A Petition for California's Secession from the Federal Government
http://www.petitiononline.com/casec/petition.html
To: US
The California Declaration of Independence
A Petition for California's Secession from the Federal Government
"... 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."
-- United States Declaration of Independence
Now is the time for California to grow up and take her rightful
place as an equal among all the world's great nations by becoming
her own separate country.
Never will California reach her own bright destiny while she
remains under the control of an uncaring and distant federal father
who is openly controlled by forces hostile to the sovereign
prosperity of Californians.
Should a federal government which uses California for her money,
which uses California for her resources, which uses California
for her technology, which uses California for her entertainments,
which abandoned California in her time of need -- should such
an institution control and rule California?
Only Californians can and should decide California's future.
Secession, after decades of federal misrule, is the only option
remaining for Californians.
Free California from the lumbering federal dinosaur and we
will see a bright new Californian civilization unlike anything
the world has ever seen.
The case for California's secession is as follows:
* California Has Been Abandoned by the Federal Government
In California's greatest hour of need she was brutaly abandoned
by the federal government, under both Democratic and
Republican administrations.
When California was devasted by an energy crisis artificially created
by hostile forces in other states, the federal government did nothing
to protect her and actively held California's hands by her side so
she could not defend herself from her attackers.
This purposeful betrayal broke the sacred trust between Calfornia
and the federal government.
No event could make it more blindingly clear why California has
nothing to gain by staying faithful to the federal governement and
nothing to lose by striking out on her own.
* The Federal Government Steals Tax Dollars from California
California's federal tax burden is great. California pays far more in
taxes than she gets back. A majority of the nation takes from
California and gives little in return. California and Californians
are being used.
The poorer states are bought off by federal pork barrel
politics while at the same time they make empty talk about
states rights and individual initiative.
It doesn't take a lot of initiative to feed from the federal
trough.
See the TaxProf (http://tinyurl.com/45ws7) site showing which
states profit from federal tax and spending policies, and which
states foot the bill. http://tinyurl.com/45ws7
Eighty-five percent of states receiving the most federal
spending per dollar of federal taxes paid voted contrary to
California in 2000.
Why should Californians fund the people who hate and riducule
California?
* Californians are Ruled by Hostile Powers
The majority of the nation hates California and her culture,
even though the Californian culture is largely responsible for the
great wealth of the US.
Take a look at the famous red-blue political map from USA Today
(http://tinyurl.com/5jd6t) showing how California lives as an
island in a sea of states which do not like California.
http://tinyurl.com/5jd6t
Ron Suskind, in a recent article (http://tinyurl.com/62343),
shows exactly why they don't like California. If you
are a Californian, here's what Mark McKinnon, a
longtime senior media adviser to Bush, says they think of you:
http://tinyurl.com/62343
"... all of you, up and down the West Coast, the East Coast,
a few blocks in southern Manhattan called Wall Street. Let me
clue you in. We don't care. You see, you're outnumbered 2 to
1 by folks in the big, wide middle of America, busy working
people who don't read The New York Times or Washington Post or
The L.A. Times. And you know what they like? ...
They don't like you!''
Why should Californians want to stay in such a union? Why?
It gets worse.
From "Democracy Crumbles Under Cover of Darkness"
(http://tinyurl.com/6f4gp) we learn how never before has
the House of Representatives operated in such secrecy:
- At 2:54 a.m. on a Friday in March, the House cut veterans benefits
by three votes.
- At 2:39 a.m. on a Friday in April, the House slashed education and
health care by five votes.
- At 1:56 a.m. on a Friday in May, the House passed the tax-cut bill
by a handful of votes.
- At 2:33 a.m. on a Friday in June, the House passed the Medicare
privatization and prescription drug bill by one vote.
- At 12:57 a.m. on a Friday in July, the House eviscerated Head
Start by one vote.
- And then, after returning from summer recess, at 12:12 a.m. on a
Friday in October, the House voted $87 billion for Iraq. Always
in the middle of the night. Always after the press had passed
their deadlines. Always after the American people had turned off
the news and gone to bed.
http://tinyurl.com/6f4gp
And it gets even worse.
Grover Norquist, an important conservative politcal consultant, has
made clear that he intends to ride the conservative movement to
the transformation of America into a one-party state -- and using
any means necessary to achieve that end.
Would it matter if it were liberals instead of conservatives?
Not at all. These are not the people to lead California in to
the future.
Why should Californians be ruled by anyone other than
Californians?
* Federal Patent System Kills Innovation
California is a world center for innovation. Federal software
patents kill the innovation it pretends to protect. California
individuals and businesses are being held back and could generate
far more innovation with a rational patent system.
California has no ability to fix the federally controlled
patent system.
* Federal Laws and Regulations Kill Innovation
Radical innovation in areas like stem cell research are being
stopped by the backward beliefs of people who have no interest
in teaching and persuing the science that will keep California
competitive with the rest of the world.
With California resources taken to support other states and the
laws of the land setup to prevent progress, California can not
reach her full destiny.
California will do far better on her own.
* Unfunded Federal Mandates Steal California's Resources
The federal government has many mandates that it does not fund.
Federal immigration laws, for example, disproportionally impact
Californians and cost her billions.
Another example is a legal system that forces California
to unecessarily imprison huge numbers of Californians at an
enormous cost.
Instead of wasting money on useless federal mandates California
should be investing in herself for a better future.
* Federal Fiscal Mis-management Makes Debtors of Californians
The federal government has an endless thirst for money.
The federal debt is growing and shows no sign of shrinking
just as the federal government shows no sign of fiscal sanity.
The federal government is racking up the national debt which
makes Californians involuntarily liable for the federal
government's irresponsibility.
The only way Californians can return to sane fiscal management
is to manage their own finances themselves.
* Federal Exploitation of California Natural Resources
Scarce and precious California resources are under the control
of a distant and uncaring federal government.
Californians should be deciding issues like air quality, if
oil should be drilled off the Californian coast, forest management
practices, and so on.
Until California controls her own destiny she will be used and
abused until she has nothing left to give.
* Federal Policies Prevent Innovative Solutions to Problems
California has vast resources, infinite creativity, and an
ability to make things happen.
Instead of progressing at her own rate, California is constantly
being held back by a useless federal bureaucracy and an
old backwards looking leadership.
* The US as a Nation-State is Dying and California as a New
Market-State Will Thrive as No Country has Ever Before
Old nation-states, like the US, are being replaced by new
market-states.
Nation-states derive legitimacy from promising to improve
the material welfare of their citizens, specifically by providing
security and order. Market-states offer to maximize the opportunity
of their people. Nation-states use force and law to bring about
desired results. Market-states use various forms of
market relationships.
And while nation-states are stuck fighting old wars in the
old ways at an unimaginable cost in lives and treasure,
terrorists have moved on to fight using Fourth Generation Warfare
tactics.
California is perfectly positioned to be a leading market-state,
but she can not reach her destiny as long as she is being held
back by the rest of the nation.
See The Shield of Achilles: War, Peace, and the Course of History
by Philip Bobbitt for more information (http://tinyurl.com/6pe4y).
http://tinyurl.com/6pe4y
* California is a Leader and can Stand On Her Own
California has one of the largest most diverse economies in
the world:
- California is the creative engine of the world hosting Silicon
Valley to the north and Hollywood to the south.
- California's gross state product exceeds $1.3 trillion, making
it one of the world's largest economies.
- California accounts for 13 percent of the nation's output, and
trails only Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom.
- Our nation's next largest state economy, New York, is about 60
percent the size of California's.
- California is the nation's leading agricultural producer.
- International trade is a major source of California economic
activity.
- California can easily afford to protect herself and has the
technical ability to do so.
California would immediately be a major player on the international
stage. California could form more advantageous relationships with
other countries than she can with the federal government or other
states.
As a result of the world economy, California doesn't depend on
anything from the US that she can't get in fair trade.
* Californian Leadership is Missing on the World Stage
Californian politicians, instead of always taking second place
in a vast and outdated federal government, could help lead the world
as one of the brightest, most innovative, most important, and most
dynamic countries in the world.
New leadership is needed on the world scene to help solve
its problems. California can provide that leadership, but
only if she stands on her own.
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
View petition online:
http://www.petitiononline.com/casec/petition.html
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