5:3 for Deutschland's patriotism

If you got television, you probably know what I'm talking about. What a tense game!

During the first half I thought Germany didn't deserve to win, Argentina were definitely better, especially their technique. But the fact that the 1:0 didn't keep the Germans from trying (and scoring!) only speaks for the sauerkrauties.
The consequences? Us Germans have actually developed a kind of patriotism. These days (I mean before the world cup) there's nothing more UNgerman than patriotism. Americans, for instance, love their flag. We don't care about ours at all. Nor about anybody else's flags for that matter.
But in the past few weeks hosting and taking part in the world cup gave the Germans the opportunity to rediscover their identity. They've moved away from 'I'm German, I hope you don't mind' to 'I'm German, and that's quite cool actually'. The industry can't cope with the demand for German flags during the world cup because everybody wants to celebrate their country/their team/their nationality. This may not seem unusual to you, esp. if you're not German. Certainly, the Germans have always supported their team. Even so, they've never done it to this extent. Moreover, they are now celebrating themselves, as the fans of the German team, as the world cup hosts, and - most of all - as Germans.
The question is whether this will be over in an instant after the world cup. Time will tell, but for now it's just nice to see Germans actually being happy about who they are. They're not everybody's darling in Europe, but it is they themselves who are their greatest critics.