices the government was making, but I was still proud of who I was and where I came from.

It's possible that I felt that way because it's not where I came from. You had/have more of an American identity than I ever did, I think. But also, I remember looking around me and thinking, "Holy crap, 50% of these people have bought into the madness." And that was just sad.

Do i? cripes that wasnt what i wanted!! but i do agree,i think British people (as a whole) are more quiet and reserved about their love of their country than say us. Most americans are fine,but i get really pissed off when i see those overpatriotic ones make the american stereotype look even more true,it would be a fair generalisation to say the tea party has got a fair few of these....

Like the BNP and UKIP I suppose?  I am highly annoyed with some Tea Party people, but they don't openly start fights in the streets with people of different ethnicities like the EDL do.

Besides which, if you have only been here for the 6 months that you claim you haven't been in the UK for either St. David's Day (April 1st) or St. George's Day (April 23). 

So I don't think you can really speak about how people do, or do not, celebrate Saint's Days in the UK.

Like the BNP and UKIP I suppose?  I am highly annoyed with some Tea Party people, but they don't openly start fights in the streets with people of different ethnicities like the EDL do.

Agreed about this lot,but then again they are a minority...

Besides which, if you have only been here for the 6 months that you claim you haven't been in the UK for either St. David's Day (April 1st) or St. George's Day (April 23). 

So I don't think you can really speak about how people do, or do not, celebrate Saint's Days in the UK.

Thats the point,i didnt say for starters that English people celebrate St.David's day,i actually just used him as an example of one of the saints. Your right,of course im not sure,thats what i was asking,does the patriotism get more recognisble during these days,im new here,although ive visted many times i cannot be expected to know everything from scratch,is it wrong to be curious?

Yes, but which nation!? 

It would be helpful if i got an idea on all of them...

Besides which, if you have only been here for the 6 months that you claim you haven't been in the UK for either St. David's Day (April 1st)

March 1st, not April! Now you're getting the Welsh patriot in me all riled up! 

It's possible that I felt that way because it's not where I came from. You had/have more of an American identity than I ever did, I think. But also, I remember looking around me and thinking, "Holy crap, 50% of these people have bought into the madness." And that was just sad.

Well said. When Bush got into office again i was deflated. I couldnt believe that someone whom had caused America's popularity to dwindle so much had been allowed back in. That was probably the calling sign to emigrate. I certainly didnt hate the country,i just hated the goverment,as i knew Bush would makes us all look like idiots again...

March 1st, not April! Now you're getting the Welsh patriot in me all riled up! 

Ha Whoops!  Sorry, I humbly beg your forgiveness with some leeks. 

Ha Whoops!  Sorry, I humbly beg your forgiveness with some leeks. 

Accepted. 

My husband is not exactly proud of being English, but he is very conscious of it, and much more ambivalent about his identity as "British."  He objects to foreign-descended people who call themselves English rather than British, and doesn't understand why Americans identify themselves as "Irish-American," "Italian-American," etc.  Issues of ethnicity and nationality do seem to be rather more fraught here than in the US, where everyone born there is American, and while ancestry and ethnicity define us, they define us less than American defines us.  I think that even people who consider themselves some sort of hyphen American identify more with other Americans of the same ancestry rather than the people who live in the original country.  I may be talking through my hat here, but my impression has always been that people who call themselves "Irish-American," for example, mean to identify themselves with the group of Irish-descended people in America, not with the actual Irish in Ireland.  That's what my husband can't seem to grasp, and in my experience it is different in the UK.  Here, when people say they are Welsh, they actually mean they come from Wales, not that they are descended from Welsh people.  Just my observation . 

My husband is so patriotic that we have a HUGE US flag that currently hangs on our living room wall and when the World Cup (USA v. England in particular) was on we had it hanging in our window *it covered the whole thing* so the entire neighbourhood could see it...Oh He's English btw

My husband is not exactly proud of being English, but he is very conscious of it, and much more ambivalent about his identity as "British."  He objects to foreign-descended people who call themselves English rather than British, and doesn't understand why Americans identify themselves as "Irish-American," "Italian-American," etc.  Issues of ethnicity and nationality do seem to be rather more fraught here than in the US, where everyone born there is American, and while ancestry and ethnicity define us, they define us less than American defines us.  I think that even people who consider themselves some sort of hyphen American identify more with other Americans of the same ancestry rather than the people who live in the original country.  I may be talking through my hat here, but my impression has always been that people who call themselves "Irish-American," for example, mean to identify themselves with the group of Irish-descended people in America, not with the actual Irish in Ireland.  That's what my husband can't seem to grasp, and in my experience it is different in the UK.  Here, when people say they are Welsh, they actually mean they come from Wales, not that they are descended from Welsh people.  Just my observation .  

My British husband is similar.  He doesn't really get the whole thing of Americans identifying themselves as Irish-American, Italian-American, etc.  I do think when people do this they are identifying themselves with other Americans of the same background (Irish, Italian, Cuban, etc.)  but I do think they also have a lot of pride in the actual country and customs, food music, etc. of the birthplace of their immigrant parents / grandparents even if they haven't ever visited the place, which is often the case.

I may be talking through my hat here, but my impression has always been that people who call themselves "Irish-American," for example, mean to identify themselves with the group of Irish-descended people in America, not with the actual Irish in Ireland.  That's what my husband can't seem to grasp, and in my experience it is different in the UK.  Here, when people say they are Welsh, they actually mean they come from Wales, not that they are descended from Welsh people.  Just my observation . 

Huh? Pretty sure Irish-Americans are identifying themselves as that to tie themselves to Ireland since that's their ancestry. Also, I'm pretty sure, say, Scottish person who happens to have lived in Wales their whole life won't call themselves Welsh.

Hardly anyone here even celebrates St. George's Day.

And why should we (as a day for England)?  He wasn't even English - he was from Turkey or Syria or Palestine or somewhere like that?  Now I could go for a multicultural celebration involving food from those places! 

Now Yorkshire Day - there's a day to celebrate!  Although of course, people in Yorkshire are known for being rather understated in their pride of county (god's own).