The American People Are Speaking Out Now...
By chrystalia
@chrystalia (1208)
Tucson, Arizona
November 11, 2012 6:28pm CST
For those who haven't checked out whitehouse.gov, there are 2 sections (only two) worth reading-- the Executive Orders, and the We The People. We The People is the section where any American citizen can approach the government for redress of grievances, as allowed in the 1st Amendment. As of a few minutes ago, 15 different secession petitions are listed for various states. While these petitions are not technically "legal", in that a move to secede must come from a state's governing body, it is certainly interesting to see how many people are accessing and signing them, and are accessing this area of the site in general. There are also petitions concerning Benghazi, legalizing marijuana, demanding a vote recount and getting rid of drones--and petitions against GMO foods-- though I haven't run across one on the Petraeus issue as of yet. In general, a petition has to gain 25,000 signatures in a month before it will be reviewed by the white house and forwarded to the appropriate part of the government, and the moderators can remove petitions they feel violate the terms of the site.
It will be interesting to see how many more petitions are filed on secession, how many signatures they get, and whether they are allowed to stay up or not. Texas already has over 9500, and the petition itself is very well thought out. This could prove quite embarrassing for both the federal government and the state governments in these states.
If you haven't gone to check out the We The People area, you might consider doing so--there are certainly plenty of petitions to sign LOL.
1 person likes this
6 responses
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
12 Nov 12
It's up to twenty today (11/12/12)
And I think it is a good indication of the mood of the country. Let's not forget, this is the LEGAL way to go about it. If each of those petitions get 25,000 or more, the states have to vote on it,don't they?
All is NOT well in America.
1 person likes this
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
13 Nov 12
The way the system works is if these petitions get 25,000 or more by the end of a month, white house staff looks at the petition and refers it for comment or action to whatever office handles such things. Whether these petitions would be seen legal in the various states is another question entirely-- in the states I have researched, you need to get physical signatures from voters on a petition, and with enough signatures you can get a referendum on the ballot for the next general election, or go to court for a special election. The state senators and reps would then vote on the secession issue, and if the majority decided to secede, then the Senators and Reps at the national level would be obligated to present the situation to the federal government.
What happens then is anyone's guess, since there are EO's on file dating back to Lincoln that curtail the right of states to secede from the Union. On the other side of the coin however, according to the Constitution and prevailing legal views, as all states are VOLUNTARY members of the Union, they have the right to withdraw. Also, the Declaration of Independence is the document these petitioners are using as justification-- a wise move, as it worked before. It would probably end up going before the Supreme Court, unless the President resurrected some of the old EO's and said NO-- which would be legislating from the oval office on one hand, but within his purview concerning national security, commerce etc. on the other hand. It would make for interesting legal frontiers.
@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
12 Nov 12
Tsch ... coz I'm sure ALL the government-officials check out that page SEVERAL TIMES EVERYDAY ... A-NOT!
'The People' aren't looking at all sides of the story, which can only be seen from the high offices. Sad people don't think they can trust the people THEY elected to guide this country's policy.
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
17 Nov 12
Nope. they don't read them out, generally-- only the short ones. If you watch C-SPAN, you see that they will read sections that are up for discussion, but there doesn't seem to be any regulation on the issue, and there should be. And yes, those are runners, or interns. With the huge piles of junk they produce, they would have time to read them aloud, but they should be compelled to read them. Pelosi was on the news today, and commented on the secession issue-- she didn't even know which amendment prohibited it. You would think she would have taken the time to READ THE CONSTITUTION before she spoke on TV and looked like more of a twit than she is... but they don't have to do that either, I guess.
Inherited wouldn't be bad, as long as the original office holder was decent, the one inheriting was decent, and we could vote them out. I think we should make Congress criminally liable, and the president to, for passing any law found to be unconstitutional, or passing a law without reading it. And the media should be legally required to present ALL pertinent information to the public, without bias.
@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
18 Nov 12
That sounds like a good idea. Matter-of-fact: I'm going to START doing that now---reading the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, all the amendments, and I guess the U.S. laws etc. & posting them to my blog and stuff, as much as I can.
Of course reminding everyone that the recordings would be better, more-frequent, and more-complete if I had more 'substance' (money, equipment, server-space, more money 
)
)@mythociate (21437)
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
13 Nov 12
Gives me the feeling that political jobs should be inherited ... oh, we can vote a guy out of office through a concerted effort to vote another guy into 'office' (and by 'office' I mean ANY government-office from President to 'runner' (isn't that what they call those intern-type guys that carry notes from office-to-office on Capitol Hill?))
And don't they do full readings of each of the bills publicly in Congress? Sure, all the senators are probably not-even half-hearing the reader; but, don't they (have the reading)?
@peavey (16936)
• United States
12 Nov 12
That's interesting! I had never been to that section of the site before. This wouldn't be the first time states have tried to secede and I don't mean the Civil War. I think Kansas tried to secede a few years back, but didn't make it. I have wondered how the Federal government can have such power over a state to deny secession when the state wants it, but I don't know all the details of that particular one.
@peavey (16936)
• United States
12 Nov 12
Thanks for the explanation, chrystalia. I had never done much digging around when it came to that. I know there is no "right to secede" but there is no power given to the federal government to keep a state from doing so - at least that I know of.
I've been to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics when I have to research and check statistics as part of my job. It can be quite an education I agree.
balipromo, I think you are right. 
1 person likes this
@peavey (16936)
• United States
12 Nov 12
Yes, he said that and he was right. There are many, many people in this nation who believe that they have the right to anything they want just because. They don't take responsibility for themselves. They want Daddy Government to feed them, clothe them and give them a place to live as well as a cellphone and health care. They either won't or are not capable of taking care of themselves. Almost half the people in the US are beggars, to be plain.
I have nothing against taking welfare when one truly needs it, but I know people on welfare who eat and dress better than I do. That's not right. A redistribution of wealth? Right. From my pocket to theirs and why? So I can work harder and have less?
But don't get me started. A nanny nation will soon fail. The givers and the takers are way out of balance and when the number of takers keep growing and the number of givers keep shrinking, our economy will be totally destroyed.
1 person likes this
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
12 Nov 12
In my lifetime, this number is unprecedented-- The actual secession is something decided by the state government, through a referendum process in most states. Citizens put forth a referendum to go on the ballot or for special legislation, signatures are collected, a bill is drafted, and the state senate and house would have to vote as a majority to make it official. What this part of the website shows is how deeply people feel about what has happened here this past week, and I'm sure the states, and the federal government, will be a little embarrassed. Texas is actually the one I am watching, because they do have the 15th largest economy in the world (in some ways), and much of our domestic oil is produced and refined there-- and they have a history of demanding their rights and working until they get them. No state has the "right to secede"--it's not in the constitution. HOWEVER, unless an executive order prevents it, ALL states are part of the Union voluntarily, therefore, if the state feels that their constitutional rights or those enumerated in the Declaration of Independence are being abrogated, they can secede.
If you haven't hit the Bureau of Labor and Statistics yet, you should nose around there, too-- it's dry, dull and deadly boring, but there's a ton of information the American people never get to see, as there is at the united nations website as well. I also read every bill that is before congress, as long and difficult as they may be.
@LetranKnight25 (33121)
• Philippines
12 Nov 12
Hello Chrystalia, this is sad to think some people thinks seceding from the Union would be the best way for their corresponding states. this is very alarming, they have no idea how a divided states of America could affect the entire world because US has proven to be a role model of a free nation. . but I respect their petition, maybe they would discourage illegal or any immigrants on their state once secession succeeds.
. but I respect their petition, maybe they would discourage illegal or any immigrants on their state once secession succeeds. @chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
12 Nov 12
Well, the petitions are more symbolic than anything else, because the state governments have to officially vote on secession-- but watching the petitions gives people an idea of what the average person thinks of the current state of the nation. I was surprised at the number of petitions-- in my lifetime, there have never been so many.
1 person likes this
@piggychan (97)
• Canada
12 Nov 12
Regarding the vote recount, I think Americans should be happy that Obama won because he wants American companies to pull out from other countries and start employing Americans. On the other hand, im not sure, but i think the government stopped accepting temporary workers from other countries.. if not topped probably lessen the number of successful applicants.. I prefer Obama over Romney. Im from the Phil and its rumored here that more call centers will be closing.
Yet to be seen..
@moneymaka (492)
• United States
12 Nov 12
This is awesome, it seems like more people are waking up and Fox News even ran this story this morning about the people signing the petitions and yes this is sending a message to the Government and especially the Federal Government who ignores the laws of the states and runs people like a dictactorship.
1 person likes this
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
17 Nov 12
Well, it is entirely symbolic, of course-- but it will be hard to ignore. Of course, the administration is very good at ignoring reality and unpleasant things, so who knows? There's a petition up now calling for the government to bail out Hostess and nationalize the snack food industry, would you believe... apparently the people who are signing that haven't noticed the government can't run anything well. Our Twinkies would cost about 12.00 a piece, and taste like crap.
@mariaperalta (19073)
• Mexico
12 Nov 12
Why is it, when ever there is an election, one candidate the loser claims foul. He lost... get on with it. Americans chose Obama again. Live with it.
@chrystalia (1208)
• Tucson, Arizona
13 Nov 12
People Are living with it, and will be for a while now. This post was written do direct interested parties to the government website We The People-- where there are plenty of petitions about all kinds of American concerns and issues, and a lot of interesting information for people who wish to be informed. It was NOT a post written to complain, cry foul or anything of that sort.
