Since President Barack Obama was elected to a second term, Americans have been logging in from all 50 states to petition for secession from the union, a spectacle that is baffling people worldwide.
A White House website, We the People, allows constituents to log in and form petitions on grievances that range from basic human rights to the fiery debate on nationalising the Twinkie industry: “We the undersigned, hereby request Barack Obama to immediately nationalize the Twinkie industry and prevent our nation from losing her sweet creamy center.” Good thing American priorities are straight!
The secession trend was immediately visible on Twitter where disheartened Republican voters sought consolation. Kristen Neel, one such online petitioner, tweeted, “I’m moving to Australia, because their president is a Christian and actually supports what he says.”
Her comment was met with an explosion of international incredulity. “Our Prime Minister is a woman, an atheist who lives with a man she hasn’t married. I don’t think you’d like it here,” said Ian Cuthbertson, TV editor for The Australian. Another, Felicity Ryan, tweeted a humerous warning to Americans who were hoping to find refuge Down Under from ‘liberal’ oppression.
But as the rest of the world watches in bemusement, thousands of Americans are lining up to voice their displeasure. Many are asking how did such a large percentage of its citizens reach this extreme in a country founded on religious tolerance and a separation of church and state?
Amanda McDonald, a Washington DC resident and Grants Manager at Youth Service America, feels that radical public activity is creating hypocritical hysteria that is making America look foolish to a global audience.
“It’s hysterical that 20 states have threatened to secede because they do not see their ‘Christian’ values represented in the government – citing our forefathers, when in actuality this nation was built on religious freedom.
“They do not see hypocrisy in first making their own choices about religion and then demanding government to enforce these beliefs. If you’re not with them you’re against them.”
Ben O’Loughlin, Professor of International Relations and Co-Director of the New Political Communications Unit at Royal Holloway, University of London, says this kind of secession mentality is “out there in the public, and you can watch it”. “How can they still have such a narrow world-view?” he asks. “It’s fascinating and we need to do some research on these people to find out where they got this expectation from.”
After the petitions accumulated more than 25,000 signatures, several Republican Governors openly renounced the secession pleas.
Alabama Governor Robert Bentley’s spokeswoman, Jennifer Ardis, tells the Huffington Post of her vision for unity: “As our leaders in Washington look for strategies to address America’s financial challenges, Alabama is working hard toward saving a billion dollars annually by right-sizing government. We can disagree on philosophy, but we should work together to make this country the best it can be.”
And it is also evident that although pre-election support for Obama was high across the globe, his win did not generate the giant celebrations that characterised the 2008 win. O’Loughlin believes the disenchantment is universal and that internationals perceived Romney’s loss as inevitable.
“A lot of global public opinion thought there would be a break with the war on terror, not an extension of it. It’s not like Obama is the greatest choice ever, as it seemed then. This time it was a choice between the lesser of two evils,” he said.
The Republican Party is now experiencing an enormous discontinuity, O’Loughlin said.
“US conservatism is in crisis right now- it’s been happening for about five years and you can see these currents going back to the 1960s. There are long-term historical forces behind this division. These ideological debates take decades to play themselves out.”
But in a digital world where communication is instant and free flowing, and where pandemic radicalism is commonplace, experience has shown that brushfire commentary is much more likely to burn out quickly.
