There are basically three stages of political organization:
1) the tribe/clan,
2) the state/nation,
3) the empire.
While all of these stages have pros and cons, Yoram Hazony quite convincingly argues that the nation/state represents the best overall compromise. This is especially important in a world where the European Union show signs of becoming the follow on to the old Holy Roman Empire – and as such – will contain all the disadvantages of what we have associated with imperialism. Europe as an American military protectorate (if not America as the world’s policeman) and “open borders” (irrespective of the reality of incompatible cultural differences and numbers of people coming across those borders) also fall into this mold, as do international courts and international law. The planet is just too big, the cultures and world views in it too varied to make this anything but a utopian pipe dream. Given the realities of people, universal justice/courts would become rationalized and leveraged as instruments for political advantage. And although not mentioned in Hozany’s book: no one at Nuremburg was prosecuted for anything that had taken place purely in Germany. War crimes only occurred when the German Nation applied it’s norms outside of its borders in an imperialist manner. Other imperialist empires included both Catholicism and Communism. They were out to conquer the world with their own vision of the good society – and all for the very best of reasons. In my opinion, the American military presence in Muslim lands with Islamic cultures (under the guise of “fighting terrorism” – when all we have to do is not let them in, or “nation building”, or a weaponized SJW version of fighting unfairness/atrocities) also falls into this category.
While the book covers a lot of ground and this short review cannot do it justice, there are a few iconoclastic concepts which I had previously accepted (and now I don’t) – which Hazony tackles head on:
1) There has never been a “state of nature” of the kind imagined by Hobbes or Locke (or Social Darwinism), in which individuals were loyal only to themselves. As long as human beings were on earth, they have been loyal to the broader family, clan, and tribe.
2) In much the same way that one could argue “a chicken is just an egg’s way of making another egg” - contrary to the claims of other books on social genetics (e.g. “A Troublesome Inheritance” by Nicholas Wade and possibly “Behave” by Robert M. Sapolsy), cultural affinity/kinship has only an indirect effect on advancing one’s gene pool; i.e., people bond more over cultural affinity than they do over genetic ties (and yes, I realize that inheritance DOES influence behavior and therefore culture and therefore who you like to hang out with. But while important, the genetics aspects are only a second order effect).
Another set of profound insights has to do with Anglo-Saxon vs. continental (and especially German) culture. I have seen these ideas in other places:
1) English empirical science was fueled by empiricism over theory, while
2) On the continent, the only true way to pursue science was in terms of the “idea” or the “theoretical”, based on rational deduction (and all too often – ignoring the pragmatics of the situation).
The book's three downfalls are:
1) The inferences Hazony makes for the Old Testament recommending the Nation-State as the best form of government. While I’m not a bible expert – this seems a reach on the author’s part. When I read the bible, the concept of “nation” never struck me as God’s timeless prescription as the best form of political organization for all of mankind. It just happened to be the way it was at that place and time.
2) Hazony claims that one of the main drives of a culture is to pass on its cultural legacy. I don’t buy this. Pure sexual lust has a great deal to do with who breeds with whom, and no one (especially males) thinks much about cultural transmission in that process (and yes, I do realize that having some cultural things in common help that choice of mate along – but once again, this is a second order effect. When it comes down to the nitty-gritty, lust is the primary driver.).
3) Hazony (using other words) starts repeating his points about 2/3 of the way through the book.
Overall, both in quantity and quality, this book’s virtues far outweigh its shortfalls. It is well worth reading to get a grip on the “globalism” (in various guises) utopia which portrays “nationalism” in its worst extreme post WWI European terms, and advances a war-free world of cooperation among supranational peoples of the earth – if only we were enlightened enough to ignore our differences and join together under one set of (you-name-it) high level codes/laws/morals/whatever.
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Nationalism v. Imperialism: Read This Book!
I do not ascribe 5 stars lightly. I would gladly give this book 10 stars. I would do so not only because it is well written and highly readable truth, but because it is vital to the well-being of nations.Yoram Hazony is the perfect author for this important work. He has the worldview necessary to understand the history of the modern nation-state and the gift of Deuteronomy to ancient and modern Israel and likewise to every nation so organized.I implore you to read and promote this book. Nations hang in the balance.
Top reviews from other countries
Angie Henle
We need to understand the pros and cons of nationalism at time of globalism
Reviewed in Germany on September 11, 2019Martin Land
This book needs to be read and digested by all in the west.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 28, 2018
Gabriel Stein
Very interesting and thought-provoking
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 6, 2018