This "debate" on Illegal Immingration has me a bit perplexed.
What I want to know is...By order of definition, what exactly makes a country?
by definition, what makes a country?
It is defined by:
1. Boarders
2. Language
3. Culture
curious as to why all of the in-fighting regarding "nationalism."
Full Version: What makes a "country" a "country"?
borders.
unless you're talking about people who are renting rooms. which you very well may be.
unless you're talking about people who are renting rooms. which you very well may be.
i'm envisioning the current immigrant debate on more legal, economical, humane, and practical terms.
Nationality is an accident of birth. If you think you are better than someone as they were born elsewhere then you're a twat. Simple as.
New Poll Finds 86 Percent Of Americans Don't Want To Have A Country Anymore
March 13, 2006
WASHINGTON, DC—A Gallup/Harris Interactive poll released Monday indicates that nearly nine out of 10 Americans are "tired of having a country."
Chicago commuters, 87 percent of whom just don't care anymore.
Among the 86 percent of poll respondents who were in favor of discontinuing the nation, the most frequently cited reasons were a lack of significant results from the current democratic process (36 percent), dissatisfaction with customer service (28 percent), and exhaustion (22 percent).
"I don't want to get bogged down in the country anymore," Wilmington, DE accountant Karie Ashworth said. "I'm not up in arms or anything, I'm just saying it'd be a lot easier for everyone if we just gave it up."
Of those who were against maintaining an American nation, 77 percent said they believe that having a country is "counter to the best interests of Americans." Twelve percent said "the time and effort citizens spend on the country could be better spent elsewhere," and 8 percent said they just didn't care.
Roughly 3 percent said we ceased to have a country years ago, and explained that they had been stockpiling weapons to protect their independent compounds.
According to study organizer David Griffith, poll respondents were surprisingly uniform in their opinion that the nation is too much of a hassle.
"I already belong to a health club, a church, and the Kiwanis Club," Tammy Golden of Los Angeles wrote. "I'm a member of the Von's Grocery Super Savers, which gets me a discount on certain groceries. These are all well-managed organizations with real benefits. None of them send me a confusing bill once a year and make me work it out myself, then throw me in jail if I get it wrong."
Olympia, WA student Helen Berg expressed frustration with the country's voting process.
"I was gonna vote, but it rained," Berg wrote. "It wasn't for the president anyway, so what difference does it make? The president is the only one that matters, and you don't even get to vote for him."
Most citizens said they did not wish to abandon such American traditions as parades, fireworks, and national holidays.
"I'm for saluting flags and pledging allegiance to them, but nothing beyond that," Tampa, FL mechanic and former Marine Doug Pauls said. "I like singing the anthem before the game, but I can't keep up with the news every day. I have three kids."
Pauls added: "I love America, but what's that got to do with having a country?"
Some critics, including the leadership of both parties, have attacked the methodology of the poll, saying that questions like "Do you want a country anymore?" are poorly worded. Casey Mark, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, characterized the question as leading.
Said Mark: "What you must consider is that respondents often don't have the time or energy to devote to answering five questions about their country, which they consider themselves to be remotely involved with, at best."
Griffith pointed to Cheyenne, WY banker Jeff Wheldon's response.
"I think we've come far enough as a nation that we don't need to have one anymore," Wheldon wrote. "It's not like we're Somalia, where the warlords run everything, or Russia, where it's all organized crime. We've had over 200 years of being Americans. I don't think we still need the United States of America to show us how to do it."
March 13, 2006
WASHINGTON, DC—A Gallup/Harris Interactive poll released Monday indicates that nearly nine out of 10 Americans are "tired of having a country."
Chicago commuters, 87 percent of whom just don't care anymore.
Among the 86 percent of poll respondents who were in favor of discontinuing the nation, the most frequently cited reasons were a lack of significant results from the current democratic process (36 percent), dissatisfaction with customer service (28 percent), and exhaustion (22 percent).
"I don't want to get bogged down in the country anymore," Wilmington, DE accountant Karie Ashworth said. "I'm not up in arms or anything, I'm just saying it'd be a lot easier for everyone if we just gave it up."
Of those who were against maintaining an American nation, 77 percent said they believe that having a country is "counter to the best interests of Americans." Twelve percent said "the time and effort citizens spend on the country could be better spent elsewhere," and 8 percent said they just didn't care.
Roughly 3 percent said we ceased to have a country years ago, and explained that they had been stockpiling weapons to protect their independent compounds.
According to study organizer David Griffith, poll respondents were surprisingly uniform in their opinion that the nation is too much of a hassle.
"I already belong to a health club, a church, and the Kiwanis Club," Tammy Golden of Los Angeles wrote. "I'm a member of the Von's Grocery Super Savers, which gets me a discount on certain groceries. These are all well-managed organizations with real benefits. None of them send me a confusing bill once a year and make me work it out myself, then throw me in jail if I get it wrong."
Olympia, WA student Helen Berg expressed frustration with the country's voting process.
"I was gonna vote, but it rained," Berg wrote. "It wasn't for the president anyway, so what difference does it make? The president is the only one that matters, and you don't even get to vote for him."
Most citizens said they did not wish to abandon such American traditions as parades, fireworks, and national holidays.
"I'm for saluting flags and pledging allegiance to them, but nothing beyond that," Tampa, FL mechanic and former Marine Doug Pauls said. "I like singing the anthem before the game, but I can't keep up with the news every day. I have three kids."
Pauls added: "I love America, but what's that got to do with having a country?"
Some critics, including the leadership of both parties, have attacked the methodology of the poll, saying that questions like "Do you want a country anymore?" are poorly worded. Casey Mark, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, characterized the question as leading.
Said Mark: "What you must consider is that respondents often don't have the time or energy to devote to answering five questions about their country, which they consider themselves to be remotely involved with, at best."
Griffith pointed to Cheyenne, WY banker Jeff Wheldon's response.
"I think we've come far enough as a nation that we don't need to have one anymore," Wheldon wrote. "It's not like we're Somalia, where the warlords run everything, or Russia, where it's all organized crime. We've had over 200 years of being Americans. I don't think we still need the United States of America to show us how to do it."
Let's see if I can pull out what I remember from my brief stint as a poli-sci major. A country is synonymous with a State. Common culture is not necessary for States/countries. What you're thinking of is a nation. Nations share common languages and cultures. Then, of course, there is the nation-state which is a combination of these two ideas.
So, strictly speaking, only point 1 of your definition is required for a "country." To be more explicit about it, I've looked up the requirements here.
The salient points are that a country/state requires the following:
Has space or territory which has internationally recognized boundaries (boundary disputes are OK).
Has people who live there on an ongoing basis.
Has economic activity and an organized economy. A country regulates foreign and domestic trade and issues money.
Has the power of social engineering, such as education.
Has a transportation system for moving goods and people.
Has a government which provides public services and police power.
Has sovereignty. No other State should have power over the country's territory.
Has external recognition. A country has been "voted into the club" by other countries.
Sounds about what I remember.
So, strictly speaking, only point 1 of your definition is required for a "country." To be more explicit about it, I've looked up the requirements here.
The salient points are that a country/state requires the following:
QUOTE
Has space or territory which has internationally recognized boundaries (boundary disputes are OK).
Has people who live there on an ongoing basis.
Has economic activity and an organized economy. A country regulates foreign and domestic trade and issues money.
Has the power of social engineering, such as education.
Has a transportation system for moving goods and people.
Has a government which provides public services and police power.
Has sovereignty. No other State should have power over the country's territory.
Has external recognition. A country has been "voted into the club" by other countries.
Sounds about what I remember.
Way to dissect, guys. Way to dissect!
o.O is that article from the onion?
QUOTE(wakingrufus @ Apr 11 2006, 11:10 PM) [snapback]62752[/snapback]
o.O is that article from the onion?
maybe
maybe it's real
QUOTE(Warren DeMontague @ Apr 11 2006, 11:41 PM) [snapback]62764[/snapback]
QUOTE(wakingrufus @ Apr 11 2006, 11:10 PM) [snapback]62752[/snapback]
o.O is that article from the onion?
maybe
maybe it's real
It would be nice if it were real
QUOTE(ap emerger @ Apr 12 2006, 11:29 AM) [snapback]63058[/snapback]
QUOTE(Binko @ Apr 11 2006, 08:00 PM) [snapback]62631[/snapback]
Has sovereignty. No other State should have power over the country's territory.
Hmmmmm...So, the overflow problem of Latin American countries could be breaching this?
Um, no. Does Mexico, the State, have power over US territory? Not unless you have some rather broad definitions.
I'm not saying let's just open the borders (although, in my utopia, borders wouldn't exist), but I am saying let's find a better way of dealing with this problem other than criminalizing illegal immigration to the extent of making it a felony and prosecuting anyone involved along the way.
This thread, putting the "Cunt" in "Country"
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