Being a patriot for money: This is how it works

Let's talk about being a patriot. What does this word actually mean? Well, usually it is believed to symbolize love for the country. But it seems like sometimes there are other reasons for someone to tell us they are and for other people to honor them for being a patriot.

An example that has just been brought to my attention is Lee Greenwood. In the 1990s, he wrote a song called “Proud to be an American.” This was brought to my attention by one of my favorite comedians and political satirists, John Oliver. He is known for doing research before making comments, and that may not surprise anyone reading this, but the details surprised me, believe it or not.

You see, John Oliver became an American citizen in 2019, but at the same time there was another ceremony of this kind with a speech by Trump with the “special video” of Lee Greenwood singing the song. Apparently it should be a great honor for these new residents to see not only Trump, but also Greenwood.

The video below explains the different “uses” of Lee Greenwood and his song. Not only did Mr. Greenwood make a lot of money from this song, which is a good thing since it's really the only thing he's famous for. There is also a Canadian version in which Mr. Greenwood thought of changing the words to “Canada” and actually using place names from Canada instead of the United States.

However, the rest of the song was left as it originally was, although the word changes actually rendered the song's original rhyme redundant and distorted the sound. Well, the final version, which is about strange things, is probably a satire by Oliver.

Oh, and remember that overpriced King James Version of the Bible that Trump touted? Guess who else was involved? If you guessed Lee Greenwood, you were correct.

Oh, and this Bible also made it to Christianity Today, which, believe it or not, had a problem with the addition of 1. the Constitution, 2. the 10 Amendments, and 3. a copy of the texts to its Song to take care of yourself.

By the way, he also tried to monetize the name of the song by patenting it. The government refused to recognize the patent on “Proud to be an American” because it is a common phrase that everyone should say without paying money to Lee Greenwood.

Oh, and as John Oliver points out at the end, if you listen to Lee Greenwood's advice about naturalization, you will most likely fail the exam. I know it's long but check it out, you'll see some amazing things.

Personally I prefer Will Ferrell's take at the end, it's actually more honest. It's also unlikely that another nation's name will be cut and pasted to make a few more bucks.