Why are there countries?

Nearly every human born in this world has a 'national' identity stamped onto them at birth. This feels like a profoundly provincial tradition to me. Like, you're locked into the ideologies, culture, and traditions of a country you didn't choose.

Of course, a baby can't choose anything, but there should be a right that lets you choose your nation when you're mature enough to understand what that even means. Or better yet, we could recognize everyone as a citizen of the world.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not saying countries shouldn't exist. They just shouldn't exist like they do now. I don't like this concept of sacred, inviolable borders. We're literally restricting our own species from meeting our own kind, from crossing arbitrary lines on a map, from accessing pieces of land that belong to no one and everyone simultaneously.

And I genuinely don't understand why people are so obsessed with and proud of the country they were born in. Like girl, the world is so much bigger than Melbourne or Texas. Your zip code at birth shouldn't define your identity for life, yet we've built entire systems of belonging around this lottery. We draw lines in the sand, call them sacred, and then spend generations dying for them, as if the accident of your mother's location during labor should determine your loyalty, your opportunity, your worth. What a strange, small way to organize a species capable of touching the stars.