A little reflection on Reed's patriotism.
Reed informed V one day that So Mi gave her medal for her first FIA assignment to some beggar on the street. I wonder what Reed did with his medal back in the day?
Somehow I'm sure Reed carefully preserved the medal and put it in a closet like all the other mementos of his exploits.
Damn it! I'm sure Reed keeps his dress jacket at home, with all his insignia and regalia! For Reed is a career man. He puts all his accomplishments into one stream of action - service. In his final conversation with V on the basketball court in Dogtown, Reed rebukes V precisely for ruining his career. Career is very important to him. What is careerism? - A maximized form of selfishness and narcissism. Why narcissism - because Reed LOVES watching patriot Solomon Reed, he admires how flawlessly and accurately he follows orders.
Reed considers himself a patriot following certain principles. But what are those principles in fact? The principle is really one: follow your bosses' orders without hesitation, no matter who they are against, even if they are former allies (Hansen), former friends/colleagues (So Mi), hired agents (Slider), or random companions who disagree with the order (V).
Of course, if the NUSA Congress or Militech's internal shareholders' meeting ever decides that Rosalind Myers is unfit, Reed will come after Mrs. President too, with obvious consequences for Myers. Given the black humor of the organization in which Reed serves, I'm sure he'll be the one assigned the task.
And Reed's final inherent trait is cowardice. Reed is a coward. Because it's very easy to run with a gun after criminals, putting himself in extreme danger and participating in various special operations, it's much easier than to meet face to face with his superiors, and to express... at least, for starters, a small disagreement with the orders.
The conversation with Myers on the roof of Orbital Air Spacesport says it all.
As does Reed's subsequent actions towards V and So Mi.
So, Solomon Reed's principles as I understand them are: narcissism, selfishness, complacency, careerism, and cowardice.
That is “patriotism” in this particular case, if we are talking specifically about Reed.