How to build a nation
Building a new nation can only be done from within, one of America’s top political intellectuals said Thursday, a reality that he said explains the bloody obstacles the United States has encountered in its efforts to create new, democratic governments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Francis Fukuyama, who in 1992 famously predicted “the end of history” because liberal democracies and free market economies suggested an endpoint in the evolution of government, said that external forces can erect the skeleton of state in an embattled country, creating police forces, administrative structures, and taxing authorities. But nation-building goes further and involves a shared sense of national identity, built on elements that tie people together — such as shared culture, language, and history — that cannot be imposed from without. Fukuyama provided an overview in which he said large, diverse nations have a harder row to hoe in creating national identities. Nigeria is an example where...