South Dakota One of the Most Patriotic States in U.S.

It has become painfully obvious in our country these days, that people have wildly divergent ideas of what constitutes patriotism. But I still believe that most people love this country, in spite of what may perceived as an abundance of negativity and incivility.

The news that South Dakota is a highly patriotic state is really no surprise. South Dakotans, no matter their political party or persuasion have always been extremely patriotic. What did surprise me in perusing WalletHub's latest study, is that of the 5 least patriotic states, four of them were instrumental in fighting the Revolutionary War.

I guess a few things have changed since the 1700's, huh? In any case, the criteria which led WalletHub to list South Dakota as the 12th most patriotic state in the country, came from many different categories.

They looked at the percentage of citizens who voted in the presidential and primary elections, the number of active military personnel, as well as number of veterans living in the state. They also took into account statistics involving volunteerism, civics education, jury participation and even number of Google searches for American flags.

Expressions of patriotism are a very individual thing, from proudly displaying our country's flag, to participating in Fourth of July celebrations, to an effort to buy American-made products, and everything in-between.

For a look at the complete listing of most and least patriotic states, just go to WalletHub.