Monday, October 6, 2008

Secessionism in America

With the presidency of George W. Bush seeming more like the reign of King George everyday and the government, including both of the major party candidates, seeming more and more likely to continue the path of government power and the stripping of citizen's rights that Bush has set into motion, the topic of secession seems to crop up more and more frequently in the various political blogs and news stories.

This country was founded by those that felt the need to secede from a government that didn't serve the needs of the people. Secessionist values created this great nation.

Why is it now that secessionists are cast aside as nutbags, anti-American, extremists, and dangerous?

While most secessionist groups are still fringe elements, not likely to get large local support, let alone national support or the means to forcibly secede (which, in this day and age, is how it'd likely have to be done), they are made up of people who, largely, for whatever reason, desire their own rules and rights - most often those guaranteed in the Constitution, but have lately been removed or destroyed by the Federal Government. The most recent group to announce their desire to secede being the folks on the California/Oregon border, desiring to create their own state, named Jefferson. While this movement isn't a secession from the Country as a whole, it is a secession from two states that the supporters don't feel represent them.

Dear readers, what are your thoughts on secession, be it to form a new state or a new country? It is a right set forth in the Declaration of Independence, as stated here, in the second paragraph of this great document:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness


(Emphasis above is my own.)

Wikipedia has a fine article on Secessionist movements in the United States here. The largest of such secessionist movements was the cause of the Civil War, in which thirteen states attempted to secede over various issues, the most well known of which was slavery. While the slavery issue was a clear violation of human rights, no Constitutional laws prohibited it at the time, and it was a widely accepted practice in the Southern States - one important enough to Southerners to attempt a secession over. To put it in perspective, is the issue of preserving slavery any less extreme a reason than most of the modern secessionist movements? If anything, it's probably more extreme and controversial than most.

It should be noted that many have interpreted the terms of surrender set forth and subsequently accepted by General Lee on behalf of the Southern States at the Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia stripped the Southern States of their right to once again raise arms against the Federal Government in times of secession. This is still a hotly debated argument among historians, even to this day.

Many have predicted a coming civil war. While the evidence is building that one might eventually happen, the motivation and support of the general population has not yet built to even a fraction of what would be needed for a revolution and subsequent civil war to actually occur.

Final question is this: Secession: a right, or a crime punishable by the Federal Government? Is it time, or is there still the possibility of settling it through the broken system of government that we currently have?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The elite's government FEARS you!!!!!!

Their fear is manifested in the laws they pass. Here is a law banning what MANY of the Founders wrote is a RIGHT of citizens when a government no longer represents them:

Section 2385. Advocating overthrow of Government

Whoever knowingly or willfully advocates, abets, advises, or
teaches the duty, necessity, desirability, or propriety of
overthrowing or destroying the government of the United States or
the government of any State, Territory, District or Possession
thereof, or the government of any political subdivision therein, by
force or violence, or by the assassination of any officer of any
such government; or
Whoever, with intent to cause the overthrow or destruction of any
such government, prints, publishes, edits, issues, circulates,
sells, distributes, or publicly displays any written or printed
matter advocating, advising, or teaching the duty, necessity,
desirability, or propriety of overthrowing or destroying any
government in the United States by force or violence, or attempts
to do so; or
Whoever organizes or helps or attempts to organize any society,
group, or assembly of persons who teach, advocate, or encourage the
overthrow or destruction of any such government by force or
violence; or becomes or is a member of, or affiliates with, any
such society, group, or assembly of persons, knowing the purposes
thereof -
Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than
twenty years, or both, and shall be ineligible for employment by
the United States or any department or agency thereof, for the five
years next following his conviction.
If two or more persons conspire to commit any offense named in
this section, each shall be fined under this title or imprisoned
not more than twenty years, or both, and shall be ineligible for
employment by the United States or any department or agency
thereof, for the five years next following his conviction.
As used in this section, the terms ''organizes'' and
''organize'', with respect to any society, group, or assembly of
persons, include the recruiting of new members, the forming of new
units, and the regrouping or expansion of existing clubs, classes,
and other units of such society, group, or assembly of persons.


The federal government is allowing MILLIONS of illegals to invade our country who are causing immense economic harm to America's working poor. Corporate America is becoming increasingly more powerful and influential. Yet, according to the government of for and by the elites YOU, a citizen, have to accept whatever the government does with NO recourse other than voting...... and there is sufficient proof that shows to me voting is worthless since the entrenched power structure ensures that the emplaced elite class can not be removed.

Several Founders specifically wrote of the people's right to abolish a government when it no longer represents them.

We are forced to live under an elite's TYRANNY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Iconoclast said...

Well, obbop, it's a good thing that I'm merely querying my peers about secession and not staging a coup d'etat.

Fact is, in 1776, the newly independent American States did not overthrow a government. In any secession movement since then, no Americans have tried to overthrow the government (there have been other, non-secessionist movements that have tried, and were quickly quelled).

In this post I am not advocating a coup, nor am I even advocating secession. I am merely asking for opinions on the subject, as it's made the news more frequently in recent times.

Anonymous said...

I think it's pretty clear that none of the original intentions of our country's inception still exist today. Our country has been obsessed with becoming the biggest and the baddest for far too long, and this is the main reason for all of the "problems" the average citizen sees today.

In order for the U.S. to become the world "leader" they needed to make sure our country was the wealthiest. They couldn't pull this off without getting into bed with Big Business. Big Business and the government both have the same intentions, confuse the people and push their "brand" onto them. They achieved this with nothing more than advanced peer pressure.

Thanks for the article, and the reminder that the U.S. wasn't supposed to be the policemen of the world, we were supposed to be the rebels.

Anonymous said...

There is an entire discussion forum about secessionist movements in the U.S:

http://www.iown.us/

Anonymous said...

http://www.iown.us/