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The 2004
Presidential election demonstrated the sharp ideological
division between the people residing in Red and
Blue States. The subsequent defeat of the major
(as opposed to minor) liberal/socialist candidate
has given rise to a new found interest in the
Constitutional principle of secession among a
number of leftist writers. In a recent article
published in the New York Press, which claims
to be "New York's Premier Alternative Newspaper,"
Christopher Ketcham calls for the secession of
New York City and the establishment of an independent
New York city-state! His article "Long Live
The Free Republic of Gotham" can be found
at:
http://www.nypress.com/17/52/news&columns/feature.cfm
I must warn my readers that his language at times
is a little less temperate than I would prefer,
but what do you expect from someone who lives
in New York City?
Blue state citizens make a valid point that
they send more tax dollars to the Federal government
than Red state citizens while they receive fewer
services per capita from the Federal government
than Red state citizens. In other words, the Blue
states have become the Federal government's milch
cow (read cash/tax cow) while the Red states have
become the great consumers of Federal tax dollars
(read tax dollars forcefully removed from Blue
state citizens for the benefit of Red state citizens).
Southerners conversant with the Constitutional
history of States' Rights are amused at the irony
of the current situation. From the very beginning
of our country, the South complained against the
numerical majority of the North using its political
power in the Federal Congress to tax Southern
agricultural products via Federal tariffs and
then using Southern tariff moneys to finance "internal
improvements" mainly for the benefit of Northern
states. Patrick Henry of Virginia warned of the
dangers of a Federal government where "our
dearest interests" would be controlled by
the Northern numerical majority. John Randolf
warned of the danger posed by "King Numbers."
John C. Calhoun agreed and saw nullification and
secession as the only antidote for the tyranny
of the Numerical Majority. Thus, our Northern
Brethren are today forced to deal with an old
issue for us but new to them! The shoe is on the
other foot and now the left foot is beginning
to recognize and feel the pain that the right
has been forced to tolerate for over 200 years.
Perhaps the current situation will provide an
opportunity to educate Americans about the legitimacy
of nullification and secession and convert them
from their love of a large centralized, all powerful,
Federal Empire back to America's original principle
of a constitutionally limited Federal Republic
of Republics. The beauty of America's original
Republic of Republics was that via secession we
the people of each Sovereign State had the ability
to protect our reserved rights. We the people
were the final arbiters of the limits of Federal
authority! Under this system Blue states could
protect their right to legalize marijuana regardless
of how many "super" conservative Federal
Supreme Court Judges President Bush appoints.
But on the other hand, Red state citizens could
protect Second Amendment Right with the same vigor.
Secession is the final escape route that an aggrieved
people would take to protect their "dearest
interests." The mere existence of the right
of secession acts to modify or moderate the excesses
of "activist" Federal Judges, legislators,
or Executive. Again the mere threat of secession
in most cases will cause the aggressor to seek
a compromise in order to maintain the benefits
of the Union-just as Lincoln back in 1861 did
not want to lose the South as a source of Federal
revenues-the President Bush would not want to
lose the revenue of New York City. Hopefully,
the compassionate conservative would be less likely
to resort to invasion, murder, kidnapping and
illegal occupation to maintain the Union than
was Lincoln.
The current interest in secession in certain
liberal/leftist circles presents Southerners with
an unexpected opportunity to explain the benefits
of secession and nullification as it relates to
the maintenance of the mutual benefits of our
common union-America's original Republic of Republics.
The shoe is now on the other foot-perhaps America's
leftists will now begin to "feel our pain!"
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