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Secession - From Theory to Practice, the Divided States of America
Inquisitor77
2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club ChampionA fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
2 x Penny Arcade Fight Club ChampionA fixed point in space and timeRegistered User regular
Given the recent elections, I'm curious to hear people's opinions on the concept of seccession in the United States. As a practical matter, since the Civil War, it appears that the matter is moot. I highly doubt that any State can secede from the Union without the remaining federal and State powers using force of arms to bring that "rebel" back into the fold. Moreover, as we have culturally developed, federal power and identity has become stronger and stronger, to the extent that the vast majority of us identify as "Americans" rather than as "Virginians" or "Californians" (well, most of us, anyway).
The questions surrounding this discussion are multitude:
1. Is secession an actual right provided in the Constitution? If not, why not? If so, what are the precise justifications for secession? In other words, when is a State morally and "legally" able to secede from the Union without it instead being a revolution or rebellion? At what point is the United States morally/legally justified or obligated to not use force of arms to retrieve that wayward State?
2. What constitutes secession? What is the proper method by which a State is able to secede? Should they follow the Confederacy model (which was basically a reiteration of the original American Revolution, complete with Declarations if Independence and a new Constitutional Convention)?
3. How does that translate to modern times? Under what circumstances could a "proper" secession take place? Are elected State representatives able to make such declarations and cast such votes in modern politics? What dynamics are in play today that were simply not present in the past? What lessons could a new secession learn from the Civil War?
The questions surrounding this discussion are multitude:
1. Is secession an actual right provided in the Constitution? If not, why not? If so, what are the precise justifications for secession? In other words, when is a State morally and "legally" able to secede from the Union without it instead being a revolution or rebellion? At what point is the United States morally/legally justified or obligated to not use force of arms to retrieve that wayward State?
2. What constitutes secession? What is the proper method by which a State is able to secede? Should they follow the Confederacy model (which was basically a reiteration of the original American Revolution, complete with Declarations if Independence and a new Constitutional Convention)?
3. How does that translate to modern times? Under what circumstances could a "proper" secession take place? Are elected State representatives able to make such declarations and cast such votes in modern politics? What dynamics are in play today that were simply not present in the past? What lessons could a new secession learn from the Civil War?
Inquisitor77 on
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