[neo_dolphin]

Hi, everybody,

I would like to suggest such topic for discussion: peaceful nationalism isn’t it only oxymoron. I’m afraid it is.
So not every nationalist declare that his nation is supreme so, other nations oblige only to serve..:-) Nationalist can state that all the nations are “good”, that it’s very important to preserve all of it, save diversity and so on. But nationalist can state this only in abstract manner. Nationalism, even soft nationalism is a way to nowhere but into hate and horror inevitably.
So, it’s difficult to imagine nationalist who is indifferent to history (contrary physics for instance). But in nationalist version his nation is victim and neighbouring nation is aggressor. Anyway Great Britain was aggressor to Ireland, for many centuries (by nationalist perspective). Irish nationalist will forget it never. I hope that it would be clear for all nationalist but with only the one fatal exception. Does anyone British nationalist agree? Does he help for his counterpart to built monument for Irish victims? It’s easy to find lots of such examples: Turkey and Greece, Russia and Lithuania, Japan and Korea…So, history becomes obstacle for healing old ruins.
History is only the one issue. The other issue is national minorities. The common nationalist attitude is that minority must respect country there it lives and “not require any rights”. The state has even a right to remove out national minorities. But it’s applicable with one exception: exception for their own countrymans. Has any Caucasian nationalist said, that Caucasian people need return home due to violence against them in Moscow?
The next issue would be problems with national states and separatism. It would be extremely interesting to see French nationalist who support independency of Corsica, Georgian – independence of Abhazia…Anyway French or Georgian man can support it, but he will be convicted as traitor.
So, how to defend remembrance of national heroes (heroe for one nationalist, torture for another)? How to defend from ethnical minorities’ impudence? Our fictional nationalist is not militarist. He would like to live in peace. But he is ready to defend his country. So he needs weapon.
So, is it possible to reconcile nationalism and peace or not?..

[ronimacarroni]

Sure it is
I think the saddest thing about globalization is that it feels like there is no place anybody can call home anymore.
Corporations are their own countries now.

[Rilzik]

Yes, Japan and south korea are such a hateful nations.

[Godstud]

Yes, Canada is one when it isn't following the US around.

[Baff]

As far as I'm concerned what defines whether or not my behavoiur is peaceful entirely depends on the other guy.

So peaceful nationalism is possible. The Swiss for example seem very peaceful.
But it's not something I would count on being ultimately permanent.

Britain wasn't the aggressor in Ireland. The IRA were.
They sought independance for Ireland even when the bulk of their population did not wish for it.
Had their protests been non violent, Ireland would be part of UK in line with the peaceful wishes of it's populace at that time.

Their particular brand of political authority came primarily from the gun. It still does.

There are a great many British Nationalists in Ireland too. Not all of them are peaceable either.


It's quite typical for a violent minority to take over a peaceable country. As I said, it's the other guy you have to worry about.
The more peaceful you are the more easily you are dominated by an aggressor.

[Eran]

I think the saddest thing about globalization is that it feels like there is no place anybody can call home anymore.
Corporations are their own countries now.

That makes no sense whatsoever.

Corporations only enter countries when residents in those countries wish them to. McDonald's wouldn't open a branch (or wouldn't keep one open) if nobody was interested in buying there. Nike wouldn't open a factory (or wouldn't keep one open) if nobody was interested in working there.

[mikema63]

Nationalism doesn't definitionally involve a desire to go to war against other countries so why on earth not?