Felix the Cassowary . # .

thd: Trade has been opening up, but even here the nation-state is an inhibitor to prosperity. Take Apple\'s iTunes for instance. It is an internet service which by existing; has global reach. Yet it is not a global service at this point in time as the nation-state\'s local laws and regulations.

But this corresponds largely to the demand of the local recording industry groups.

In the late nineteenth century a large nation-state like Austro-Hungary was necessary to maintain internal prosperity.

Austria-Hungary was not a nation state; it was two empires (i.e. multinational states) with a shared Emperor/King and a partially shared government. In the late nineteenth century a large nation was necessary; but today the example of the EU shows that small states and powerful multi-national organisations can perform the same function ... but how difficulty is that really, in practice? Given a few decades the continental, western EU probably looks the same as the US...

There are separatist movements in Northern NSW and Queensland.

I\'m aware of movements in Northern NSW that want to separate from the rest of NSW (e.g. the New England statehood movement), but do you actually mean separation from the Commonwealth? And what about Queensland?