# Citizens from 20 U.S. States File Petitions to Secede



## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

As blogged in The Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...ates-petition-obama-administration-to-secede/

Post-election, there are now petitions on the White House's "We the People" website for 20 (possibly more by now) states to peacefully secede from the union.

Thoughts?


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## Gahars (Nov 12, 2012)

Where's Grant and Sherman when you need them?


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## DaggerV (Nov 12, 2012)

Online petition tend to be useless, but how many have actual people of positions backing it?


And on top of that, how many are red/blue states?


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

DaggerV said:


> Online petition tend to be useless, but how many have actually people of positions backing it?
> 
> 
> And on top of that, how many are red/blue states?


Follow the link?
The White House has to issue a response once a petition reaches 30,000 signatures within 30 days. Two petitions are nearly there...


*edit
Apparently dickfour has voted...


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## DCG (Nov 12, 2012)

Lol, only first name and the initials of the last name?
I can has many many "signatures".... Here in Holland, you need: First name, Last name and Postal code. (and yes, they have denied signatures here, because they only had first and last name)

But seriously, why the hell would they quit?
Don't they have to pay their debt in an instant ( to the government), or something like that?


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## The Catboy (Nov 12, 2012)

Seriously?
Dividing the nation again won't solve it's problem, in fact it might actually make them worse.
I think people need to grow up instead of ragequitting on America the moment something doesn't go according to their plan.


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## DrOctapu (Nov 12, 2012)

Texas is a shithole, let 'em leave.


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## Foxi4 (Nov 12, 2012)

The Catboy said:


> Seriously?
> Dividing the nation again won't solve it's problem, in fact it might actually make them worse.
> I think people need to grow up instead of ragequitting on America the moment something doesn't go according to their plan.


...why?

Y'know what happened last time when America was divided into two vastly different fronts with completely different ideals? A civil war.

They should organize a public vote - if the states want to leave, let them leave - they have a right to do so. The U.S is a federal state, the states have a right to self-govern themselves to an extent.


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Yeah no. It was dumb the first time, but they actually had a "valid" reason to leave. This isn't just dumb, it's without a cause. I'd also rather not have a slew of uneducated bigots entering my State, so fuck the second option. >.> >.< <.> <.<

Though, Texas would be the best off as their own country. No large debt to pay off, pretty well governed and we have some pretty educated people here. When I say this, I mean among the states with a petition.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

lol at the idea of any state surviving as a sovereign entity...

what could half of these places even offer for trade?


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## chyyran (Nov 12, 2012)

Go ahead and secede, it's their choice let it be, unless you guys want another civil war. I'm not even American.


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## AeroblitzR (Nov 12, 2012)

are people that freakin butthurt over obama getting re elected?!

Republican ultraconservative weirdos: get over it!
maybe if you were against rape like EVERYONE ELSE you'd be in the white house.

p.s. there's ALOT more stuff that they're screwing up on, but i don't have all day to type it up.


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## Foxi4 (Nov 12, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Yeah no. It was dumb the first time, but they actually had a "valid" reason to leave. This isn't just dumb, it's without a cause. I'd also rather not have a slew of uneducated bigots entering my State, so fuck the second option. >.> >.< <.> <.<


So I take it you don't believe that the entirety of the 20 states in question would vote "No!" if they were to vote, and not just in a majority vote, but in a public "60% or more of the population has cast their vote or it doesn't count" kinda vote?

Because I believe they would vote "No!", but at the same time, they'd put those 30,000 idiots in their place. Why are we always so afraid to let democracy run its course?


AeroblitzR said:


> maybe if you were against rape like EVERYONE ELSE you'd be in the white house.


Way to misinterpret someone's statement. No Republicans support rape, I think that's pretty safe to assume.


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## KingVamp (Nov 12, 2012)

The Catboy said:


> Seriously?
> Dividing the nation again won't solve it's problem, in fact it might actually make them worse.
> I think people need to grow up instead of ragequitting on America the moment something doesn't go according to their plan.


Would you feel that way if Romney would have won?


How 'bout they leave and we keep the state. 

It's kind of funny that people in Puerto Rico wants to join as soon as people in these states
want to leave.


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Foxi4 said:


> So I take it you don't believe that the entirety of the 20 states in question would vote "No!" if they were to vote, and not just in a majority vote, but in a public "60% or more of the population has cast their vote or it doesn't count" kinda vote?
> 
> Because I believe they would vote "No!", but at the same time, they'd put those 30,000 idiots in their place. Why are we always so afraid to let democracy run its course?
> Way to misinterpret someone's statement. No Republicans support rape, I think that's pretty safe to assume.


I'm not allowed an opinion? Even if the state secedes, I won't be leaving. I love this place way too much. I'd be one of those people that votes a big fat no.


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## The Catboy (Nov 12, 2012)

Foxi4 said:


> ...why?
> 
> Y'know what happened last time when America was divided into two vastly different fronts with completely different ideals? A civil war.
> 
> They should organize a public vote - if the states want to leave, let them leave - they have a right to do so. The U.S is a federal state, the states have a right to self-govern themselves to an extent.


On paper it sounds like a pretty good idea to just let them go, but I see several issues. One big issue being that a good number of them are right in the middle of America. This will cause conflict with people trying to travel. This will also cut off part of America like New England because you have to pass through New York and New Jersey to get there.
This plan will only cause greater conflict and just lead to anther Civil war and cost the country more money to fix it. This doesn't solve anything, it only causes more problems.



KingVamp said:


> Would you feel that way if Romney would have won?
> 
> 
> How 'bout they leave and we keep the state.
> ...


Even though I wanted nothing to do with Romney's plans for America, I would still not leave America if he won.
I see no reason to just give up because I lost.


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## MelodieOctavia (Nov 12, 2012)

Oh noez, a president that doesn't run this country based on what's said in a magical book handed down from some immortal bearded guy in the sky! Better leave now!


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Old8oy said:


> lol at the idea of any state surviving as a sovereign entity...
> 
> what could half of these places even offer for trade?


Texas did it before (albeit with more debt). There's a reason that Texas' flag is the only one in the Union that can fly at the same height.

Texas has huge reserves of natural gas and oil. Texas also has huge tourism benefits with several ports and a very large access to the Mexican border.


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## KingVamp (Nov 12, 2012)

A Civil war with a war still going on outside the USA? No, just no.

Although, I wish we could all just get along altogether.


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## Foxi4 (Nov 12, 2012)

I'm not saying "let them go", I'm saying that the states should vote. This is just some petition signed by (so-far) less than 30,000 people - it's a fraction of the population. Unless "retard" is strong in those knights of valour and freedom, I'd sleep safetly and soundly.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Texas did it before (albeit with more debt). There's a reason that Texas' flag is the only one in the Union that can fly at the same height.


 
There's also a reason they're no longer sovereign...


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Old8oy said:


> There's also a reason they're no longer sovereign...


Yes, and that's because they were offered Statehood and they took it. Not because of any other reason.


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## MelodieOctavia (Nov 12, 2012)

In all honesty, what this country needs is to act as such. ONE COUNTRY.

This "Us vs Them" mentality is what's tearing this country apart. It's not about conservative vs liberal, or republican vs democrat. It's about getting shit done, and getting it done right, whether you live in a red state or a blue state.

seceding is just taking your ball and going home when your team is losing. It's cowardly. Plain and simple.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Yes, and that's because they were offered Statehood and they took it. Not because of any other reason.


 
What positives could possibly come from being in a union with 49 other states?


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## Hyro-Sama (Nov 12, 2012)

A weaker America is beneficial for everyone. Plus, I doubt this will gain enough traction to be seriously considered. It will just be overhyped by the media to cause controversy and draw attention from the real issues yet again. 

I love being Canadian.


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Old8oy said:


> What positives could possibly come from being in a union with 49 other states?


Do you think I'm stupid? What do you think Statehood means?


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## Gahars (Nov 12, 2012)

Alright, people seem to be taking this way too seriously.

Are there people who seriously want to secede from the Union? Sure, maybe, but they're likely few and far between. This is more symbolic than anything else; it's just people making a statement about their disapproval over the direction of the nation through symbolic actions. Actually putting this to a vote would give it far more legitimacy than it merits.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 12, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Do you think I'm stupid? What do you think Statehood means?


 
whoa whoa whoa guy.  who's namecalling here?  Texas is a state because they (you) preferred it to the alternative.


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## BlueStar (Nov 12, 2012)

What's to bet these states take a lot more federal money than any of the others?


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## Sterling (Nov 12, 2012)

Old8oy said:


> whoa whoa whoa guy.  who's namecalling here?  Texas is a state because they (you) preferred it to the alternative.


I asked if you think I'm stupid. I also asked what you think statehood means. I have yet to address the blatant Texas hate in your OP, but that's besides the point.

You have yet to answer the first two questions, and I'm not interested in beating around the bush. Do you think I'm stupid, or do you not. Do you know what Statehood means and all the benefits it implies, yes or no.

Oh, and Texas became a state long before I was born. I also understand that we are much better off than then and we'd stand a much better chance of survival if we were alone than back then.


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## Foxi4 (Nov 12, 2012)

Gahars said:


> Alright, people seem to be taking this way too seriously.
> 
> Are there people who seriously want to secede from the Union? Sure, maybe, but they're likely few and far between. This is more symbolic than anything else; it's just people making a statement about their disapproval over the direction of the nation through symbolic actions. Actually putting this to a vote would give it far more legitimacy than it merits.


...or do the exact opposite - show that it's bogus. If it was actually put to vote, it's likely that a lot of former supporters would forfeit, fearing the outcome. It would be genuienly shocking if the federal government agreed to a vote, don't you think?


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## FireEmblemGuy (Nov 13, 2012)

"We don't like democracy" - sore losers across the nation.

Also as a native of Texas I'm offended that'd you'd dump all the idiots there.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 13, 2012)

Sterling said:


> I asked if you think I'm stupid. I also asked what you think statehood means. I have yet to address the blatant Texas hate in your OP, but that's besides the point.
> 
> You have yet to answer the first two questions, and I'm not interested in beating around the bush. Do you think I'm stupid, or do you not. Do you know what Statehood means and all the benefits it implies, yes or no.
> 
> Oh, and Texas became a state long before I was born. I also understand that we are much better off than then and we'd stand a much better chance of survival if we were alone than back then.


 
so angry.

first off. My blatant Texas hate? okay, I'll change it to Alabama.

Do I think you're stupid? No. I think you are merely butthert because I used Texas in the OP rather than any other state. And I think you take other people's opinions far too seriously, especially the opinions of strangers on the internet.

I do know what statehood is and was referring to "all the benefits it implies", albeit ironically, when I said "What positives could possibly come from being in a union with 49 other states?"

Really? Texas became a state before you were born? I never would have guessed that. But...you're still considered a "Texan", right? That's probably what my (you) was in reference to...

And yes, Texas is "much better off" now, after reaping all the benefits of statehood for the past 150+ years. I'm sure Texas would be just fine on their own, for a while.


*edit
sorry guy...
can't change Texas to Alabama in the poll.  don't want to offend anyone from Alabama.


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 13, 2012)

I think they should secede.

Not that states themselves, just the crackpots. Put them on an island or something.

Then use that island like Bikini Atoll.


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## Costello (Nov 13, 2012)

not sure why people are taking this so seriously seeing as it's only a ridiculously low amount of people that are even considering secession...
the way I see it it's just a bunch of lunatics who have no idea what the implications would be, in their mind it's as simple as "FREE TEXAS FUCK YEAH" or something


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## Densetsu (Nov 13, 2012)

All this talk about Texas being bigoted...they're not even the _most_ bigoted state in the US.

*Where America's Racist Tweets Come From*


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 13, 2012)

Densetsu said:


> All this talk about Texas being bigoted...they're not even the _most_ bigoted state in the US.
> 
> *Where America's Racist Tweets Come From*


 
oh my god i am dying

Both in laughter and in confidence.

Although that's rather weighted since people in the red states don't know how to work dem foondangled gizmos and gadgets.


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## Valwin (Nov 13, 2012)

those people are a bunch of copycats loser after seen or petition to join as a state they are trying to steal our thunder  also once part of the union you cant leave


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 13, 2012)

Valwin said:


> those people are a bunch of copycats loser after seen or petition to join as a state they are trying to steal our thunder also once part of the union you cant leave


 
Shhh, we're trying to trade a worse state like Texas for Puerto Rico. They have better food in Puerto Rico.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 13, 2012)

Valwin said:


> those people are a bunch of copycats loser after seen or petition to join as a state they are trying to steal our thunder  also once part of the union you cant leave



How did bradzx get control of valwin's account?


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## DaggerV (Nov 13, 2012)

We're not a democracy here, but a republic, get rid of the electoral votes? We vote for those vote ya'know? 



Not sure how many times I've posted that post election -.-


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## Valwin (Nov 13, 2012)

after reading each petition you will notice that each one is a copy paste of each other it only changes the name of the state so thi points me to think they were made not by people in the USA but by people from here puertorico to try to fuck the majority over here


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## Sterling (Nov 13, 2012)

Umm, I'm sure you'd be mad if I made blanket statements and poor stereotypes about your state and the people that reside within it. Also, just because you jump to the excuse 'it's only a joke' does not make it okay. Especially if the joke was was in poor taste anyway. The fact that you refuse to acknowledge that is ridiculous. Please, think of the consequences next time you post something like this. Not all of us enjoy being the butt end of a poor joke, and I think I've made that clear.


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 13, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Umm, I'm sure you'd be mad if I made blanket statements and poor stereotypes about your state and the people that reside within it. Also, just because you jump to the excuse 'it's only a joke' does not make it okay. Especially if the joke was was in poor taste anyway. The fact that you refuse to acknowledge that is ridiculous. Please, think of the consequences next time you post something like this. Not all of us enjoy being the butt end of a poor joke, and I think I've made that clear.


 
Dude, it's Texas, it's not like he called your mother a slutty heathen.

Let's all take a chill pill and stop using the term "blanket statement" because if I read it one more time I'm going to smother someone to death with a blanket just to make a statement.


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## smile72 (Nov 13, 2012)

States can't secede. I thought we all learned that in school.......


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 13, 2012)

smile72 said:


> States can't secede. I thought we all learned that in school.......


 
They can but it's written in the constitution that the ghost of Abraham Lincoln will fondle each and every person's genitals who secedes until they come back to the union.


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## smile72 (Nov 13, 2012)

Guild McCommunist said:


> They can but it's written in the constitution that the ghost of Abraham Lincoln will fondle each and every person's genitals who secedes until they come back to the union.


I assume (because of your mention of Abraham Lincoln fondling gentials) that your entire post is a joke, and it is quite humorous.


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## Devin (Nov 13, 2012)

Guild McCommunist said:


> They can but it's written in the constitution that the ghost of Abraham Lincoln will fondle each and every person's genitals who secedes until they come back to the union.


 
Which of course is the reasoning behind this whole thing. Who besides the humorless, extremely fun Old8oy, wouldn't want that?


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 13, 2012)

Devin said:


> Which of course is the reasoning behind this whole thing. Who wouldn't want that?



Who wouldn't want that?  Me.  I wouldn't want that.  I'm tired of all the blanket statements...


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## SickPuppy (Nov 13, 2012)

AeroblitzR said:


> are people that freakin butthurt over obama getting re elected?!


 
The people are butthurt over the fact that those assholes in Washington are wrecking our country, and feel that the change that was needed will not be happening come Jan 2013.


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## OneUp (Nov 13, 2012)

Wow Texas has gotten way over the number of signatures needed: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/pe...ca-and-create-its-own-new-government/BmdWCP8B


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## KingVamp (Nov 13, 2012)

SickPuppy said:


> Yes, I'm butthurt.


I'm glad we finally agree on something.


,but no really...



SickPuppy said:


> The people are butthurt over the fact that those assholes in Washington are wrecking our country, and feel that the change that was needed will not be happening come Jan 2013.


I find highly amusing that you believe Romney "change" (not sure what you was thinking you would get from him) would be for the better, when really it would just screw a bunch of people over.


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## MelodieOctavia (Nov 13, 2012)

Come on, KingVamp! We could give trickle-down economics one more try! It'll work this time, I promise!


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## SickPuppy (Nov 13, 2012)

KingVamp said:


> I'm glad we finally agree on something.
> 
> 
> ,but no really...
> ...


 
Re-read my post, I said "the people are butthurt", I didn't say I was butthurt. I am still butthurt over the whole clinton era. As Clinton was signing the NAFTA agreement, he was saying "this will create more jobs", he just failed to mention that all those jobs created would be in China.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 13, 2012)

SickPuppy said:


> Re-read my post, I said "the people are butthurt", I didn't say I was butthurt. I am still butthurt over the whole clinton era. As Clinton was signing the NAFTA agreement, he was saying "this will create more jobs", he just failed to mention that all those jobs created would be in China.


No.  Clinton was just naive to think that companies wouldn't abuse the trade agreement for their own financial gain.  It was supposed to open up US exports.  Little did Clinton know, that companies would take advantage by exporting jobs rather than goods.  Keep absorbing all the noise though.  If we didn't have people who believed everything they were told by the vocal minority, we'd never get anything done around here.

Have you read NAFTA yourself or are you just recycling what someone else told you?


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## Engert (Nov 13, 2012)

This seems like a neocon topic. A shock and awe campaign that left right-wing-nut-jobs sore. 

Don't worry though; your depression will be cured for free by Obama care. 

Why don't you stock up on ammo in the mean time? Make sure you put that purchase on your Credit Card.


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## BORTZ (Nov 14, 2012)

Sterling said:


> Yeah no. It was dumb the first time, but they actually had a "valid" reason to leave. This isn't just dumb, it's without a cause. I'd also rather not have a slew of uneducated bigots entering my State, so fuck the second option. >.> >.< <.> <.<
> 
> Though, Texas would be the best off as their own country. No large debt to pay off, pretty well governed and we have some pretty educated people here. When I say this, I mean among the states with a petition.


As big as texas is, they wouldnt make it. The rural areas are the ones that want to secede. Everyone would leave the cities and we would probably embargo them or tax the shit out of them.


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## Guild McCommunist (Nov 14, 2012)

I'd also like to say if you're gonna Q.Q over people hating on Texas, I live in New Jersey. Our national past time is getting shit on. We get shit on so much that even people from New Jersey shit on New Jersey.

But I ain't even mad.


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## BlueStar (Nov 15, 2012)




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## naved.islam14 (Nov 15, 2012)

They really must hate Obama/Democrats.


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## Clydefrosch (Nov 15, 2012)

lol. let them go, let them try.
then invade them just like old times.


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## Vulpes Abnocto (Nov 15, 2012)

Densetsu said:


> All this talk about Texas being bigoted...they're not even the _most_ bigoted state in the US.
> 
> *Where America's Racist Tweets Come From*


 

Please don't be Georgia, please don't be Georgia, please don't be Georgia.....fuck. 
We're not the worst, but still; fuck.


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## BORTZ (Nov 15, 2012)

I think America needs to step back and see that we really arent THAT divided. While the morons over at imgur compile a map of the counties that "won" 





But that map is very misleading too. Republicans won all the low populated places which makes the map overwhelming red. But everyone knows that the democrats won the house. How close were we reallly?




look. There are no "red" states. there are no "blue" states. They are mauve. purple. We are pretty even here. Our country needs to stick together. And one of my favorite quotes of all time. "If we dont all hang together, we will surely hang separately." For all of you wanting to secede from the US of A, i think its time we realized we are all in this together. I might not agree with the people in office right now, but damn it we live in a free land and still the best country on earth. Division isnt gonna do any good for anyone.


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## Minox (Nov 15, 2012)

The Catboy said:


> Seriously?
> Dividing the nation again won't solve it's problem, in fact it might actually make them worse.
> I think people need to grow up instead of ragequitting on America the moment something doesn't go according to their plan.


It probably wouldn't solve any of your issues, but it could possibly mean that the US would be too occupied to bother the rest of the world. That's not to say I wish for that to happen, but the US not trying to enforce their laws in other countries wouldn't be too bad.

That being said, it seems like a rather stupid reason for wanting to secede though.


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## McHaggis (Nov 15, 2012)

You guys should go back to being ruled by the British. 



















...I'll get my coat.


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## Fear Zoa (Nov 15, 2012)

McHaggis said:


> You guys should go back to being ruled by the British.


We're not that much different in all honesty.


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## philip11 (Nov 15, 2012)

That's what I say to this.


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## Taleweaver (Nov 17, 2012)

Seceding really isn't that easy. And I'm from Belgium. Our Nortern half is completely different from the Southern part in just every way: we vote different politicians, have different governments, even have a different language. Oh, and no patriotic bullshit that holds it together. And if we would pull up a map with preferences, it would be FAR less mauve than what Bortzanator points out a couple posts ago.

But the main reason we stick together is that there's just no way to make it economically feasible to split. We're tied to the other half in a whole lot of things, and nobody really wants to open up the fuss of having to deal with the hundreds, if not thousands, of small things that need to be solved in order to make it happen. (okay, that and Brussels, which is a major city directly in the center).


In your situation...I wish I could say that seceding is a joke, but I don't know the US or their regions enough to know for sure. How self-reliant are they? Can they make it on their own? Can they handle all the federal facilities?
And worst of all: how much supporters do they REALLY have? Having a crapton of supporters on an online petition is relatively easy. How many of those are willing to hold demonstrations or nationwide strikes over it? And most of all: how many NON-supporters are there? If there's an equally large, equally fanatic portion of US-supporters out there, things could get messy. Even before the other states intervene.

Sorry if this sounds apocalyptic. Like I said: I don't know the US or their regions. All I'm hoping is that this thing doesn't escalate. Because "peacefully seceding" isn't easy. It's possible (see: Czechoslovakia)...but not easy.


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## Gahars (Nov 17, 2012)

Wever said:


> In your situation...I wish I could say that seceding is a joke, but I don't know the US or their regions enough to know for sure. How self-reliant are they? Can they make it on their own? Can they handle all the federal facilities?
> 
> And worst of all: how much supporters do they REALLY have? Having a crapton of supporters on an online petition is relatively easy. How many of those are willing to hold demonstrations or nationwide strikes over it? And most of all: how many NON-supporters are there? If there's an equally large, equally fanatic portion of US-supporters out there, things could get messy. Even before the other states intervene.
> 
> Sorry if this sounds apocalyptic. Like I said: I don't know the US or their regions. All I'm hoping is that this thing doesn't escalate. Because "peacefully seceding" isn't easy. It's possible (see: Czechoslovakia)...but not easy.


 
Let me go through your questions...

1) A few of the "serious" states here might be able to make it. I believe that if Texas was its own country, it would have the world's 16th or so largest economy. States like Alabama, Mississippi, etc. (many deeply red states that might be the "most" serious) receive a ton of Federal Aid. It's doubtful that they could survive as independent entities, or even conjoined with other seceding states.

2) It's illegal to secede from the Union. Not only did we have a Civil War over the issue, there's a Supreme Court case that makes this explicit.

3) The petitions needed (combined) have about 660,000 signatures. That may sound like a lot, but remember that the United States has a population of roughly 310,000,000 people. That means only 0.2% of the US is "calling" for secession.

4) I keep using quotation marks because, really, these petitions aren't serious. These are being signed by people upset over the results of the election, and they're using President Obama's petition system as a way of publicly expressing that disappointment. That's about it, really.

Are there people serious about seceding? Probably, but that would be an incredibly small minority of an already incredibly small minority. 

TL;DR: You're giving these petitions too much credit.


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## Taleweaver (Nov 17, 2012)

Thanks for the reply. That indeed gets things more into perspective. 

My only remark is with nr. 3. It's not really 0.2% of the population because not everyone is seceding. The percentage of the involved states would be a much better indication of how seriously to take it.
But with Texas's populace of 25 500 000, Alabama as 4 800 000 and Mississippi as 3 000 000, the petition is reaching out to roughly 2% of the inhabitants (actually less, as I'm not counting all those states).

But while that number is in the area of 10 times as big, it's still FAR from any alarming phase.


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## Gahars (Nov 17, 2012)

Wever said:


> Thanks for the reply. That indeed gets things more into perspective.
> 
> My only remark is with nr. 3. It's not really 0.2% of the population because not everyone is seceding. The percentage of the involved states would be a much better indication of how seriously to take it.
> But with Texas's populace of 25 500 000, Alabama as 4 800 000 and Mississippi as 3 000 000, the petition is reaching out to roughly 2% of the inhabitants (actually less, as I'm not counting all those states).
> ...


 
All 50 states have petitions to secede from the Union, so while some petitions are far more popular than others, that's why I decided to group them all together.


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## DSGamer64 (Nov 17, 2012)

Foxi4 said:


> ...why?
> 
> Y'know what happened last time when America was divided into two vastly different fronts with completely different ideals? A civil war.
> 
> They should organize a public vote - if the states want to leave, let them leave - they have a right to do so. The U.S is a federal state, the states have a right to self-govern themselves to an extent.


 
Evidently there are many people in America who still share those same ideals over 200 years later, they are called Republicans. Let them stew, let them think that separating from America will do anything, no individual state has anything to offer the world aside from states like Texas which produce oil, there would be no economic structure in many independent little nations. It would be a giant clusterfuck of people similar to what Peter Griffin did in that one episode of Family Guy where he creates his own country inside America.


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## wrettcaughn (Nov 17, 2012)

Keep in mind a few things when imagining Texas as an independent state:

1.  They are a border state, meaning, they'd be solely responsible for policing said border.
2.  There would be no more federal taxation, which may sound like a good thing, but which means that all of the federal money funnelled into the state for infrastructure, government subsidies (see crop-sharing, school lunch programs, etc...) would disappear.  The state would likely be prompted to raise taxes in order to keep up.
3.  The state government would have to be re-built from the ground up.  Responsibilities will change dramatically with no government oversight.


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## Taleweaver (Nov 17, 2012)

That's not much to reimagine, actually:
1. no matter which state secedes means there will be a border. And if Texas is really that rich, it'll probably mean they're going to treat US-civilians in the same way as Mexicans.
2. of course local taxation will go up to compensate for the things the US federal government brought to Texas. The thing is that it won't go up AS MUCH. Federal money is spent wherever it is needed, and those are more often the poorer states. If you start perceiving your own state as the one who has to support everyone else, that can lead to problems ("why do WE have to pay for the damages Sandy caused?").
3. Rebuilt? Yes. From the ground up? No. There already is a local government. Those guys will get a crapton of extra work and there will be quite chaos for a while. But it's not THAT hard. And America has a fine tradition of telling other countries how to run things, so it should be a piece of cake!



...okay, that last remark was a bit cruel (sorry). But I couldn't resist it.


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## DiscostewSM (Nov 17, 2012)

Just what we need. Split the US into two, like North/South Korea, and then engage in our own little war of Democrats vs Republicans......sounds like an mobile game.


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## Fishaman P (Nov 17, 2012)

Equivalent title: 20 U.S. citizens file petitions for passports.


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