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Group Writing – Eliminate the Negative (Of Your State)
The reminder for this post came from this comment, although the idea’s been an idle dream for at least a couple years now, and with the election, now seems an appropriate time to bring it up. For those who don’t want to click the link, the plan is that given the power to redraw state borders, Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee and the surrounding area would become a state, and Wisconsin would take the Upper Peninsula from Michigan.* There are a couple variants on that plan, but that’s the basic idea. As far as names go, I’m thinking that the new state would be known as Superior, or that it would stay Wisconsin and that the C-M-M combination would come to be known as Megacity One.
That got me thinking: I know about the movement to break up California into several states, in some cases with the addition of land from Oregon, but I’m sure that there must be other proposals that I haven’t heard about, or that people in different areas might have thoughts on how they would like to get rid of annoying parts of their state.
So that’s my question for Ricochet. It’s all on the table: what would you get rid of, add, or trade away to suit your aesthetic, political, cultural, or any other whims? And don’t feel restricted to the local level; if you’ve always thought that Bulgaria looked weird or that Earth should be the fourth planet from the Sun, now’s the time to say so.
*There have already been several negotiations on that latter part but they’ve always fallen through; that should have been suspected given that Trolls were involved.
Published in Group Writing
And music:
I assume someone’s cued that at least once, but I haven’t gotten all the way through all the comments for this month.
Ohio would like to apologize to Michigan for the border war, and as a token of our remorse, they can go ahead and have Toledo after all.
The brutal 19th century truth: Russia has a historic right to Crimea, but none to Kaliningrad, their little warm water paradise on the Baltic.
As fond as I am of the British, it’s hard to say that geographically speaking they still ought to rule Gibraltar, but the residents seem to like it.
Macau has a peculiar sort of non-sovereign status, but Sheldon Adelson makes a lot of dough off that fact.
I don’t understand why Republican lawmakers have made Puerto Rican statehood a plank in the party platform repeatedly. I’ve got nothing against Puerto Rico; in fact, I can see their case for independence. But neither they nor the shrunken little city of Washington DC should be a US state.
That’s an apology? It doesn’t sound like you’re sorry.
It’s always hard to tell how much Russia has a right to anything.
Didn’t they vote on that, at least once? I think I’m in favor just on general principles.
Macau is one of those tiny places I get confused with the other tiny places. I blame the Portuguese I think.
They did? As a pure political matter that seems dumb; Puerto Ricans are pretty strongly Democratic from what I understand. DC has even less claim to be a state than PR does.
Now that I’ve got actual answers to that out of the way, board game replies:
In the game Russian Rails, your goal is to build a railway in post-WWII USSR. I’m not sure exactly how that part works what with the Communism and all. Anyway, at some point in the game Communism may fall, and you’re obligated to pay border crossing fees. They can really mount up if you have to deliver something to Kaliningrad.
In Axis & Allies, whoever controls Gibraltar controls the Strait, and can block ships from passing through. This is generally more of a problem for the Axis, because their troops are busy elsewhere. If the Axis manage to grab it while the Allies have no way to retake it, it can be effective and amusing to watch them assemble the wherewithal to do so.
Northern Virginia should be traded to Bulgaria.
Indiana should cede East Chicago and Gary to Illinois in return for all territory between the Vermillion River and the current state border. Texas should turn Austin into a city-state and move the state legislature and governor’s residence to Georgetown. North Carolina should also grant the Research Triangle independence.
I’m going to run for Mayor of Fort Worth. After being sworn in, My first act in office will be to declare war on Dallas and expand My Empire. After straightening out Dallas, We’ll be headed South towards the Capital.
Be patient…. Help is on the way…
Yeah, but what do we get in return?
Nothing. We still come out ahead.
Travis County is the most obnoxious part of Texas. It contains Austin, the blueberry in the center of the vast Texas-shaped tomato soup bowl.
Regardless, Texas needs to keep it. Even though it is the state capitol it is not – and never will be – the most important city in the state. If Texas kicked Austin out, the capitol would end up in San Antonio, Houston, or DFW – and that would be the beginning of the end for Texas.
Plus, Austin is a marvelous negative example. Texans everywhere can point to Austin and say that is what blue government gets you: pretentious virtue signalers, economic segregation, foodies, and traffic gridlock.
I don’t have an issue with them being a state, but if they don’t want to be one, that’s their prerogative.
DC is tough. I understand why the Founders didn’t want it to be a state, but they probably never imagined a situation where more people live in DC than several other states. My suggestion would carve a new state out of northern Virginia and Maryland with DC residents included. Call it “Imperial Courtieria.” Then VA can go back to being a solidly red state.
While I’m in redrawing mode, how about turning the Delmarva peninsula into a state? Seems like the Eastern Shore residents of VA and MY have far more in common with each other than with imperial courtiers or folks in the mountains.
Never mind hitmen, we’re going for eliminating cities, states, even rubbing out awkward or annoying countries.
This conversation is part of our Group Writing Series under November’s theme of Elimination. There are plenty of dates still available. Perhaps someone will even offer a page from the diary of a hitman, purely fictional of course. Or maybe we will read about eliminating excess inventory. Hmm, inventory control specialist by day, hitman by night? Sounds like a TV drama? What about those ads? You know what I’m talking about—even the Charmin bears! The possibilities are endless, Ricochet cool cats! Why not tell us about it and start a conversation. Our schedule and sign-up sheet awaits. Caveat: Given the theme, please keep in mind the basic rules of R>. As you polish ryour little masterpiece, do ensure that it stays within the refined edge of tacky. As a heads’ up, our December theme will be Veneration. I’ll post the sign-up sheet mid-month.
What do WA and OR residents think of redrawing the interstate boundary, flipping it from east-west to north-south, around the Cascades?
Beat me to it. Take the western panhandle of Maryland and merge in with WV. Take the Eastern shore and do what’s outlined below. The state of Maryland no longer exists – hence we still have 50 States.
I assume you would merge this area with Delaware, right?
Or merging that area with Idaho?
Yes, though the new state should probably be called something else.
Free Bulgarian citizenship for 2 million Beto voters?
What did Bulgaria do to deserve that.
Create a new country. Put all the Progressives and antifa types there. Call it Vulgaria.
Well answered.
I recall seeing an idea a few years back — that cities that are not financially solvent, would revert to some lesser status (“territory”? “protectorate”?) until they get their books in order. They would no longer be considered a part of that state, and they wouldn’t get to tax the snot outta the rest of the populace and be a drag on the state’s coffers to cover for their spending habits.
It’s an interesting thought experiment, but not sure how it would ever practically work out.
Either in the same piece or a similar piece was the idea that urban areas over a certain population are just given a different sort of status since governance and budget requirements are so much different than the rest of their states.
Again, I don’t know how you’d practically do that, but it does highlight that what works for cities doesn’t always work for the rest of the state, and vice versa.
The question is whether this would prevent a feudal system from developing, or accelerate it.
Yes, please, speaking as an Idahoan. That would counterbalance the blue-staters showing up here and acting like they were still in their former socialist paradise.
They were on the wrong side in Worlrd War I.
I don’t know why but I really like the city-state idea. I’m not exactly sure how it would work in practice though.
That would be easy. Any state could already to this by simply revoking the city’s “Home rule” privilege. But politicians lack the cajones to actually do it.
Many state capitol cities are economically irrelevant to their states for any purpose other than being the state capitol. Which is probably not a bad state of affairs.
There has long been a desire to separate New York City from the rest of the state. At least that’s what people outside New York City say, because New York City completely dominates everything in state politics.
What nobody can seem to provide a definitive answer to is what the effect on state tax revenue would be. Does New York City (with its very high income residents and workers) provide a net subsidy to upstate, or is the rest of the state providing a net subsidy to the very high cost New York City?
I’m given to understand that they know.