[BudDwyer]

Most of my life I thought these were the same thing.

I just want to point out something very important my "American democracy" teacher told me.

State: government
Nation: state of mind
Country: culture

Does this turn any gears in your head?
Or a better question- do you think the government tries to put it in your head that your government is your country and state?

[BudDwyer]

Or another question-
Do you think (in the sense I defined them) that country, state, and nation are united here?

[Itch]

There never was any true unity; there were only more American flags in the windows of cars.

During the American revolution, a huge number of Americans were apathetic about the war, while many other Americans were loyalists. The two opposing groups were probably united with eachother, but the actual collective populace was clearly divided.

I think all modern wars can be seen in this way: The wealthiest heavily profit from war. The middle class, white people watch television and think that being born on apiece of land is a talent. The poor get fucked.

Even in World War II, minorities saw some pretty heavy fuckage from the government. Blacks were forced into separate groups, and the Japanese, after being throwned into camps and having their property stolen, were drafted into the Army. WWII might have been great for white people and those who watch movies, but there was always a group of people getting screwed, and since they were American citizens, there was no pure unity.

Of course, war may be different right now, because all people volunteer for service, and come from all different kinds of class backgrounds. Now it seems that the taxpayers are the ones who get screwed, even if many of them support the war they pay for.
A good way to prove that there is no cultural unity is to take a common belief or goal that most people may view as an accepted, orthodox view. Like fighting terrorism or something; most people think it's a serious problem that America is facing. Now all you have to do is get a gangbanger from Compton and a Christian fundamentalist to discuss the issue. You will find very different opinions and ultimate actions coming from these two types of people. The same can be said with some other diverse combinations.

Unless America had some kind of creepy, purely Anglo-Saxon state, where they all had some uniting quality, then there might be pure unity. As long as there are other cultures and colors in the country there will always be tensions and inequalities of some kind. No matter how many commercials include different ethnicities, it won't change the general human attitude that different people are different. With difference comes awkward and disdainful feelings. It might not be that way with you, but racism as a whole is still alive and well, especially in Asia.

[BudDwyer]

Word.

I think all modern wars can be seen in this way: The wealthiest heavily profit from war. The middle class, white people watch television and think that being born on apiece of land is a talent. The poor get fucked.

Word.

kind off a cross-topic-
http://peakoil.com/fortopic353.html
I'm trying to breath new life into this thread.
Let us know what you think.

-peace