US election: Unhappy Americans ask to secede from US
BBC-12 November 2012 Last updated at 21:40 GMT
The petitions were filed after President Barack Obama's re-election
More than 100,000 Americans have petitioned the White House to allow their states to secede from the US, after President Barack Obama's re-election.
The appeals were filed on the White House's We the People website.
Most of the 20 states with petitions voted for Republican Mitt Romney.
The US constitution contains no clause allowing states to leave the union. By Monday night the White House had not responded.
In total, more than 20 petitions have been filed. One for Texas has reached the 25,000-signature threshold at which the White House promises a response.
'Blatant abuses'The last time states officially seceded, the US Civil War followed.
Most of the petitions merely quote the opening line of America's Declaration of Independence from Britain, in which America's founders stated their right to "dissolve the political bands" and form a new nation.
Currently, the most popular petition is from Texas, which voted for Mr Romney by some 15 percentage points more than it did for the Democratic incumbent.
The text complains of "blatant abuses" of Americans' rights.
It cites the Transportation Security Administration, whose staff have been accused of intrusive screening at airports.
Obama Re-election Spurs Wave of States’ Petitions to Secede
Adan Salazar
Prison Planet.com
November 12, 2012
Obama’s victory has encouraged several U.S. citizens to petition the government to address grievances concerning statehood, pursuant to the rights entitled under the First Amendment.
Last week, a man from Louisiana drafted a petition requesting to opt his state out of the continental United States following the announcement that Obama had secured a second term as president. Now people from 19 other states have followed suit.
According to the White House Petitions website, a total of 20 states are gathering signatures on petitions that would force the Obama administration’s response to requests to “peacefully grant” states withdrawal from the U.S. and allow the creation of new state-governed bodies.
Although the signing of these petitions are mainly symbolic gestures illustrating America’s discontent with the Obama administration’s policies, they are quickly gaining signatures and popularity.
On November 7, Michael E. Slidell created Lousiana’s petition with notable inspiration from the Declaration of Independence, which states “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
Texas’ petition cites the NDAA and the TSA as “blatant” abuses of Americans’ rights: “The US continues to suffer economic difficulties stemming from the federal government’s neglect to reform domestic and foreign spending. The citizens of the US suffer from blatant abuses of their rights such as the NDAA, the TSA, etc. Given that the state of Texas maintains a balanced budget and is the 15th largest economy in the world, it is practically feasible for Texas to withdraw from the union, and to do so would protect it’s citizens’ standard of living and re-secure their rights and liberties in accordance with the original ideas and beliefs of our founding fathers which are no longer being reflected by the federal government.”
Oregon’s petition asks to “Allow Oregon to vote on and leave the Union peacefully and remain an ally to the Nation,” saying, “The Federal Government has imposed policies on Oregon that are not in Oregon’s best intrests, and we as citizens would respectively and peacably seperate ourselves from a tyranical Government who cares nothing about creating a sustainable future for our children.”
Petitioning the government is nothing new, however, this new online signature format is. According to theTerms of Participation, each petition needs 25,000 signatures within 30 days before they require a response from the Obama administration.
These were the latest numbers as of writing this. Some states have two petitions:
1. Louisiana, 13,426
2. Texas, 18,012
3. Florida, 4,987
4. Alabama, 5,156
5. North Carolina, 4,623
6. Kentucky, 3,929
7. Mississippi, 3,849;
8. Indiana, 3,876;
9. North Dakota, 2,998
10. Montana, 3,378
11. Colorado, 3,746
12. Oregon, 3,230
13. New Jersey, 2,960
14. New York, 3,425
15. South Carolina, 3,193, 2,087
16. Arkansas, 1,537
17. Georgia, 3,912, 2,604
18. Missouri, 2,085, 2,781
19. Tennessee 3,656
20. Michigan 3,230
The number of states and the speed at which these petitions are procuring signatures are clear indicators that Americans are displeased with the election results and are waking up to the current administration’s flagrant corruption.
US guns sales soar after Barack Obama's re-election
Gun sales in America are soaring in the wake of President Barack Obama's re-election with weapons retailers reporting AK-47s flying off shelves "like hotcakes."
In October the number of background checks on people applying to buy guns, an indicator of future sales, increased by 18.4 per cent Photo: GETTY IMAGES
5:58PM GMT 11 Nov 2012
Owners of guns have been stocking up because they are concerned about a potential tightening of regulations on assault weapons in the president's second term.
In October the number of background checks on people applying to buy guns, an indicator of future sales, increased by 18.4 per cent.
There was a similar jump when President Obama was first elected in 2008. A total of 12.7 million background checks were carried out that year, up from 11.2 million the year before, and the number has been rising since then.
Shares in weapons manufacturers like Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger also surged after Mr Obama's re-election.
The gun control debate in America was re-ignited by the July 20 massacre at a cinema in Aurora, Colorado, in which suspect James Holmes is accused of killing 12 people and injuring 58 during a screening of Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises." He used a semi-automatic rifle with a 100-round magazine.
During the election campaign Mr Obama mostly steered clear of discussing gun control, but in a presidential debate on Oct 16 he gave his clearest statement yet on the issue.
He said: "What I'm trying to do is to get a broader conversation about how do we reduce the violence generally. Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced."
President Bill Clinton introduced had restrictions limiting the use of semi-automatic weapons in 1994, but the ban expired in 2004. Under the Clinton-era ban magazines with more than 10 rounds, and weapons with threaded barrels, pistol grips and bayonets were prohibited.
Mr Obama would still have to get any new restrictions past Republicans in Congress, but gun owners say they fear a limiting of their right to bear arms which is enshrined in the Second Amendment to the Constitution.
Mel Bernstein, owner of Dragonman Arms in Colorado Springs, told KOAA-TV that sales of semi-automatic weapons had boomed in recent days.
He said: "We're going from normally six to eight guns a day, to 25. I stocked up, I got a stockpile of these AK-47s, we're selling these like hot cakes. Luckily I had an idea of what was going on because it happened with Clinton."
Mr Bernstein said he normally orders up to 7,000 rounds a week from distributors but could now only get hold of 3,000 because of demand.
John Kielbasa, owner of Fernwood Firearms in Hankins, New York, told CNN: "Sales are up. I had a guy waiting here first thing in the morning (the day after the election.) He came in, bought two AK-47s. It's going to be good for me & for business."
UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL; POEM FOR THE FALSE ELECTIONS
United We Stand
For those who have eyes let him see,
the elections are but a game to be.
He who has ears, then let him hear,
the time of deception is very near.
So come one, come all,don't fall,
to the greatest folly of them all.
The DC puppets pulling the strings,
behind the scenes, sleeping beings.
Will they then awaken in our time,
can you change a dollar into a dime.
move over and let me try for awhile,
Sleep walkers will go out in style.
United we stand, divided we fall,
All for one and one for all.
The land of the free is for those who wish to be,
To give and receive is one in truth, you see.
Be careful What you put out, jack,
What you give,You eventually get back.
So what goes around comes around,
The wheel of karma is coming down.
Be careful of what you ask for,
or else You just might get it.
yesterdays,Quitters shall never win,
todays Winners have never quit.
All things come to him, who waits in good time,
Tomorrow never comes,just wait in line.
Yesterday is gone forever, so forgive all,
There is only the holy instant now,stand tall.
True heaven is on earth now,
The old becomes young,somehow.
And so the elders shall becomes wise,
If he learns to live a life of no lies.
What goes up must come down,
Be careful, you’ll hit the ground.
Be cautious how high you climb,
Remember,tomorrow is another time.
As you give so you shall receive,
We are all one,so please believe.
Don’t look for what you’re missing,
If you didn’t lose it, stop insisting.
Strife is such a poor waste of time,
Surrender it, then you will be fine.
Move over, plenty of room for those left behind,
It’s no use crying over spilt milk, so take mine.
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