Can you have separate countries in a post-Earth world where humans are colonizing space? I am not talking about physical territory per se, but rather the different identities between separate states. From what I've read or seen on TV, the general consensus seems to be a global world government where two superpowers have melted together and smaller countries are subsumed into them (think Firefly's Chinese Western). I want to know if countries can maintain their separate status when people start to leave Earth or if that undertaking is too big for a nation.
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$\begingroup$ Babylon 5 (TV show) had vastly different governments. They mediated through a UN body, but there were definitely separate national identities. Red Mars (book) had separate nation states long after the Mars colony was permanently established. There's a LOT of 1950s/60s sci-fi that has the USA-USSR Cold War still going long into space. I can name more. I think perhaps your question indicates you may need to broaden your reading/watching habits. :-) $\endgroup$– SRMCommented Jan 20, 2017 at 20:54
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$\begingroup$ Yes, any MMORPG with clans prove that. $\endgroup$– MolbOrgCommented Jan 21, 2017 at 1:36
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4 Answers
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Push-Pull forces
It will probably depend on push-pull forces.If the forces of global cohesion are stronger than the cultural identities then push will be for global government with world wide bureaucracy.This forces may be common threat or common opportunities.For example Scotland and England fought each other for centuries,But facing common threat of Catholicism united the elites.This elites then pushed for common "**British**" culture and parliamentary institutions.Later The colonial opportunities again cemented this alliance.On the other hand basic differences in culture are barriers to unifying the globe.Example is *Shia-Sunni* conflict in modern day Iraq or Spain and Portugal on Iberian peninsula.Here there is not much common interest so whatever co-operation there is, is only temporary.While cultural identities are more powerful and elites always push for differentiation.
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Of course.
Consider the vastly varied ethnic/cultural groups of modern-day China. Even though 55 out of the 56 are constantly put down, controled, abused, cleansed and denied their freedom by the Han chinese they still manage to maintain their own seperate identities.
Now if we were to imagine this unified human government was benign and actively promoted cultural diversity then it is easy to conclude then even if there weren't true distict countries there could very plausibly be differing cultural and national identities.
As a further example look at the USA, citizens who's ancestors immigrated generations ago still continue identifying themselves as Italian Americans or Jewish Americans, etc and often form joined communities with others sharing their ancestry.
answered Jan 20, 2017 at 17:42
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$\begingroup$ I agree, but I was thinking that a global exit would require the cooperation of many countries to build the tech to the appropriate scale. $\endgroup$– lllCommented Jan 20, 2017 at 17:59
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1$\begingroup$ Countries already cooperate and are doing so on progressively larger and larger scales (think of ITER, COP, etc...). Eventually in your setting the whole world would become united under an alliance similar to the EU or the states of the US. Individual countries still would exist but they would all be part of the "United Nations of Humanity" or whatever you want to call it. $\endgroup$ Commented Jan 20, 2017 at 18:08
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$\begingroup$ This is exactly my point. The cooperation creates a global identity that eventually overshadows their national identity. $\endgroup$– lllCommented Jan 20, 2017 at 21:05
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$\begingroup$ That's precisely where you're wrong. Nobody identifies as a European-Unioner. And while americans do indeed identify as americans, they usually also identify as being part of the state they grew up in. Look at the example I gave with China: the CPC is actively trying to strip all those people of their cultural identity and yet they are unable to do so. $\endgroup$ Commented Jan 20, 2017 at 21:12
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$\begingroup$ I'll mention that this isn't due to a recent policy change within the CPC or anything. They have been trying for over 60 years, unsuccesfully, all this using methods including torture and threats of death but also more passive techniques such as propaganda, forced cultural assimilation, etc. If your human alliance doesn't want a mono-culture then there is no reason to believe it would have. $\endgroup$ Commented Jan 20, 2017 at 21:24
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You can take any large city with a lot of immigrants as an example of this. Even if people move from their original country, which will mostly happen out of necessity, they will maintain a sense of identity and magnetize towards their own kind. People with the same culture and language. New York is a prime example of this although, in fairness a lot of that was due to discrimination against new waves of immigrants coming in. People are not inclined to leave their homes and if they are forced to, feel that safety in numbers is important when entering new territory. There is a certain tribal instinct in people that is constantly present.
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Yes and No...
If we're talking hard sci-fi then most likely result is that once Humans get off Earth we'll be making homes using all the material around the Solar System which will all be indipendent, because size and distance and really no reason to be hostile, especially since hostility will only end in other groups not trading with you or ganging up on you to put you down...
This applies to Earth too. With people leaving Earth and other destressers there is no reason to fight. Technology makes all the things we need easy to get and most people will, just like to day want to be left alone... So really large scale governments really won't need to exist... So what will end up happening is we'll go back to "City-States", afterall you might have to deal with those people that are near you... so not only are separate countries "possible" they're a likelihood
But while that is happening we'll also see centralization of certain things to make sure standards are met or that we all agree are a global or solar good, like the internet for example might have a type of government to maintain the universality of HTML and such across all groups, or to maintain nature preserves.
So there will be a single global law for many things as well. You decide whether that's whether that's "separate" or not.
