What makes a country is it’s government. True or false?

Northern EU/Industrialized/Modernized nations seem to have a strong government & weak individualization. Eastern EU nations have high individualization & low governing power.

I’ve usually considered myself to be a good pro-governing kind of thinker– it makes sense to “band together” for mutual benefit. But with my anti-modernist generation around me all crying FOUL, echoing the 60’s, finding some answers to my questions are important.

Here’s our Turkish coffees in beautiful small gold & silver inlaid cups alongside the chocolate layer cake & the yogurt-drink to the left. (And my dumb finger in the way ruining the otherwise near-perfect pic!) Maybe I’ll have to learn some basic Bosnian. Here’s a little bit from the inside.

But today, I was treated to a Bosnian lunch. I have, for the past month or two, been trying to understand eastern europe, and this proved to be an enlightening few hours: “In Bosnia, it’s said they make the laws after they make the loopholes.” .. “Like the man standing outside here smoking- He’s only outside because the rule of law makes him. In Bosnia, they’d find ways around it.”

And all of a sudden, it makes sense. I’m an independent. I like being unique & off-beat. I study philosophy & history & sociology to confirm my uniqueness & understand the development of just about anything. I don’t consider myself ’slick’ nor able to swindle or talk my way out of anything, but there’s a lot about large-scale governance which I’m not a fan of. Sure I’ve nothing to complain about relative to China or North Korea, but relative to eastern Europe? How do I understand this?

My Bosnian friend said how he laughs at the rest of the EU pulling their hair out over the Balkans. They’re less ordered & less concerned with strong governing and more historical/traditional mindset. Take Serbia: they just can’t let go of their emotional-historical ties to “their land.” Nevermind that “progress” requires them to let go of the past & look towards the future. And really, how is this any different than South-Eastern America?

Perhaps when you’re (a) stuck so close to culturally distinct people and/or (b) when you feel antagonized & misrepresented, you don’t give in & stick close to family & individual uniquenesses. Take any ghetto in the late 1800’s in America– the Italians, Swedish and Irish have been pretty well integrated now because they are no longer antagonized & America is big enough to hold us all. And I think that’s where I come in - I’m in bland America. There’s so little to push against.

And yet the American SouthEast has feelings-a-plenty of antagonization (whether politically or for religious conservatism). Hence, they have a strong sense of (singular) identity & strong lines of being “in” or “out”. (And again, in is good, out is bad thanks to perceived antagonization). But like any immigrant family knows, it’s always the children who are able to cross the lines. It happens one family at a time struggling with their own prejudices and lack of knowledge about the ‘other side’.

As for Eastern Europe, they’ve just been under pressure for 10 times longer than anything over this side of the pond. And bland America just can’t understand the nature & consequences of European protesting. Every European I’ve heard on the topic says that the protest can be valid, but there’s always the idiot in the crowd who turns it violent.

So I guess I’m just asking all the Ami’s to try and understand. Go read history humbly.