Balkanisation, is a geopolitical term, originally used to describe the process of fragmentation or division of a region or state into smaller regions or states that are often hostile or non-cooperative with one another.

thanks for pointing that out for him, he certainly would not have read that in the wikipedia article on balkanisation that he just read.

It was more for the benefit of others who may not have read it on Wikipedia.

Making a reply in a thread does not always mean you're directly and only replying to the person you're replying to -- it can be more than that, it can be a reply that moves the discussion along, and gives off information and insights to anyone who's reading the comment. Seeing as you're a new HN user, I encourage you to give the 'comments guidelines' page a read: http://ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Indeed. I was just about to look it up before reading an article linked also in the comments. Now thanks to mjallday's note I've got the context I was looking for and don't need to drain thirty minutes doubly off-topic reading about Balkanization. (Not that I'd mind, but Wikipedia can be dangerously engrossing like TvTropes...)

Seconded