Upstate needs to secede from state to succeed First published: Monday, August 20, 2007
New York state has failed the people. This beautiful state has vast resources, natural and man made yet people are leaving and companies are moving out. The reason is obvious. Under the New York City-based leadership, New York has become one of the highest taxed and most dysfunctional states in the nation.
The state has taken over many functions of local governance, imposing unfunded mandates and laws that are killing the upstate economy.
Issues of rent control, congestion pricing, farm regulations and county sales taxes are local issues and should be left at the local level.
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, alone, has decided that New York should not have the right of initiative and referendum, nor a say about the death penalty.
How long should we be expected to watch our state die? Why should we have to accept it?
The population of New York is 19.3 million people, with 8.2 million in New York City. If the state were to be split at the north edge of Westchester and Putnam counties, each resulting state would be ranked 10th in population. An upstate constitution would be better suited to a rural environment and needs.
We can either stay with a system that does not work, run by people who do not care or we can take our lives in our own hands.
We have already had decades of empty promises to unshackle upstate. I believe we are left with no other alternative.
Upstate seceding will probably never happen.....but,,,,there is always the masses getting off of their @#$@#$ and walking on downstate(and right into albany).....then there is the voting issue.....and education....
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
Mr Eames also left out the unfunded mandates that have been forced upon our hospitals and health care system and it's driving the price of health care insurance out of the price range of most of our residents.
Mandates only happen when the public calls on government to do something.....they also give lawyers another reason to 'chase ambulances'..talk about driving up the cost.....
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
As much as I would love the idea of breaking away from 'downstate'....believe it or not, upstate could not survive monetarily. Downstates have a higher standard of living. Their costs are higher BUT their income is also higher, which brings more money into the tax coffers. We, here in the upstate area, have a lower standard of living and lower wages, which brings less money into the tax coffers. Honestly...we need downstate for the bucks!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Unfortunately you're right Bumble, wall street and all the businesses in NYC bring in the big bucks every year and that's why nobody pays any attention to upstate NY.
WHERE DOES THE MONEY GO.....WHAT HAPPENS TO THE EQUALIZATION RATES....IS IT TRULY EQUAL OR JUST IN THEORY.....
if their house value is $1mil and my house value is $100,000 and the rate is 20%....the tax collection is relative....
however, their roads are NOT worth more than my roads, etc etc......they dont get the plows first just because they chose to purchase a milliion dollar home, and I shouldn't be denied because I purchased a 100,000 home......
municipal, ring a bell here......
Let me just say how happy I am that there will be a 9/11 memorial in NYC and our resources are being funnelled downstate for the build(not just the memorial but everything else)....our children and our childrens children will know of 9/11 and how the 'terrorists'(muslim?/arab?) hate us.....lets pass it on and get them ready for war.....there is no peace in the future.....
This is not against those who died, just the decisions we have made since their deaths.......
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
It has always been this way, the money is spent by NYS where they feel the most money will be made and that leaves upstate with nothing but empty promises.
Ya know, we in upstate NY are not asking for much. We certainly don't want upstate to look like NYC. We aren't asking for a huge amount of money. I think that asking for more money for infrustructure and tax breaks for new businesses to come in would be a nice start. We aren't looking for a ton of make upstate as congested as downstate.
I don't know about anyone else, but I still like to see the 'green space'. I don't want 'our' Central Park to be in the middle of towering buildings like the city. But some thought and consideration when spending my tax dollar would be so greatly appreciated here once in a while.
But since our own local representatives (county legislature) seem to have no problem screwing us over, why should any other level of government treat us any differently?
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
This has been a discussion for so long, that it actually has 2 wikipedia pages, I'll let you follow the links and check them out.
First, the idea of New York City seceding from the state (which is probably what should happen, since this was the first official capital of the United States of America, make it's own district for it, just like Washington, D.C.
Just remember, this wouldn't be the first time that a state has split into 2. Just a small section from the second of these 2 pages shows that point.
Quoted Text
Maine - A state that used to be part of Massachusetts. Kentucky - Formerly western Virginia. Tennessee - Formerly western North Carolina. Vermont - Was once disputed to be western New Hampshire or northeastern New York. West Virginia - A state formed by a section of Virginia breaking off from the rest of the state due to opposition to Virginian secession during the Civil War.
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