> In the old days, people with similar ideals would gather in physical proximity. Eventually, their common values would form nations. I can't think of any nati

> In the old days, people with similar ideals would gather in physical proximity. Eventually, their common values would form nations. I can't think of any nation in history which was formed by such a rational and reasonable process, but I'd love to be informed otherwise. In my estimation, nations were formed by force, usually by individuals with a functional balance of ruthlessness and charisma. Sometimes by confederations of people with the same qualities.