It’s potential to defend the nation-state, regardless of its historical past of oppression, persecution, tyranny, and struggle? Word that earlier than this latest creation, life was not at all times a bit of cake for everyone both.
For a extra affirmative protection, suppose that each one people and households on earth had been supplied an air ticket to maneuver wherever they need to reside, no query requested. Those that like self-reliance and personal weapons might transfer to the USA. Those that like wine and sensuality might transfer to France. Those that like pleasant, smiling folks like within the Prisoner’s Village might transfer to the UK. Those that like vast uninhabited areas with no weapons and wall-to-wall Medicare might transfer to Canada. Those that like strict social norms and a way of belonging may select India or Afghanistan. Those that just like the surroundings and poverty might transfer to Bhutan or Burundi. Those that prefer to be liberated from selection (besides about the place to queue and learn how to survive) would transfer to Venezuela or North Korea. These are simply illustrations; please select your individual in line with your preferences and values. (I take values to imply preferences for states of the world, versus preferences for private consumption and actions.)
As soon as the brand new borders are drawn, the world could be composed of nation-states primarily based on actual widespread preferences and values as nationalists now think about them, versus the present actuality of largely synthetic assemblages during which coercive authorities impose arbitrary identities on most of their topics. If certainly one of these new nation-states did impose a typical id, it might correspond to what all its topics need anyway. Even the woke might arguably carve out their very own nation-state the place they might reside amongst themselves below secular theocracies. The uniformity of particular person preferences and values would stop the voting irrationality predicated on the Condorcet paradox and Arrow’s theorem. As a substitute, the median voter would rule on a regular basis however, all people being comparable, each voter could be the median voter and everyone would revel within the ensuing mediocrity.
They’re nevertheless many issues with this easy mannequin of excellent nation-states. The self-selection of people in line with their very own preferences could be troublesome to begin, for a way would present rulers and their clienteles discover of their pursuits to dismantle their exploitation playgrounds? However let’s disregard this impediment.
Because the relocations proceed and new nation-state configurations emerge, many people would wish to relocate once more. Earlier than reaching an equilibrium, the place all people or a big proportion of them are happy and cease transferring, assuming such an equilibrium exists, the method would wish many rounds. This may be seen with easy laptop simulations constructed on the well-known Thomas Schelling mannequin of segregation. Maybe a really giant variety of airplane tickets could be required—conceivably consuming all GDP. A mechanism must be devised to unravel the issue of people attracted primarily by the welfare states of the (forecasted) richest nations, as a result of parasites with out hosts will not be a secure answer.
Nonetheless, if we respect “nationwide sovereignty,” many people are certain to stay discontented. There are solely about 200 nations within the phrase whereas barely two people among the many billions alive have precisely the identical preferences and values.
In the end, each particular person or household would wish its personal nation, however the jury remains to be out on whether or not anarchy, even when fascinating, is possible. Even in our perfect self-selected nations, then, there would nonetheless be majorities exploiting minorities. The latter could also be smaller, however this may make them extra exploitable. The one answer for excellent “nationalism,” it appears, is that every nation has some type of minimal or classical liberal state. The entire relocation train would have solely demonstrated that the peaceable coexistence of various people requires both subjection of some particular person to others or else minimal states. As I indicated earlier than, the president of Syldavia can solely be president of all Syldavians if he drastically limits his interventions in Syldavians’ lives.
If the foregoing is appropriate, the sensible aim to pursue could be for every of us below his personal roughly tyrannical nation-state, to attempt to push it towards a minimal state. That is, along with unbiased relocation (when potential) and a cosmopolitan outlook, the one solution to improve the variety of people whose preferences usually are not continually overruled. The potential of creating and sustaining geographical areas during which to pursue this aim with out international tyrants’ interference seems to be the one good protection of the nation-state system, though each “nation” and “state” then require scare quotes.
