These Disunited States: A Serious Question About Secession

THESE DISUNITED STATES:
A QUESTION ABOUT SECESSION

How many of you would vote for a national divorce? Another word for this is — a secession, which then becomes a partition. That would mean a state or group of states leaving the USA and forming a new sovereign nation. Of course, several states did try this once back during the 1860s and things didn’t turn out so well. But, let’s assume a modern hypothetical secession could be peaceful—-would you support it?

Answering this question requires creative imagination. Given the sprawling U.S. map and how states could presumably divide, many isthmuses would be necessary to connect states scattered everywhere. Moreover, big cities in some states would protest. And, rural people in other states would protest, too. No one wants to be a minority inside their own “country.” So, even if it could happen, there are problems with dividing along red-blue boundaries.

When you think more about it, secession sounds next to impossible in practical terms. But for the sake of discussion, let’s shelve those concerns for now and just talk hypothetically —

WOULD YOU AGREE TO A PEACEFUL SECESSION IF GIVEN A CHANCE TO VOTE ON IT?