hey guys!!! if you want to help me edit my american lit essay feel free to give critique and comments!! it’s under the cut :) prompt is “Write a short essay on what it takes to be a good American, or to define what a good American  is or how one would be a good American”

What it means to be a “good American”
　　I do not believe in the concept of a “good American,” or a “good German,” or a “good (insert your choice of nationality here).” Good American implies that there is some prerequisite, some rules, some regulations you must follow to be even considered an American, let alone a good one. America is a country where anyone is allowed to obtain citizenship, as with most Western countries and other countries of the world. If you are a “good American,” then what are the rules to being an American? Being an American patriot? Must you fulfill a “patriotism” meter every day? Do you have to advocate free speech and serve your country to protect it? If that is so, the many Americans who do not serve in the military must not be good Americans by that standard. And, what if the two contradict, like what’s happening in Ferguson, where free speech is no longer free and where people that are supposed to protect the civilians have instead turned against them. Are they good Americans? On one hand they are serving the country, on the other hand they’re abolishing free speech and other First Amendment rights.
　　Is being a “good American” based on how you look? Must you fulfill the “Steve Rogers” look– blond-haired, blue-eyed and a sunny complexion? If so, what of all of the minorities and even the non-minorities who do not fit this criteria? Are they automatically not good Americans because they don’t fit the “American look?”
　　Is being a “good American” completing the American dream? Coming from nothing and rising into everything? Must you be of a certain political party? Is being a Republican any more American than being a Democrat, or a Libertarian, or a member of the Green party? Is it your political leanings, whether towards a monarchy or a socialist state?
　　It is reasons such as these that I do not believe in a “good American.” I believe in being an American, or a German, or a Canadian, but I do not believe in being a “good” one, as there is no solid way to describe a “good” person-of-x-nationality. Of course, you can have people that are “very German” or “very American” or “very Canadian” when you’re talking about them fitting stereotypes of said country, but that does not make them any better than anyone else in terms of “ranking” their nationality. You cannot quantify nationality as you can with math, or with science, or studies in general. Being a “good American,” therefore, is impossible, for you can only be an American or not an American.

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