I don't want to see endangered languages die off any more than you do, but I wish there were means of saving them that weren't tarred with the pernicious brush of nationalism.
But it is a positive, isn't it? Nationalism is a double-edged sword (much like those used by our Celtic ancestors) if there ever was one. Sure, it has produced a lot of "invented crap" but it has also inspired people to research, dig up (often literally), and preserve the real crap. It has also financed a lot of those researches, and given them an audience.
I think it also is a good counter to centralizing and oppressing forces. The same force impelling Turks to mistreat the Kurds is also impelling the Kurds to preserve their language and culture in the face of oppression.
I also want to point out that the Enlightenment doesn't have the greatest track record either. Revolutionary France comes to mind. Perhaps parts of the Enlightenment deserved to be reversed.
In Defense of Nationalism
But it is a positive, isn't it? Nationalism is a double-edged sword (much like those used by our Celtic ancestors) if there ever was one. Sure, it has produced a lot of "invented crap" but it has also inspired people to research, dig up (often literally), and preserve the real crap. It has also financed a lot of those researches, and given them an audience.
I think it also is a good counter to centralizing and oppressing forces. The same force impelling Turks to mistreat the Kurds is also impelling the Kurds to preserve their language and culture in the face of oppression.
I also want to point out that the Enlightenment doesn't have the greatest track record either. Revolutionary France comes to mind. Perhaps parts of the Enlightenment deserved to be reversed.