From: James Rogers (jamesr@best.com)
Date: Sun Jan 09 2000 - 13:28:03 MST
On Sun, 09 Jan 2000, Matthew Gream wrote:
> Robert Bradbury <bradbury@genebee.msu.su> wrote:
>
> > region very strongly "independence" minded, it would be questionable
> > whether even their own self-elected (local) government would have
> > much control over them (similar to the "tribes" in Afganastan or Somalia).
>
> Take note of the Basques at the northern periphery of Spain, they are also
> generally a very strong and independent people who have been fighting for
> independence for some time, I am only superficially familiar with the
> situation, though.
An interesting correlation is that one of the areas of the United States
with a very high Basque concentration is northern Nevada. Many towns in
northern Nevada identify very strongly with their Basque ancestry, and it
permeates the local culture. The correlation is interesting because the
population of that area is well known to be strongly resistant to Federal
interference and very confrontational when the Federal government tries to
get involved in their local affairs, to the point of violence some times.
I would strongly agree that there is a cultural component to "independent"
peoples. However, it is interesting to note that many of these peoples
also have a difficult time maintaining territory. From my own
experience, it seems that the extreme decentralization promoted by the
culture also makes it more difficult to repel highly centralized
aggressors. On the other hand, the indomitable will of these peoples
tends to be a force multiplier as well and the decentralization makes the
populations impossible to control.
-James Rogers
jamesr@best.com
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