Originally posted by Gene Clean
A state is not a nation-state unless it is totally dominated by one ethnic group. Israel is not a nation-state because it has a significant number of minorities, anywhere from 15-25%._
Originally posted by Immanuel Goldstein
Do you mean that all nation-states are racist, unethical?
No. A nation-state is one whose sovereignity has an affinity to a national or ethnic identity (Ethnos being the Greek word for nation) and its culture.
Italy is the nation-state of the Italian nation even though some of its citizens are not ethnically Italians (like the German-speaking Tyrolians of Alto-Adige). Spain is the nation-state of the Spaniards even though it has many sizable minorities such as the Basques, the Catalans, the Gallegos. Iran is the nation-state of the Persians even though it has many minorities (Azeri, Balotchi, Arab, Kurd) and Persians are only slightly over 50% of the population.
Most countries in the world are nation-states and most of them have minorities. [Edit: Russia is the nation-state of the Russian nation even though it has innumerable minorities; the Russian language actually has two different words for Russian: one for ethnic Russian: Russki, and one for a non-ethnically Russian inhabitant of Russia: Rossiyani.]
There are no nation-states today, with the possible exclusion of Japan and Iceland.
In your own little world, perhaps.
_The term is used impresicely for a state that tries to promote one single national identity ("culture"), usually in the form of language._
The term is misused by you to mean a country without significant ethnic minorities.
Israel is trying (what with the name "The *Jewish* State of Israel" and all)
The name is not The Jewish
State of Israel, it's The state of Israel (officially: Medinat Israel
and Dawlat Israil
, because this nation-state grants co-official status to the main minority language).
but it's not there yet.
It's stupid to want that anyway. And it goes for both Israelis and Palestinians._
So most people in this world are stupid according to you, fine. Perhaps they know a thing or two you don't, like the poor track record of trusting one's collective welfare in some other collective, not to mention knowing what a nation-state actually is.