I am very much curious about and intrigued by the whole subject of succession, both those attempts in the past, and others which may some day be attempted. While South Carolina may do whatever it is they want to do, or not, could someone help me to better understand the issue by answering these questions: 1. Despite however unviable of a proposition as it may prove to be, does a state have a legal right to petition for and receive a peaceable succession from the Union? If not, then what rule of law prohibits it? 2. Should states be allowed to peaceably succeed from the Union, in absence of either any specific prohibition or means of doing so? 3. How might the process - or even the attempts - at a peaceable succession differ than that which was attempted in 1860, in general? How might be the re/action of the rest of the world as to their petition, now, as opposed to during the Civil War? 4. In your opinion, how might the SCOTUS rule on such a case for peaceable succession, if placed before them? And suppose they ruled that it was well within the state's rights to do so, how might you expect the Federal government to respond to such a ruling (i.e. would they allow it, would they ignore the court and prohibit it, etc.)? 5. If some states were to try to succeed from the Union, how many - and which ones - do you believe would be counted amongst them?
If I may, I'll add another question: 6. Should secession be legal, does the federal gov't have the right to remove their property, assets, etc from said state (s)?
A claim to any thing with federal dollars? What does a state gain by leaving? The confederacy is a great model for the epic failure of having a weak central govt.
I don't see a need to petition. It would be like asking your kidnapper if they would release you. What is ironic, when Jefferson was President there was a threat by New England to secede from the Union (see below). It wasn't those dumbass uneducated rednecks from the south. Can you really have peace and freedom when you are forced to do something against your will? I don't see the world or the remaining states standing idly by why the federal government kills innocent people in the seceded states like they did in the past. The SCOTUS is basically a rubber stamp for its' own power. Any ruling they might have would be viewed to have no merit. I think you could see 20% secede.
It's kind of like a nasty divorce when one side has money and a great lawyer and the other side is broke and represents himself. It doesn't matter who is right or wrong just who has the bigger stick to fight with. The only way it's peaceable is if the one with all the money decides to not contest it.
