Real patriots must act or symbolic gestures will be irrelevant

It's time for more than merely waving the flag, singing patriotic songs and proclaiming one's love of country. To be a patriot in this day and age is to wake up and look around, with clarity and discernment. To be a patriot is to take personal action - to feed the hungry, to house the homeless, to live more simply, to elect true public servants. To be a patriot is to allocate our resources wisely and to live out our highest values as individuals and as a nation.

We can create the lives we want for our children and ourselves. We can create a nation that lives up to the ideals of our Founding Fathers. But it's up to us - individually and collectively.

For if we are not now willing to undertake the challenging tasks at hand, there will ultimately be little need for the symbolic gestures now so fully in vogue.