As Russia tends to fall apart, a more intriguing example of national loyalty is occurring in Congo, the African nation that was called Zaire during the decades of corrupt rule by the dictator Mobutu Sese Seko. Strangely, a long history of chaos, rebellion and invasion has failed to obliterate the idea of Congo as a nation. You have seven or eight foreign armies, and a large number of domestic insurgent militias, the government controls only a fraction of the country. It's extraordinary, because they could do this quite easily. In Congo, as elsewhere, the state uses considerable resources to instill a feeling of fealty among its citizens, Young says.
States often control the school system or at least the curriculum.
And in much of the world, the state controls the broadcast media. As is true of loyalty to other groups, national identity promotes a sense of belonging and, yes, identity. I'm from the United States, you're from Canada. I'm from Mexico, you're from Cuba. This is true even along its long border, where ethnic groups span national boundaries, offering a competing sense of loyalty.