By Gwen Furmanek
Contributing Writer
It is 2012, not 1861. The Civil War is over. Move on.
With President Obama’s re-election this year, a Texas man issued a petition of secession on a White House website that has received an estimated 116,000 signatures so far, according to a Nov. 23 New York Times article.
In the 2012 election, Mitt Romney won Texas by almost 1.3 million votes, according to the same article.
The always rebellious Texas is part of the United States of America. Texas needs to realize that this is how it has been since 1845, and that is how it’s going to stay.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Texas and all its spirit and pride, but it should be American pride and not Republic of Texas pride.
Texas is not the only culprit of threatening secession. According to a Nov. 12 Washington Post article, other states including Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas have filed petitions of secession.
But how many of these petitioners are Texan? According to a Nov. 14 Daily Texan article, Texas has 25.7 million residents. At the time of 80, 000 signatures, that would make up less than half of one percent of the total state population. The same article flat out stated, “this secession petition is not a legitimate issue. Let’s stop treating it like one.” The Internet tends to blow things way out of proportion, and this issue is one of them.
Yet, the number of signatures on Texas’s petition is among the largest. Wake up and smell the coffee Texas. The states seceding from the union didn’t go so well the first time around. What makes Texas think it will work this time? No state has the right to secede from the union. The United States is a leading world power, and it’s better to be on its side then be up against the country’s
Some may say this has nothing to do with the Civil War, but no one can deny the numerous parallels between the two. One of the many similarities is certain states getting upset about a president being elected into office. This country is a democracy; there are always going to be winners and losers in elections.
According to the same Washington Post article, under the beginning of last year’s “We the People” program, the White House will answer to any petition that obtains 25,000 or more signatures within a 30 day period. President Obama must issue a statement in response to this outpouring of signatures because of this program.
The potential Republican candidate for governor of Texas, Larry Scott Kilgore, announced he would legally change his name to Larry SECEDE Kilgore, according to the same New York Times article. I cannot stress the pure elegance and tastefulness of this proposition. What a catchy campaign slogan…not.
In the same article, on Larry Scott Kilgore’s web page, secedekilgore.com, it states “Secession! All other issues can be dealt with later.”
Seriously? One would think as a hopeful candidate for governor, the man would be more intent on – oh, I don’t know- maybe the tremendous poverty in Texas! The United States Census Bureau shows that from 2006-2010 the percentage of people below the poverty level in Texas was at 16 percent. Before the desires of a selfish possible upcoming governor, other critical problems facing Texas need to be addressed, such as its waterways drying up.
But hurry, because you can now buy your own tasteful secession bumper stickers at TexasSecede.com, according to the New York Times article.
Stay classy, Texas.
