I don't really understand why Meade is having such a hard time grasping the facts about this. I suppose it begins with his incomplete, arcane, tribal definition of "nation". Here's the actual modern definition:
Full Definition of nation
1
a (1) : nationality 5a (2) : a politically organized nationality (3) : a non-Jewish nationality <why do the nations conspire — Psalms 2:1 (Revised Standard Version)> b : a community of people composed of one or more nationalities and possessing a more or less defined territory and government c : a territorial division containing a body of people of one or more nationalities and usually characterized by relatively large size and independent status
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dict ... ish/nation
It should be self evident that England, Scotland and Wales are
not independent. They are all
part of a nation called The
United Kingdom. They don't have their own militaries, they don't have the power to enter into or withdraw from treaties, they do not have independent representation in international organizations, they don't have the power to print their own currency, (Yes I know that Ireland, France and Italy don't print their own currencies, but that is by choice. England, Scotland, and Wales could not print their own currency if they wanted to.) or do
any of the other things commonly associated with the powers of a modern nation...They cannot do these things because they are not sovereign or independent.
Their laws are also subordinate to British law, which are the laws passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
No, it is the
United Kingdom that possesses all these powers. It is the
United Kingdom that is a nation in the sense that The Irish Republic , France and Italy are nations;
not England, Scotland and Wales. It is silly, (and also willfully obtuse) to try to pretend otherwise...
So if this were to be a competition of "nations" where the competitors are all "nations" in the same sense with the same rights, powers, prerogatives and independence, the list would look like this:
The United Kingdom
Ireland
France
Italy
Now I may not have the greatest math skills, but I count
four not six...
If they want to make it six, they can bring in two more actual nations...
As it stands, the UK gets three chances at winning (by being able to field three teams) while the other three nations only get one chance apiece.
