Today is the day set aside to honor our founding fathers, our independence from British rule, and our Declaration of Independence.

John Adams wrote to his wife that "The [fourth] day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."

We still do all those things but with the "solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty" being mostly limited to church goers.

Being proud of our country is a good thing.  It is a natural instinct to love our family, our community, our city, our state, our country, our world.