The Real Issue: Governor Palin and the Survival of the Republic
I was reading Jake Tapper's blog post on ABC News and became quite disturbed over Governor Palin's association with the secessionist Alaska Independence Party (AIP). I can slough off the baby rumors. I can live with the Governor's conservative ideology. What I can't stand for is the possibility that the first time since before 1860, there is a person of national political importance who believes that the destruction of the Union is a good idea.
A bit of background. I spent three years at Fort Wainwright, Alaska (in Fairbanks) as military police company commander and Provost Marshal (the military version of a chief of police). It is a stunningly beautiful region, filled with wildlife and a pristine view equaled by none in the U.S. Alaska is also the home of a very, very independent strain of Americans, who see themselves, in general, as the last frontiersmen (and women). It is a mixing bowl of ethnic groups, from Russian Orthodox Inuits in Sitka to Chinese and Japanese communities in Anchorage. And not a few fringe elements as well.
The AIP is one of these, but it is one that has substantial political support in the state. The AIP has one unifying goal for the organization (along with a long roster of party planks of a distinctly conservative bent): a "do-over" of the 1958 referendum for statehood. AIP states its objective as:
"The Alaskan Independence Party's goal is the vote we were entitled to in 1958, one choice from among the following four alternatives:
1) Remain a Territory.
2) Become a separate and Independent Nation.
3) Accept Commonwealth status.
4) Become a State.
The call for this vote is in furtherance of the dream of the Alaskan Independence Party's founding father, Joe Vogler, which was for Alaskans to achieve independence under a minimal government, fully responsive to the people, promoting a peaceful and lawful means of resolving differences."
In the 1850's, as pressure to end slavery was applied first by the Abolitionists, then the Free Soilers, and finally the Republican Party, South Carolina's powerful and slave owning elite began to panic. The distinct likelihood that their human chattel would be taken from them drove them to adhere to the idea of "State's Rights." "State's Rights" sounds so, so much better than "the right to own other human beings and work them to death whenever I feel like it." The 'Right' being defended was the right to own slaves; South Carolina was not irate over their inability to coin money or raise their own tariffs.
What we are talking about is the fact that the 1860 planter elite was afraid that the bad old Federal government was going to come and take their property from them. Oddly enough, the AIP makes the same argument in their party platform -- "To support and defend States' Rights, Individual Rights, Property Rights, and the Equal Footing Doctrine as guaranteed by the constitutions of the United States of America and the state of Alaska," "To foster a constitutional amendment abolishing and prohibiting all property taxes," "To support the privatization of government services," and "To oppose the borrowing of money by government for any purposes other than for capital improvements." Simply put, the AIP wants the public land owned by the American People (read: ANWR) to be turned over to Alaska to be used as it sees fit. I can only suppose the fitting use involves digging oil wells, gold mines and other efforts to pull every remaining resource in the state out of the ground. If they can do it as part of the USA, great; if not, they want to do it as a Commonwealth or as an independent nation.
Last week Governor Palin, who presumably still adheres to the values and ideals of the AIP, was named as GOP Vice Presidential candidate. While much of the media attention has focused on her daughter's pregnancy and other soft issues, many of the real questions have been ignored, to include her involvement with the AIP.
While many of the AIP planks are fairly benign ("To provide for the development of unrestricted, statewide, surface transportation and utility corridors as needed by the public or any individual," and support for home schooling), the simple fact remains that it is a political party aimed at forcing a re-vote on statehood. It is, in effect, a secessionist movement, just like that which caused the Civil War.
And the United States is facing a situation where for the first time since 1860, we could end up with an elected official who is in favor of breaking up the Federal Union. On one side, we have a person who has favored, by her membership, secession from the American Republic on the basis of "States Rights." On the other, we have a black Presidential candidate who could finally heal the open scar of slavery and civil war, who could be President of the United States on the 150th anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter.
We can go forward or we can go back. That is what this election is about.
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Part 2
We were once a people that believed in the idea of a government “of, by and for the people” – the idea that government would not be some external entity which would lord over the serfs, but which would rather be the creation of CITIZENS. And if at any point these CITIZENS felt that the government was no longer advocating for their own interests, they could dissolve the government at start anew or some of them could secede and form a separate state. If a majority of the CITIZENS of Alaska, Vermont, Hawaii, Texas, California, or any other geographic area (state or otherwise) wish to secede, let them go - nothing is more American!
Ironic that you quote the Gettysburg Address (of, by and for the people). You do know what Gettysburg was about, don't you?
Thank you 152. Yours is a thoughtful and truthful post.
There was a Boston Legal episode about a small town that wanted to secede from the union.
Why limit it to states? What if the majority of the people on my street wants to secede? Should we be allowed?
Alaskans only wants to secede to keep all the oil for themselves and sell it to the world for a ton of profit.
If the oil dried up in Alaska tomorrow then they'd be the poorest state and the first to line up at the
US government welfare office.
Why exactly should Governor Palin be ashamed of the fact she belonged to a secessionist party (assuming the rumor is true)? She will be labeled as un-American and a traitor for associating with such a group, but weren't Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, etc all secessionists? Aren't we a country that was founded on the principle of self determination - the idea that a free people have a right through a peaceful democratic process to dissolve their political ties and establish an independent state? If we no longer believe in self-determination, should we tell Gordon Brown that we would like to once again become colonies of the U.K? And if we no longer believe in self-determination, why did we support Panama's secession from Colombia in 1903, or the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1919, or the dissolution of the Soviet State into independent republics in 1991, or the Kurdish separatist movement in 1992, or the secession of various Balkan states from Yugoslavia in the 1990s (Kosovo as recently as this year)? Does everyone in the world except Americans have the right to self-determination?
Yes, Washington, Franklin, and Jefferson were secessionists but I doubt King George would have wanted them to be in Parliament. And we fought a war about this issue -- remember that nasty Civil War. Secession.
The Founding Father's fought the War of Independence as a last resort because a tyrant wouldn't give them a voice in his government.
Remember our battle cry? "NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION!"
How DARE you invoke their names to make a case for a fringe party that works to undermine the blood that was shed during the civil war to defend Palin (I would be equally offended if that was Obama).
I pay taxes and have no representation. Also, the civil war was not fought to defend Palin.
Ok, but why should residents of the other 49 states want an "Alaska First" secessionist as their VP? How would that priority benefit non-Alaskans?
Yes, The Fathers were "seccessionist"; which made them traitors to the mother country. I am not willing to use the "T" word in Palin's case, but I am willing to question her ability to put the Constitution above her "private" views.
"Does everyone in the world except Americans have the right to self-deter
What about Tibet, Taiwan, South Ossetia and Darfur.
The current US government will not recognize any of these as sovereign nations.
Uh....gues
How can someone govern when their whole being says destroy the government from WITHIN?
Christian and Mormon and Unification Church extremists are now EMBEDDED at EVERY LEVEL of the federal government.
Placed there for the distinct purpose to "kill it from within" with passive-aggressive actions.
Think Gonzales. Think Mukasey.
Folk, we are in deep doo doo until these EXTREMISTS (call them what they are, please) are VETTED OUT OF THE GOVERNMENT AT EVERY LEVEL.
It's been a silent coup.
And it's been deadly.
There has been talk here in California for years about succession. Could you imagine if that ever tried to come to fruition? There would be military crawling all over this state and I would imagine that Alaska with it's "resources" would be no different. They can try, it's a pipe dream (no pun intended) but the U.S. goverment would never give up their oil.
Exactly. This country is held together by the threat of death and nothing else.
I'm not sure this is the first time since 1860, etc. After eight years of disregard for the document that is supposed to set us apart from all other countries, I feel that the Bush administration has gone a long ways towards setting that ball in motion.
If Lincoln were alive, he'd go to war with Sarah Palin over secession. We rise or fall TOGETHER! Out of many, one...etc etc.
She insulted Texas and Texans by refusing to let her child be born in Texas and being called a Texan,she hated that so much she put her child's life in danger to fly 12+ hours to Alaska.Lis
Everybody knows about Biden's Plagiarized speech, but here's is what else Wikipedia had to say about him. Can we really trust him to lead.
"It was also alleged that, during his time as a law student at Syracuse, Biden had plagiarized a law review article. Though the then-dean of the law school, as well as Biden's former professor, downplayed the incident, they did find that Biden drew "chunks of heavy legal prose directly from" the article in question. Biden said it was inadvertent due to his not knowing the proper rules of citation, and Biden was permitted to retake the course after receiving a grade of F, which was subsequently dropped from his record.[37
Did you know that anyone can alter a wikipedia article? In fact, if you were paying attention you would have been the first to know that Palin was the VP because Thursday night someone went on wiki and totally scrubbed her whole entry. Wouldn't surprise me if some idiot GOPer did the same to Biden.
It wouldn't surprise me if Kaszubske did the alteration and ran here to point us to it.
Everybody knows about Biden's Plagiarized speech, but here's is what else Wikipedia had to say about him. Can we really trust him to lead.
------------------
No, everyone does NOT know about Biden's "plagiarized" speech because he didn't plagiarize it. He simply forgot on one occasion to attribute the source of a statement which he had done many times before. If Secessionist Sarah can be forgiven her association with the subversive AIP, Biden can probably be forgiven for whatever infractions he was guilty of as an undergraduate 40 plus years ago (assuming that these allegations have any truth to them).
Well, a man can learn a lot in 20 years.
Palin's idiocy is a heckuva lot more recent. You people never cease to amaze me. Don't demand the best candidates from your own party, just attack the other guy when you can't defend yours.
If you're going to use Wikipedia may I suggest you recheck the "facts" it presents. Better yet, read about Wikipedia in the introduction section where it explains how presented information should be used. What Wikipedia states in plain English is that when using Wikipedia data one must check the source of presented information because that can offer insight into it's accuracy. Wikipedia is often a good place to begin research but to base an argument on these data is foolishness. The greatest drawback to Wikipedia is that it often tells people exactly what they wish to hear and intellectually lazy people go no further than the Wikipedia website.
Forget what Biden did in law school. That happened 35 years ago. If Biden had a less than stellar career in the Senate perhaps we might look on his life an recognize that what he did in law school reflects an amoral, life long conscience. Fact is that Biden's career in the Senate has been stellar and his behavior over the past 30 years indicates he outgrew whatever immaturity he might have experienced in school.
Yawn, McCain, the presidential candidate graduated 895 out of 899 at the Naval Academy. Biden didn't provide footnotes and McCain graduated with help from his admiral father, and then went on to one of the worst pilots in the Navy. Great comparison. lol
excellent
Hell, I've thought for years that the northeastern U.S. should secede and join the civilized world - either as an independent nation or maybe as part of Canada.
Absolutely. What my state of Maine has to do with with Texas is a bafflement to me.
I've said the same thing about the West Coast. California has lost some of its luster but many of us are often embarrassed by what transpires in Texas and the Old South (executions of developmentally disabled people, blatant racism, and adherence to religious beliefs that are quite simply unbelievable for their silliness, etc). I'm sure there is much to recommend the red meat middle part of the county and the south but for the life of me I haven't been able to see it but then I'm a dyed in the wool liberal/pr
Massachusetts elected Mitt. Make sure to take him with you.
Let me get this right...yo
Whoever defends a Secessionist is UnAmerican!
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It's worse than that. They are traitors and insurrectionists who should be stood up against a wall and well you know.
The Rev. Wright never advocated secession, which is pretty close to treason.
And the reason Obama stayed in Wright's church for so long was because his Trinity Church was a very positive force in the South Side Chicago community.
So, now explain why Secessionist Sarah stayed in her whacko Assembly of God church for so long where the minister asserted that people who voted for John Kerry would go to Hell. That's condemning half the voting population to damnation. And that's real people, not the abstract concept of America that Wright got into trouble for condemning. "America" cannot suffer the eternal torment that Sarah's pastor wished on real live AMERICANS.
The 2 don't compare. It is confirmed her husband was a registered member of a party that soley exists to explore Alaska's independance. They want to secede!! Even Obama haters should not want a VP who thinks the US should lose a state.
No proven association w/ Ayers except for sitting on the same board. Obama has been vetted. It is Palin's turn.
"Even Obama haters should not want a VP who thinks the US should lose a state. "
They already lost a city, why not go for the big enchilada?
For crying out loud, if you want to snivel about these rather tenuous connections Senator Obama has to these "scary negroes," please consider doing it inside a ridiculous GOP echo chamber, so you can all nod your heads in tandem and extol the virtue of each others' commie-radar.
I've got a principle, and it's quickly becoming the idea that perhaps I should smack people like you in public.
Watch the pastor dropping. Her pastor says people will go to hell if they don't vote for the people he recs. I don't think you want to go to Rev. Wright anymore, and that isn't her ONLY problem. The list is long. Hey, I would like to hang out with her, but I don't want her running the country.
Well, she addressed a secessonist group and spoke fondly with them. Enough said. Besides, all these creeps may want to leave the union, but Alaska gets many times over the amount their citizens pay into the federal coffers, and from articles I have read, as much as fifteen times more per capita than any other state. That is not pork barrel, that is the whole darned hog.
The newspapers in Alaska state that Palin was a card carrying member of AIP.
A bit of irony
Lincoln = Illinois
Obama Senator from......
Palin a secessionist on the national ticket against a Black man from the state of Lincoln
Ironic
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I agree, this is unpatriotic and the American people need to know the potential VP's agenda.
The answer...
No John McCain as President.
powerful stuff. it matters more than most people realize
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This is HUGE. Watching tv this morning, I was wondering why all the talk was about Palin's daughter. Palin has more allegiance to Alaska than the USA. She has already said that she hopes to use her position as VP to help Alaska. I think some of the folks who live in isolation up there (and in near total darkness during the winter) figure there are some huge oil reserves under federal land and they'd like to keep the profits for themselves. Palin and her greedy fringe-group friends are Anti-American!
People don't seem to appreciate the gravity of the idea of secession.
I'm pretty sure most people view secession as a humorous fantasy. In Texas, the "Secede" bumper stickers always made me laugh; it seemed to be a joke about how Texas "could" go it alone, with its independent attitude and (at the time) self-sustaining economy.
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