On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 03:56:13AM -0700, Thaths wrote: > On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 2:06 AM, Divya Sampath <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > it would be immensely difficult for the new nation, land-locked as it is, > > and completely snow-bound in winter, to survive without substantial > > support (read: subsidies) from its larger neighbours. > > Switzerland?
i think the keyword was "new" :-) it's funny to hear of switzerland while talking about how bad plebiscites may be. a little swiss factoid: each canton has its own rules about under what conditions a foreigner can get a work/residence permit (and some cantons have referendums on this; many smaller ones have referendums on granting citizenship). but once a canton has granted a permit, every other canton must recognise it. there's a high level of trust of swiss communities and swiss institutions in swiss society which would be hard to reproduce in any "new" place. in india, for instance, the level of social trust is very low. moving on to a different topic - i credit the economic success of northern europe (and japan) to high levels of social trust more than anything else. -rishab
