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by drb91 2607 days ago
The idea of nationality is pretty silly too.
4 comments

It's worth noting that nationality is a tool that can be used to justify imperialism.

Get enough people waving the flag and you can really take the quality of debate down a few levels.

It's also worth noting that nationality can bring people together in a common cause who would otherwise be divided by personal, family, religious, and local community concerns. The collapse of nations has caused havoc and suffering throughout history.
Yes it is. If we don't solve this somehow in the next decades I think we'll be very sorry for that.
Absolutely.

There are many aspects of our primitive selves we suppress or condition and educate against in order to have a better functioning society.

Tribalism should be next on the list.

That's certainly an opinion. I figure you'd have no trouble integrating into the local culture and customs of the tribes of Papua New Guinea, then?
Not being nationalist or getting rid of all nations borders does not exclusively lead to you being forced to integrate into New Guinean Culture.

Just because we don't do this nationalized small-minded shit we do right now, doesn't automatically mean we get rid of all roots, cultures, ideas, fears, wishes etc. of each "nation", "culture", whatever.

Did you read the comment I was responding to? It sad "the idea of nationality is silly". Your response to me is a non-sequitur.
Culture and nationality are not synonyms. In fact most countries have multiple cultures. Especially the US as a country of immigrants. Saying the idea of nationality is silly, isn't the same as saying culture is silly.

Edit: changed "nationalism" for "nationality".

Especially the US as a country of immigrants

It is a country of immigrants with a diverse array of cultures. But culture and nation are not independent. There is a core set of principles and institutions that make the US a nation: the constitution, the bill of rights, representative democracy, separation of church and state, and so on. They are part of the culture of the US.

However diverse the communities that live in the US are, they have to support the core ideas that make the US a nation. There are people in the world who do not support those ideas. It would be foolish to have too many of them within US borders.

How, exactly, do Native American reservations and tribal sovereignty fit into your argument? Should they be 'deported' because they don't adhere to all of the core principles of the US?
Wtf did forced integration come from? There’s cultural variation everywhere and it rarely corresponds with political borders (or happens as a consequence of it I suppose).
Who said anything about forced integration? You suggested the idea of nationality was silly. If the idea of nationality has no salience, then there is no meaning to national identity and therefore integrating yourself into any other human civilization should be completely seamless.
If we use the reverse of your logic, then being a national of X country means you should be able to integrate within any subcultures within that nation entirely seamlessly.

For example, you should be able to walk into any Native American tribe and be able to seamlessly integrate yourself into their culture despite having zero background.

>therefore

Not really. In a whole number of ways. I actually have no idea how you can say this with any honesty.

I mean, are you really arguing that national identity is the major stumbling block in integrating to a tribe in Papua New Guinea.... Here's a hint: Other :tribes: would have difficulty integrating, and they've likely never been introduced to the concept.

Please explain to me how you're so confident while simultaneously so widely and clearly wrong.

I think you had a good point with your first sentence.

It's always good to be aware that people have different opinions and views on certain things.

And I suppose any American should have no trouble integrating into the religious deep south culture?