It can manifest as an open hand or a clenched fist

Nationalism is a point of view that puts the identity, interests and values of a nation ahead of other nations, regarding itself as independent and self-sufficient, the ultimate authority on what’s best for its citizens. Grounded in national pride, it has brought people together to assert their freedom, independence and economic growth in the face of domineering kings and tyrants. The French and American versions of democracy resulted from their respective sense of identity and values, driven by a passionate desire to unite and formalize them. So within a nation, collective fervor can contribute to unity and resilience.

However, it can also create division and vulnerability, poverty, war and genocide through exclusive and aggressive policies. History and the sciences, biology and anthropology in particular, have shown that all living systems are interdependent. If your liver cells collectively decide to stop regulating the nervous system, preferring instead to only process hormones that make it bigger and stronger, the organ will become cancerous and create a host of painful symptoms throughout your body. Unchecked, you could die of end-stage liver disease. Whatever the reason, when a living system—family, company, corporation, church or nation— builds a virtual or actual wall around itself, it not only limits variety, innovation and expansion which are evolutionary drivers, it becomes increasingly vulnerable to change with limited ability to adapt.

How does national pride turn into self-centered obsession nationwide? Systemically, the short answer is fear, which begins in a climate of breakdown. When members in a complex living system such as a nation, observe a number of breakdowns that escalate, they feel vulnerable and helpless. They look outside themselves for someone at the top—a king or government— to fix them. As tensions rise and problems escalate, those at the bottom of the social pyramid lose faith in their leader or government. Kings can be deposed. In governing bodies, a charismatic person, often a celebrity who’s had a taste of power acquired by being rewarded and admired, stands up, expresses national pride and criticizes the way the system is being managed, confidently proclaiming easy solutions to complex systemic issues. Not understanding the complexities and relationships involved, everyday citizens are easily seduced by passionate expressions of self-confidence and conviction. They want the quick fixes. And the prospect of something radically new encourages people to participate in the promise of a future where their payoff is both intrinsic (respect, acknowledgement, engagement) and extrinsic (“more money in our pockets”).

How do we know when national pride turns toxic? What are the telltale signs? When those seeking power reveal the mentality of what psychologists refer to as “narcissistic personality disorder,” a red flag should go up. Below, I characterize expressions characteristic of a toxic nationalistic mindset. While the power-seeker speaks of “we the people,” his or her inner compulsion is always “I.”

We’re the best. We come first. (I am the best. I come first)

Words to this effect are a clear expression of collective superiority and self-centeredness. The mindset creates division, erodes trust, limits global cooperation, creates economic and political tension and risks, promotes discrimination or conflicts with marginalized groups and foreign nations, neglects the moral obligation to assist less-developed nations and because environmental issues transcend borders, short-term gains lead to unsustainable practices that harm the planet.

Immigration poses a threat to our culture, livelihoods and security.

A nation’s greatest asset is its people. The greater the diversity of a population, the stronger its resilience, the ability to respond to crises. And greater diversity increases the capacity to innovate, particularly in the areas of health, economics and security. For example, America became strong because it welcomed immigrants. Rather than seeing them as intruders, they were regarded as potential contributors, and we found ways to incorporate, educate and encourage them to become responsible and productive citizens.

We don’t need to depend on outside producers. We’ll produce everything we need.

This is a failure to understand or accept a reality that has the potential to uplift every facet of a nation’s existence. Like it or not, every living system maintains its existence in the context of a larger system. Nothing that’s alive can exist alone, not human beings and not their collectives. When each member (nation) in a whole system (planet) contributes its unique gifts and exchanges them, the whole and its members flourish. A nation that draws a membrane around itself, limits or excludes those benefits. Its unnatural.

We don’t need to belong to regulating organizations. They don’t respect our freedom.

This is like saying we won’t subscribe to traffic laws, water treatment authorities and police departments in our neighborhood. At every level, regulations in human systems are designed to ensure their health, protection and smooth operation. Detaching from these increases a system’s vulnerability to breakdown.

I’m not like your current leaders who are making things worse. You deserve better.

This statement creates division, pitting “Us against Them.” It’s an emotional appeal to those at the bottom of the social pyramid. We learn from debate strategies, that to gain position or power within an existing system, the challenger must assert the negative (whether he or she believes it or not). And reasoned arguments, evidence and supports are given to prove that the status quo is not working. One of the telltale signs of an individual promoting self over social well-being is the lack of these essential components of formal debate—argumentation, instead making emotional proclamations couched in generalities. Rarely if ever do these leaders display reason or intelligence regarding the solutions they propose. It’s a diversionary tactic: You don’t need the details. Trust me. 

Those who resist or stand against us must be eliminated. God wills it! He is on our side!

This proclamation, followed by widespread demonstrations of violence and murder, quickly raise the status of the charismatic individual. Historical examples include Napoleon (France), Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Atatürk (Turkey) and Sun Yat-sen (China).

There is no end to our greatness. Under my rule, we can conquer the world.

The first indication of this particular narcissistic and power-hungry attitude is gaining control of an existing army, pouring more resources into it and building it up through larger and larger successes in gaining ground. The leaders mentioned above fall into this category.

In the current era, two more indicators of toxic nationalism have emerged—

You can’t trust science or facts. (Inference: But you can trust me).

You can’t trust the news media. (Inference: But you can trust me).

By definition, a nation that places its trust in one individual is a dictatorship. A fundamental principle of whole systems states, “The whole organizes the parts.” In a democracy, citizens collectively experience the positive and negative consequences of the consciousness (beliefs, values, moral character) they elect to office. This means that voters at the bottom of a nation’s pyramid are far more responsible for its failures than those in office. When citizens feel neglected, disrespected, undervalued or disenfranchised they will eagerly vote for change. Any change. Thomas Jefferson understood the importance of trust in a democracy. He often stated, “An informed citizenry is at the heart of a dynamic democracy… Whenever the people are well informed, they may be trusted with their own government.”

In an evolutionary, even historical time frame, democracy has not yet proven to be sustainable. In The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, a pack if wolves recite, “The strength of the pack is the wolf; the strength of the wolf is the pack.” Indeed, the strength of a nation is the citizen, and the strength of the citizen is the nation. All systems are characterized by feedback loops. In living systems they enable the members to adjust based on the state of the whole. For instance, when a democratic nation breaks down, the departments modify their behavior based on goals and performance parameters established in its constitution, not the desire or order of its president or dictator.

Schism in the soul, schism in the body social, will not be resolved by any scheme to return to the good old days (archaism), or by programs guaranteed to render an ideal projected future (futurism), or even by the most realistic, hardheaded work to weld together again the deteriorating elements of civilization. Only birth can conquer death―the birth, not of the old thing again, but of something new… The West will terminally decline unless a new spiritually motivated minority emerges offering new creative leadership, bringing the society to a new level of consciousness and development.

Arnold Toynbee, English historian and philosopher of History

In keeping with my intention that every posting be an appreciation; we can be grateful for the negative consequences of toxic nationalism because pain and dysfunction clearly demonstrate what is not working. The souls caught in the web of narcissism are not “bad.” I believe they’re following a pre-birth plan, intending to learn other-directed, balanced and productive responses to fame, fortune and power. In a word: love.