Been Gone a While

Once I began writing this blog, I started thinking about the reality of secession and the possible outcomes of attempting it. Would the citizens of Oklahoma support such a thing? Just as I was completing my sixth post, a survey was released to the media. It basically said that only 20% of Texans would support secession in their state. My guess is the number wouldn't be much higher for the citizens of Oklahoma. It sunk in that things are going to have to get a lot worse for people here before they would look at secession as a legitimate solution to the country's problems.
I'm a proactive person, and I would like to see: 1. The citizens of this country come to their senses and realize what a mistake it is to allow the liberal democrats to run our federal government; or 2. If that can't be achieved, then leave the union before things totally break down. To be honest, secession means leaving the United States of America; which I've loved all my life. Is it unpatriotic to leave this country; even if doing so means creating a new healthy union? What happens when you declare your sovereignty? There may be a great deal of bloodshed and I don't know if I have the stomach to say the ends justifies the means. I know I don't want my own family to suffer horribly, so what gives me the right to ask others to risk the same?
So the question remaining is this...can secession be done peacefully? If so, how? Before these questions are answered, one must look at the similarities and differences of today and 1861. First of all, I don't sympathize with the Confederate States of America; nor do I share their convictions. I am simply looking at the secession process they undertook, and what could have led to a different outcome. Here's a few observations:
-Southern states in 1861 did not secede due to a moral conviction or a belief that the United States was headed for economic ruin. They did it to preserve a way of life that was seen by many in the northeast and west as immoral and unconscionable. In the present day, I could easily frame secession as a way to preserve not only what is right about America, but also to preserve our economic strength and viability. Were secession possible, it isn't hard to imagine that once on our feet we would trounce the old USA in economic performance. Liberals and bureaucrats, left to their own ambitions and without a viable conservative opposition would turn the country into something that resembles California. And California is a mess approaching a tragedy that won't get any better unless the liberals and their insane policies and regulations are thrown out.
-Lincoln was a strong president and was willing to do whatever it took to preserve the union. Today, Obama is weak by any comparison. Like Jimmy Carter, he simply doesn't have the stomach to make hard choices or shed blood. It's not that he is led by a moral conviction. Rather, he would be too paralyzed by fear and indecision; much like George McClellan was in the civil war. Had he been president, I think their would have been a totally different outcome in the war between the states.
-Today, we have examples of how a country can peacefully break up if enough of the people in a region strongly support it. Latvia, Estonia and the Ukraine all offer examples of how to peacefully secede from another country (I know there's problems with this comparison).
Until worse things happen economically, I don't think enough people in Oklahoma or Texas will support leaving the union. I do believe that the policies and spending Obama has set in place will eventually lead to a sharp economic downturn. I can't say if this is right over the horizon, or years down the road. When it does happen, right-thinking people need to find the courage to stand up and say they will tolerate no more. Until then, we can expect more of the same things from the democrats that got us here in the first place.