Reply #31: Hypothetically [View All]

It has at least as much right to exist as any other "immigrant" nation populated by "Europeans" and exercising hegemony over non-European populations, e.g., the United States, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, Australia, New Zealand, the former British and Dutch colonies of Africa.

It also has as much right to exist as any of the artificial countries created in the Middle East after WW1 by the victors. The WW1 victors rewarded their allies by "giving them" land and hegemony over local peoples -- all manner of war lords from the Arabian Peninsula were given nations by the Brits -- at the expense of, for example, the Kurds, or the Azeris.

I read somewhere - please don't ask for a cite -- I have been looking for it too --- that some academic ethnographer said that there are at least 1200-2000 "national identities" without nations. He based this on dialects, local twists and turns in religious practice, folk ways, family ties, clan ties, tribal ties, etc. A friend of mine who is from a little valley in Serbia said that - by the above model - Serbia should be two dozen countries (different dialects, different melodies for Serbian Orthodox hymns). Who knows how many countries the Czar's lands should be - or South Asia.

If you really push it - California should be at least five states, New York at least three (NYC below I-84, Niagara Frontier, everything else) Pennsylvania at least four states, etc. (trivia - we learned in HS that in Colonial Days Delaware was the slave county of Pennsylvania).

I would not object to an independent California - or at least an independent northern, coastal California :hi:

So - as much right and as little right as any other "artificial" nation.