Hey, Texas! Secession Solves Nothing, Stay Together for the Kids

by Kevin Clang

(This story originally ran in The Pendulum on April 21)

Politicians like to demonstrate the unity of our country by pointing out the idea that there are no red states or blue states, just the United States.  It is a nice line if your running for an elected office, but it could not be further from the truth.  While there have always been major ideological differences between our many states, rarely in our history have they been so numerous. 

Red and blue political beliefs are growing further and further apart and it is getting increasingly difficult for the two to understand each other.  Big government versus small government.  Pro-life versus pro-choice.  In today’s America, you’re either a gay-marrying, baby-killing member of a blue state or a gun-toting, Bible-loving member of a red state.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry suggests secession as a viable option when faced with dominance by an opposing party in Washington. (From rickperry.org)

So it is really no surprise to hear talks of sovereignty and even secession from some states unhappy with Washington’s current spending policies.  Alaska, Vermont, and most recently Texas have all spoken of secession in the past few years.  With the struggling economy, the United States finds itself at its lowest point in recent memory.  Morale is down and the states are starting to point fingers at each other.

Let’s ignore that statements are made to get attention, not to be taken seriously.  Also, let’s ignore that 75 percent of Texans don’t even want to secede, and that even mentioning the action is crazy un-American.  Let’s too ignore that the possibility of secession is unrealistic and remote at best; states would have to defeat the most powerful military on the planet to succeed in seceding.  Does the United States have a problem?  If so, how do we fix it? 

Since there is no idiot’s guidebook to repairing feuding states within a country, I consulted the next-best source: Relationshiprich.org, a website that uses Dr. Phil’s books to give advice to troubled married couples.  When you think about it, the United States is not unlike an unhappy, old married couple on its last nerve. 

We’ve experienced the blissful union of 1776, the mid-life crises Civil War, and moved into old age with World War II.  Now, it’s like we’re recently retired: we worked hard and now have the attention and respect of everyone around us, but beneath the surface we’ve grown bitter as we’ve all drifted away from each other.  And all the money we saved up is running out.

Dr. Phil stresses listening and understanding as the two main things bickering spouses need to do for each other. From drphil.com

 

First off, this constant arguing is not helping anyone.  States need to learn to listen to each other’s gripes rather than constantly trying to defend themselves.  Simply listening to each other without trying to advance an agenda may help defuse the situation.  Incessant attacks just exacerbate the problem and increase potential damage.  The first step to understanding each other’s differences will be to acknowledge them.

Listening to each other will give us greater perspective and allow us to see the issues from the other side’s point of view.  This will broaden our picture, letting us see past red or blue issues and focus more on America’s issues.  Our differences are one thing that makes America great.  The country needs this back and forth between ideas.  If one side secedes, the country loses.  The key is to talk about these matters without allowing them to anger us.

The blame game also needs to stop.  Both sides have made mistakes.  While taking responsibility off of ourselves and putting them on the other states may feel good, especially when we know that we are right, it turns the others into adversaries.  This opens the door to more argument, which only leads to guilt, shame and resentment.

Being the minority party is just part of politics: sometimes you’re up and sometimes you’re down, but in the end the American people will decide what is best for them and we need to accept that even if we don’t agree with current policies.  It would be a tragic shame to lose any one of the fifty states.  Each is so unique and special, adding its own distinctive flavor and culture to the country.  Seceding is equivalent to giving up; by doing so, the other side automatically wins.  Perhaps Congress could benefit from hiring a marriage counselor or two to sit in on vitriolic sessions – maybe then they could see past their own egos and consider what is best for the country.

William Schulz Tells Elon University how to Restore America’s Credibility Abroad

William Schulz comes to Elon

by Kevin Clang

As a mother cat walks her kittens down a sidewalk, they encounter a vicious dog.  The kittens, frightened, jump behind their mother for protection.  Seeing her kittens fear, the mother cat looks at the dog and begins to bark loudly.  Stunned and confused the dog turns around and runs away in the other direction.  The mother cat then turns to her kittens and says “See?  That is the advantage of knowing another language.”

William Schulz opened with this story when he spoke at Elon University Thursday night.  Schulz, who served as executive director of Amnesty International from 1994 until 2006, titled his speech “Restoring America’s Credibility: Human Rights Challenges Facing the Obama Administration.”  In it Schulz addressed America’s problems, both generally and specifically.

America's Favorable Rating in Great Britain

“The United States has made an enormous number of mistakes in the past ten years . . . and the consequences have been deadly,”said Schulz.  The War in Iraq, Guantanamo Bay,  Abu Ghraib, Israel and Palestine, the genocide in Sudan, ignorance of Russia and China; the list goes on.  Human rights instances such as these have significantly affected America’s image across the world.

According to Schulz, America had an 84 percent favorable rating in Great Britain in 2000.  Just seven years later, that rating had dropped to 42 percent.  “We see ourselves as a model for others to emulate . . . we spread our way of life throughout the world,” he explained.

This problem dates back to Puritan-era America, said Schulz.  Too often people confuse the Pilgrims, who fled to America to escape religious persecution, and the Puritans, who landed ten years after the Pilgrims with intentions to create a Christian utopia.  “The most difficult challenges are rooted in American character,” Schulz said.

Despite the problems, Schulz believes that simplistic thinking will never do.  “Repairing is the easy part, the hard part is deciding America’s role in the future.”  And even though he, like much of the rest of the world, is very excited about the possibilities of an Obama presidency, Schulz admits that “Not even a president can do everything.”

As and example, Schulz used the War in Iraq.  “Iraq made it impossible to use military without suspicion,” he said.  If we had not invade, America may have been able to occupy Sudan and prevent some of the catastrophic tragedy that has eclipsed the region.

After thirty years of standstill, though, Schulz believes that America is finally going in the right direction.  “The world admires not America’s military might, but our citizen’s human rights,” explained Schulz.  “Human rights emerge out of a common misery and give voice to our deepest yearnings.