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We've discussed the map details extensively in the California forum, but I'd be interested to hear what the community as a whole thinks about the ethics of state partition. As a primer, here's a short summary on the reasons for partitioning California in particular:
Lines drawn when California's population was less than 100,000 no longer reflect our social, economic, and cultural differences. California is the largest state in the union by population, and as such, nearly one in six Americans is a Californian. Only one in 50 senators is a Californian, however. The east coast of the United States has 32 senators representing its interests, while the west coast only has 6. If California were a country, it would be the world's 8th largest economy. Just as all of New England and the mid-Atlantic being a single state would not work - neither does California. 40 million people deserve to have their voices heard in the senate. Partitioning the state isn't about division, it's about REvision. The golden state is simply too large to manage as one entity.
Politically, a 5 state solution is a far superior to the two state solution proposed in 2011 by Riverside county supervisor Jeff Stone. The map 5 Californias uses would create two blue states, two red states, and a swing state (the Central Valley). These lines are of course not inflexible, and the number of states is certainly up for debate as well, the purpose of the map is simply to provide a visual reference and get people talking.
We need to talk about this, not just Californians, but as a nation. Our legislature is in gridlock over ideological divides, and our budget woes are mounting higher and higher. I have to stress, the creation of this map is not about separating people politically, it's about bringing the capital closer to home, having people participate in policy-making because they believe they can make a difference, and giving oft-marginalized regions a voice at the national level.
The question I'd like the community to ponder is, what makes a state a state? Is it history alone? It's very clear that if we were to redraw the borders for many states today for optimal representation of the people, they would come out looking nothing like they used to. Are the only things keeping our states the same shapes our own complacency, and to a lesser extent, the cost involved in partition?
Last edited by Green Irish Eyes; 11-15-2012 at 05:23 PM..
I approach it from the other end. How about changing the way we allocate senators? How about allocating them based on population instead of 2 per state? Wouldn't that be easier?
Better yet, get rid of the Senate altogether? It would help resolve some of the gridlock in Congress and save us some money. We would all still have representation (House of Reps.). The Senate is not as the founders intended anyway (Senators were originally elected by their respective state legislators). Seems redundant to have two popularly elected houses.
I don't think it would be practical to divide the California Aqueduct among 3 or 4 states. And why put San Diego in "Cabrillo"? It has far more in common with coastal Orange and LA counties than with the mountain/desert hinterlands.
I approach it from the other end. How about changing the way we allocate senators? How about allocating them based on population instead of 2 per state? Wouldn't that be easier?
Better yet, get rid of the Senate altogether? It would help resolve some of the gridlock in Congress and save us some money. We would all still have representation (House of Reps.). The Senate is not as the founders intended anyway (Senators were originally elected by their respective state legislators). Seems redundant to have two popularly elected houses.
Unfortunetely Retroit, the house of representatives only represents your interests if you're a republican(and a republican that doesn't mind cheating to win). After the 2010 midterms, gerrymandering on an epic scale took place in states controlled by republicans. More votes were cast for democratic house candidates across the nation, yet the republicans won a majority of seats - how is this possible? Epic, undeniable, disgusting gerrymandering.
As for the topic at hand though, heck I think we should redraw the map of most of the U.S.. European borders moved and shifted over many many years, and they now sit along well defined cultural and geographic barriers. Our state borders, at least in the west, were drawn mostly as straight survey lines.
More votes were cast for democratic house candidates across the nation, yet the republicans won a majority of seats - how is this possible? Epic, undeniable, disgusting gerrymandering.
If that's the only explanation you can come up with, I suggest you think about it a bit more before posting the above again, in some other thread.
I like the idea, but I'm not a native Californian so I'm open to these musings.
One small problem though, I think all of Orange, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties belong in "Cabrillo" at least culturally.. although it may not be so practical to divide S. Cal into 2 states.
For equality, I'd also recommend dividing Texas concurrently with California
Five states would be ridicules. However dividing Northern and Southern California would make a lot sense. Most people already relate to being from Northern California or Southern California anyway.
Why bother with this nonsense? One day, when the San Andreas fault gets displaced, California is anyways going to drop off in the Pacific!!
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