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A comment on Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open borders. Parent comment

Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by cojxd on Thursday August 08, 2019 @01:41PM (#20646687)
The fact that our countries are good and wealthy is not a matter of luck though.
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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by grzm on Thursday August 08, 2019 @01:49PM (#20646769)
I believe your parent is referring to the place where you’re born being a matter of luck: no decision or choice on one’s own part determines where one’s born.
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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by xwvvvvwx on Thursday August 08, 2019 @01:53PM (#20646811)
The dominance of eurasian societies is very likely an accident of geography more than anything else.

You would probably find Guns, Germs, and Steel [1] quite illuminating.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns,_Germs,_and_Steel

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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by hellocs1 on Thursday August 08, 2019 @03:17PM (#20647634)
Meh, Guns, Germs, and Steel get a lot of criticism to be honest [1]. You can find plenty of counter examples that Diamond does not address.

[1]: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskAnthropology/comments/1rzm07/wha...

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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by finnjohnsen2 on Sunday August 11, 2019 @08:29PM (#20671469)
On an individual level it is.

I did nothing but be born and follow the path expected off me -- handed reliable and cheap electricity, water, free schooling, internet connection; and lastly great jobs giving my primadonna arse more $$$ than I need. Idk dude, I wouldn't mind taking credit but I'm not being honest.

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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by refurb on Thursday August 08, 2019 @02:19PM (#20647096)
Not sure why this is downvoted.

A good example are the capitalist versus communist countries.

Two sets of countries making different choices and ending up with different results.

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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by lazyasciiart on Thursday August 08, 2019 @02:41PM (#20647312)
No baby in history has made an informed decision about which country to be born in.
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Re:Svalbard is as close as you can get to a place with open ... by refurb on Thursday August 08, 2019 @02:50PM (#20647382)
I’m responding to the comment “good and bad countries aren’t due entirely to luck”.
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