Immigrants, invaders, indigenous, refugees and converts make any geography into a melting pot. All these conflicting elements come in a strange harmony based on mutual trust which is money. Trade brings a long history of violence to a gradual end. Money is the most diplomatic tool. Even the barbaric rulers (who are basically powerful thugs) considered copper coins as a commodity which can be trusted and it was used for trading which otherwise would never happen. Instead of taking the sword, they started opening their money bags. Two people who would never trust each other started trusting because of money – which is tradeable against goods and services. All the structures we see now is to regulate the flow of money. Money transcends barriers. The Chinese do business with Americans because they understand the language of money. The new currency, bitcoins are mined and traded by people who do not even see each other. All these in last 200 years.
Random: During an interview, Elon Musk said, “when Wright Brothers flew the first flying machine which is the practical fixed-wing aircraft in 1903. If someone said, we’d land on the moon, people would laugh at him. Six decades later, man landed on the moon. So humanity’s 99% of progress happened in .009% of recorded human history.