Unless you live under a rock, you probably have heard at least one recent news story about some sort of tragedy that has struck the United States, a dismal statistic about our country as a whole, or an overzealous Facebook rant in which someone swears that they are going to move to Canada. Yes, it is near impossible to overlook the signs that our country is not in as great of a position as it once was or has the potential to be. No, that does not give you license to trash the place that millions call "home."

Social and political crisis in modern-day America seems to rear its head in strange and ugly ways. Our nation endures mass shootings as a result of inadequate gun laws and poor mental health care. Wall Street stocks rise greatly and plummet sharply, which ends up putting unbearable strains on every aspect of the economy, especially the everyday consumer. #HeterosexualPrideDay was trending on Twitter just this week as an attempt to mask the homophobia present in America despite recent laws and regulations.

We have been allowing fixable problems to manifest into insurmountable and widespread issues. Instead of answering the tough questions and nipping them in the bud, we wait until it is too late and are left with an even more massive problem than when we had to begin with. Once it gets to this unfixable point, the most utilized option seems to be simply walking away hopeless. This is exactly what not to do.

This is why we need patriotism. If there is no hope for the future of this country, why would anyone have a vested interest in fixing it? The emotional attachment that patriotism describes is what is needed in order to help the nation move forward. America needs its people to believe in her.

The Fourth of July is the perfect opportunity to reflect upon patriotism. This is Independence Day, the day that our Founding Fathers decided that they were going to address the grievances at hand and work toward a better future for all. America would not be a country as we know it to be today if these people did not have faith in their nation's future.

I am not calling every reader of this article to suddenly become an unyielding activist for every problem the country has; however, I am calling for some national pride. The United States of America is a great country that can be made even better. All hope is not lost.

This is the land of the free and the home of the brave. Celebrate accordingly this weekend.