Should California secede from the U.S.?

[Ogopogo]

http://www.cnsnews.com//ViewNation.asp?Page=\Nation\archive\200501\NAT20050111c.html

Californians Dreaming of Secession?
By Susan Jones
CNSNews.com Morning Editor
January 11, 2005

(CNSNews.com) - California could cut taxes, fully fund education and balance its budget by seceding from the United States, a newly organized group says.

The Committee to Explore California Secession, also known as Move On California, says it hopes to bring people together to consider the merits of an autonomous and independent California.

Those benefits would be both financial and political: "For every dollar Californians give to the federal government we see only 78-cents come back," the group's website says. It also expresses concern about "the diminishing voice of Californians in national politics" and "national trends that are tipping the balance in the direction of the religious conservative agenda."

[Contrary to what Move On California claims, California Republicans now chair six U.S. House committees, giving California more congressional clout than any other state, Fox News reported.]

Jeff Morrissette, the founder of Move On California, says the secession buzz began shortly after the November 2004 re-election of President Bush. But, he says, politicians from both parties object to subsidizing other states at a time "when those California tax dollars could be better spent at home to shore up our own fiscal problems."

According to Morrissette, if Californians could control the $40 billion that goes to pork barrel spending projects in other states every year, they could give state taxpayers a $20-billion tax cut and still have enough money to fully fund California spending priorities, specifically education, and balance the budget at the same time.

Morrissette says momentum is building for the California secession movement. "While secession may be a long-shot," he says, "it will succeed in bringing awareness to many of the grievances California has politically, socially and fiscally."

"Californians are getting pushed around and it's time we pushed back," he said.

[EdS]

California, meet Alberta. <br>

[Rufus Polson]

California could cut taxes, fully fund education and balance its budget by seceding from the United States, a newly organized group says.

LOL! Have these people actually been to California recently? The only way for California to balance the budget and cut taxes is to secede from Mexico.

[Wlyonmackenzie]

According to the eco-nuts It won't have to secede...it will drop into the pacific of it's own accord if they don't hand the state over to the greens .

[Splendor Sine Occasu]

I've heard of a Northern California movement to secede from the rest of California and create a new state, but not of a California independence movement...

[Reformer4Life]

[mingless]

I don't figure that would happen without an enormous amount of bloodshed.

[Nemo2]

As Johnny Carson used to say about California: "It's like Granola - take away the fruits & nuts, and you're left with the flakes".

[texasredtop]

California wouldn't last 3 months on it's own. What a joke!

[Hasdrubul]

California becoming independent You mean like Cascadia:



Source: http://zapatopi.net/cascadia.html

Perhaps the Republic of Cascadia will know cover California I'm sure they will be pleased

[J.B. Stone]

Not unless they take Massachusetts with them....!!!!

[Kate Shaw]

Seeing the vast majority of Californians voted 'red', I can't see it happening. San Francisco, now, that I can imagine. Build the wall close enough in so their servants can't get to the new country, and they'd die of starvation and dirt in a week.

Alternatively could we set San Francisco/Berkeley up as "Theme Villages" like Colonial Williamsburg and Black Creek Pioneer Village, and charge admission to come in and see the natives at play? It would give them something to do, and they might even raise enough money to pay for their medical care.

[Reformer4Life]

come in and see the natives at play

No thanks.

[Monorprise]

http://www.cnsnews.com//ViewNation.asp?Page=\Nation\archive\200501\NAT20050111c.html

Californians Dreaming of Secession?
By Susan Jones
CNSNews.com Morning Editor
January 11, 2005

(CNSNews.com) - California could cut taxes, fully fund education and balance its budget by seceding from the United States, a newly organized group says.

The Committee to Explore California Secession, also known as Move On California, says it hopes to bring people together to consider the merits of an autonomous and independent California.

Those benefits would be both financial and political: "For every dollar Californians give to the federal government we see only 78-cents come back," the group's website says. It also expresses concern about "the diminishing voice of Californians in national politics" and "national trends that are tipping the balance in the direction of the religious conservative agenda."

[Contrary to what Move On California claims, California Republicans now chair six U.S. House committees, giving California more congressional clout than any other state, Fox News reported.]

Jeff Morrissette, the founder of Move On California, says the secession buzz began shortly after the November 2004 re-election of President Bush. But, he says, politicians from both parties object to subsidizing other states at a time "when those California tax dollars could be better spent at home to shore up our own fiscal problems."

According to Morrissette, if Californians could control the $40 billion that goes to pork barrel spending projects in other states every year, they could give state taxpayers a $20-billion tax cut and still have enough money to fully fund California spending priorities, specifically education, and balance the budget at the same time.

Morrissette says momentum is building for the California secession movement. "While secession may be a long-shot," he says, "it will succeed in bringing awareness to many of the grievances California has politically, socially and fiscally."

"Californians are getting pushed around and it's time we pushed back," he said.

Give me a break... this is just leftwing radicals talking. and of course his numbers don’t add up, he would assume California would have no Military! No social secure, it would lose access to its shrouding states. and have to suffer Tariffs when ever we saw fit, which would be an additional cost on their at that point very weak economy. they also have to pick up all sorts of administrative cost regarding international affairs.

They also have a state at the verge of Civil war, as a little less than half of California populations and the overwhelming majority of California Regionally is hard core conservative, republican! Unless their Stupid, they wouldn’t take this just sitting down, at all!
As it would also mean a huge increase in taxes on all sorts of new social programs the liberals in san Francisco, can dream up. before long California and would be completely Morally and ethically Bankrupt. And did I mention all that money thay save from the US government is going to pay for things like the Military! the space program, foreran affairs? If California even try’s to pick these things up for herself its going to cost her a heck of a lot more, to do them adequately herself! Even if it’s done very conservatively!
And we all know that most defiantly won’t happen in a state that has a slim but significant fanatical leftwing popular majority! also contrary to leftwing extremist Bush is not a hard right winger! He is to the Moveon.org’s
But they don’t represent an even close to popular view in even the most liberal state in the union.
Also this person is neglecting to inform you that California does resave a lot of aid, guess who comes in where there is a big Earth quake, or forest fire?
Money just like disasters tends to fluxuate from state to state at different times. And he is not taking that into account, all this guy and his very few extreme leftwing fanatics are worry about is scaring, and blackmailing bush and the rest of the country with “Succession” so we will do what Canada does to Québec, make political concession!
Well I’m sorry the US doesn’t work that way; if California Try’s to succeed there will be WAR!! In addition California, or rather just the parts of blue county parts of California’s extreme leftwing, will have to fight its own state internal state civil war over succession.

It will also have to fight and win against the rest of the union!
The USA doesn’t let States succeeded because doing so would allow states like Québec to black mail the rest of the union political, and force concession that are nether fair nor reasonable!
And that is exactly what these extreme leftwing groups want. their not really after succession, because they would mean they would have to start paying for all theses things, themselves. Suppose California needs a new highway, or am expensive underground road way. They have to come up with the money some how themselves, and they know they cant! That’s what much of this “pork Barrel” spending is. its what different states of the union want the federal government to help them with!
The something applies to California as much as it does any other state, and untimely unless your congressmen are incomplete. Everybody gets something, eventually. California for one has a lot of US military Contracts, building stuff in their state, and a huge Amount of Government research spending! Of course his loon leaves all that stuff out, and its unfortunately as this would be part of the reason California’s economy would collapse with out the union.
You know the University of California has been the sol contractor for the government to run Los Alamos National Labs, for the last 50 years? Which would be about the civilian operational life time of the most expensive research labs in the country!
This argument that California is getting a bad deal is really sad! Every state if you add up your numbers like that loses money, in the union, because your completely neglecting the cost of military all sorts of other expensive every countries has to pay If it wishes to remain solver and free!
That’s really one of the sad things about Canada, Canada has basically gotten a free ride on the military aspect because you have the United states next door, yet you still are doing pretty bad by Californian-American economic standards! Or American Economic standards across the board. Yes New Mexico, one of the poorest states in the union has a higher GSP(State GDP) Pre-Capti than all of Canada??

As for Canadians seeing this as reason to believe the US has them same internal unity problems Canada does, consisted this California has 35 million people, that’s bigger than all of Canada which is about 32 million, and California has a much better economy 1.367 trillion to Canada’s just $925.31 billion has a much better economy! That’s $39,079 USD per person to Canada’s, $29,254 USD.
California thanks to the Union with the United States is doing quit well! now lets compare this with my state the Great State of New Mexico! $29,730 USD per capita, one of the poorest states in the union! yet that’s still better than Canada’s National Average?
And some Extreme liberal Californian is trying to make the case that California is not getting a fair share?? If there serious I think they would have a hard time convincing many other Californian that there even sane!

[WestViking]

All this time I thought California was on a leave of absence from the USA.