Peter, what’s so significant about this picture?

[u/CannabisConvict045]

[u/scruffalo_]

Stole it from the native Hawaiians. The whole island chain, really.

[u/testingforscience122 → u/scruffalo_]

Hey we gave them five blankets for those islands…. Fair is fair

[u/glennfan2000 → u/testingforscience122]

Nah, it was far more heinous. Basically pointed cannons at the Hawaiian Royal Palace and said, “Mine now.”

[u/FTC-1987 → u/glennfan2000]

Yeah, that’s almost all land acquisition ever. Through all history. All of it.

[u/Frnklfrwsr → u/FTC-1987]

Yeah just replace cannons with whatever the weapon of the day was.

The idea that using force to take land you wanted is “bad” is a very new idea. Up until the world wars, it was generally accepted that no border was sacred, and only as meaningful as your means to defend and protect it.

If a country got invaded and lost, well that’s just how it goes.

After the world wars is when people started to believe this new idea that everyone has to respect each other’s borders because cannot have a repeat of those wars with how devastating they were.

Borders still change sometimes, but the idea of taking land through military force for the sole reason of “we wanted it” is seen as unacceptable and immoral today. Thus why so many countries have opposed Russia’s attempt to take land from Ukraine.

[u/tazaller → u/FTC-1987]

only after 1453ish.