That's what I said.

I just googled "Thompson Harmonizer" ... interesting stuff. That's sci-fi that I hadn't had the pleasure to be acquainted with. Will probably read it in the near future.

 

Venezuela chose circular logic; they democratically elected a dictator whose primary goal was the revocation of democracy itself to guarantee his own perpetual grasp on power.

It is even worst; he became known to people after participating of a coup to overthrow a democratically elected president when he was still active in the Army. Nothing like people waiting for a Messiah. There you have it!

Guess what country, well at the southern end of America, was somehow following their steps....

Stopping right here.

 

Just to connect my 3# post. The government has officially fallen and now we are going to have to schedule new elections, suits me just fine!Cheap fuel again!!!!

 

An amendment like that would've avoided the Civil War, but only God knows if it would've been of benefit to the States as a whole. Think of it, regardless of the economical outcome of a secession, probably in some states slavery would still be legal!

Probably not. The tide of world consensus was turning decidedly anti-slavery, so it's likely that embargos and other sanctions or even internal anti-slavery movements would have ended slavery before the end of the 19th century. At least that's my take on it.

 

I think the perp forgot that guns are illegal in the UK:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jo-cox-dead-live-updates-8207676

Edit: Wrong thread. Sorry!

 

I'm afraid allowing some of the United States to secede would be a terrible thing. Imagine Hawaii having to fight Japan in WW II without the whole U.S. fighting for them.

Uh, how does the issue of secession impact Hawaii in WWII given that Hawaii didn't become a state until 14 years after the war ended?

We are the 800 pound gorilla. We just need to get the leash on correctly.

Definitely agree. We need a firm foreign policy that basically says we will stay out of other nations' business unless a legitimate national interest is placed at risk, at which point we will intervene and, if warranted, with extreme violence.

 

 

Uh, how does the issue of secession impact Hawaii in WWII given that Hawaii didn't become a state until 14 years after the war ended?

Really? Hawaii was no part of the US at that time? Fooled me!

"In 1898, Hawaii became a territory of the United States."
http://www.gohawaii.com/en/statewide/travel-tips/history/

There we are. Hawaii was a territory of the US in 1941, not a State.
I suppose Hawaii could have seceded from being a territory if they wanted to, but if they did that, they would be speaking Japanese now.

 

Oh boy... here we go again...

 

Oh boy... here we go again...

This symbol: indicates a joke nearby.

 

This symbol: indicates a joke nearby.

Sorry!​

 

Really? Hawaii was no part of the US at that time? Fooled me!

"In 1898, Hawaii became a territory of the United States."
http://www.gohawaii.com/en/statewide/travel-tips/history/

There we are. Hawaii was a territory of the US in 1941, not a State.
I suppose Hawaii could have seceded from being a territory if they wanted to, but if they did that, they would be speaking Japanese now.

As far as I know, the concept of "secession", as far as the political organization of the United States, applies to states, not territories. But the word itself can be used generically, too, which I assume is what you were doing here.

 

Here's what Wikipedia has to say (I'm not claiming the Wikipedia is an authoritative source):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secession_in_the_United_States

 

But the word itself can be used generically, too, which I assume is what you were doing here.

What I was doing was, "making a mistake".

 

What I was doing was, "making a mistake".

Oh, I misinterpreted your response as indicating that is WAS a part of the U.S. (just not a State) and therefore could have "seceded" (were it legal to do so). But I see what you were saying, now.

As for whether they would be speaking Japanese now, there are lots of places that were definitely NOT part of the U.S. in any way that were conquered by the Japanese but aren't speaking Japanese now (Taiwan is just one example that happens to be close to home -- real close). But the point you were trying to make is none-the-less spot on: Hawaii benefited from its association with the United States in a way that would not have worked out well for them, at least in the short term, if they had separated from us.

It does raise an interesting question -- can a territory break its ties with the U.S.? Meaning, what legal means is there for it to do so ("illegal" means, such as armed rebellion, are always an option)? And has there ever been a serious attempt to do so. I don't recall ever reading very much about how the territories behaved in the Civil War (when 11 states tried to forcibly secede from the Union). I believe there were three Union territories that allowed slavery (Arizona, New Mexico, and Oklahoma)? and that the Confederate States of America "claimed" those as Confederate territories, but I don't know if the territories themselves tried to "secede" from the Union.

 

It does raise an interesting question -- can a territory break its ties with the U.S.? Meaning, what legal means is there for it to do so ("illegal" means, such as armed rebellion, are always an option)? And has there ever been a serious attempt to do so. .

Puero Rico comes to mind...

 

Puero Rico comes to mind...

I thought of them, but I don't know if they have the legal right to break away. IIRC, the Supreme Court has said that a State can secede only by three methods: Getting Congress and the President to allow it to by law, via a Constitutional Convention, or by act of rebellion (and that means actually winning the rebellion). I imagine the same would be true of a territory -- or I can't imagine those three options not being available to them -- but I could also imagine territories having the legal ability to choose on their own to break the relationship on the basis that they are not as tightly bound to the U.S. as a State is.

 

Wow. A mistake, properly retracted

There we are. Hawaii was a territory of the US in 1941, not a State.

and a joke, formally explained

if they did that, they would be speaking Japanese now.

This symbol: indicates a joke nearby.

Sure can cause a lot of discussion!

This is the tenth post on this page about a mistake I made 9 days ago. Unfortunately, I have little interest in examining, clarifying, explaining, and investigating this any more.

 

This is the tenth post on this page about a mistake I made 9 days ago. Unfortunately, I have little interest in examining, clarifying, explaining, and investigating this any more.

That sounds just fine, since the discussion has segued well past any mistake you made earlier making it a complete non-issue.

 

Wow. A mistake, properly retracted
and a joke, formally explained
Sure can cause a lot of discussion!

I think that in this place sometimes some of us take the wording of questions and statements too rigorously. I guess there's nothing wrong with that, if the subject being dealt with relates to critical things, like electronics... For instance, if a mistake is made in designing a circuit due to an error in communication between collaborators it will most likely result in failure.

BUT... I think that we tend to carry that attitude a little too far into our more informal discussions, like the ones happening in this Off Topic forum. Of course, one could argue that we're all (or at least most of us) adults, and by now should've learnt the importance of good communication... but it's just that I think that we should also learn to relax a bit when discussing topics such as this, and give each other a break every once in a while.