No doubt you have heard about various states wanting to secede in reaction to ACA. For them I have a modest proposal. This is called "doing the experiment," which is slightly different to "prescribing the symptom." It's also a specific case of the tactic known as "put up or shut up." Once the arguements come out, this should be defeated handily. But if not, then in the end, the secessionists will come back begging for the cure.
More below the sleeping orange squirrels.
It goes like this:
1) Obama announces that ONE state will be allowed to cut almost all of its ties for ten years as described below:
2) The terms & conditions will be:
a. This is not secession. It is a temporary experiment that will run for ten years.
b. The residents of the state still have to pay federal taxes.
c. However, 100% of their federal tax monies will be returned to their state (no more, and no less).
d. They will be free of all other federal laws and regulations for the duration of the experiment, with the following exceptions:
e. They will not be allowed to impose externalized costs upon neighboring states or upon the United States as a whole.
f. They will be obligated to maintain existing telecommunications and transportation interconnections including the United States Postal Service, long distance telephone, and internet, without censorship or restriction of access.
g. They will not be allowed to restrict in any way the ability of residents of their state from communicating with any & all other persons in the United States, nor allow any private entity within their boundaries to do so ("anti-cult / anti-slavery" provision).
h. They will not be allowed to restrict in any way the ability of residents of their state to leave their state, nor allow any private entity within their boundaries to do so ("anti-cult, anti-slavery" provision).
i. They will not be allowed to restrict voting rights in any manner that is contrary to federal legislation.
j. They will not be allowed to alter or abridge any right or entitlement of children that is presently guaranteed under federal law.
3) The state that shall be awarded this status, shall be the one that has the highest majority of popular vote approving it by referendum. Make them compete for it. Chances are there will be more than five states competing for the "prize."
4) The experiment will run for ten years, starting on the 1st of January following the date of the regular election (November) at which it is enacted. However it may be rescinded prior to ten years, upon a majority vote of the state's eligible voters, in a referendum that will run each year for the duration.
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Know what's going to happen?
The batshit-craziest state is going to get to do the experiment.
The first thing they will discover is that they were getting far more in federal tax revenues than they were paying, because the excess revenue they used to get will stop. "You're on your own!"
The second thing they will discover is that their Ayn Randian utopia will be revealed very quickly as the nightmare it is.
The third thing they will discover is that the costs of cleaning up externalities are higher than they could have imagined (e.g. not letting their CO2 emissions from coal plants blow across state lines).
And the fourth thing they will discover is that their very own citizens will vote overwhelmingly to end the experiment by the half-way point at latest.
And that will put an end to the secessionist crazy factor for another fifty years at least.