Of all the 50 states of the union to post secession petitions on the official White House website "We the People," none has attracted more signatures than the one in Texas. As of this writing, signatures have surpassed 117,000.
While the White House has yet to make an official response to any of the secession petitions, including the one from Texas, this form of political protest is having an effect.
Texas man changes his middle name to "SECEDE"
According to the Hollywood Gossip, perennial political candidate Larry Kilgore of Arlington, Texas, has changed his middle name from Scott to SECEDE (all caps). Kilgore has announced his intention to run for governor of Texas on what he feels is the overriding issue for the state, whether to secede from the union or not.
Sales of secession bumper stickers soar
According to the New York Times, sales of a bumper stick with one word, "Secede," over a graphic of the Texas Lone Star flag has soared. The bumper stickers, which go for one for $2 and three for $5, are sold by a website called TexasSecede.com.
1979 novel about Texas secession gets new attention
The Dallas Morning News reports that a Carter-era novel that depicted a secession crisis sparked by a fight between Texas and the United States federal government over oil resources, "The Power Exchange," is getting new attention after being nearly 30 years out of print. The novel, written by Alan R. Erwin, depicted a worsening of the then energy crisis into the 1980s, exacerbated by a cold snap in the northeast, causing a fight over Texas oil reserves. Texas attempts to invoke a provision in the 1845 Annexation Treaty to split Texas into five states in order to gain more clout in the United States Senate. Things spiral out of control and shots are actually fired between American troops and the Texas National Guard before the crisis is settled.
Satirical secession novel taken seriously
Ironically, Erwin was never a supporter of secession, having meant his novel to be satirical. That has not stopped secession supporters from taking it seriously, according to the Dallas Morning News. Erwin is considering publishing a new version of his novel, updated to the 21st century, with a scene of the United States Navy's George H.W. Bush battle group setting Texas Gulf Coast refineries ablaze. The novel has also been optioned by HBO for a possible cable movie. Whether the issue is oil and gas in 1978 or Obamacare in 2012, it seems that something will make some Texans interested in breaking away from the United States, no matter what the Civil War suggests.
Texas resident Mark Whittington writes about state issues for the Yahoo! Contributor Network.
