I’m serious. I don’t understand why humans draw imaginary bidders. I don’t understand why humans fight and lose their lives defending those borders. It’s not “cultural identity”. For example, people in either side of Punjab are more similar to each other than say people in the South of India. And further, i don’t understand how countries can be bought and sold like the “Louisiana purchase”. I mean who’s paying for what? It would be great if someone could recommend some books about the idea of nationhood.
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How reductionist are you looking to get here? This is a very complicated topic we have been debating since antiquity. At the end of the day, in simple terms, a country is comprised of a government and borders. Borders are enforced by the government via the armed forces. Countries that cannot defend their borders are usually swallowed up by foreign countries. America bought the rights to the land west of the Mississippi and no one has successfully taken it from us. It’s that simple. Cultural identity is not necessary at all, though large differences in culture under one government are often a recipe for instability.
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