North Colorado?

[LANTIRN]

To secede or not to secede from Colorado? That is the question that residents in Weld County will face in November after county commissioners voted unanimously Monday in favor of putting a 51st state initiative on the ballot, the Greeley Tribune reports.

The initiative, which calls for the creation of the state of North Colorado, has already made it onto the ballot in Cheyenne, Sedgwick and Yuma Counties. Logan, Phillips, Washington and Kit Carson Counties have also set dates to vote on the initiative.

“Si se puede -- yes, we can,” said Weld County Commission Chairman Bill Garcia, echoing one of President Barack Obama's campaign slogans, before commissioners voted on the initiative.

Several rural, predominantly Republican counties of north and and northeastern Colorado announced their plan to create a 51st state back in June. Supporters have cited a number of laws -- including gun control measures, an increase in renewable energy standards in rural areas, the curbing of perceived cruel treatment of livestock and expanded regulation of oil and gas production -- that the Democratically-controlled state legislature passed this year, as the impetus for the secession movement.

"Rural residents are now a disenfranchised minority of Colorado," Phillips County Administrator Randy Schafer told The Denver Post last month. "National and urban values and needs are trumping rural values and needs."

On the ballot, the initiative will read: "Shall the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, in concert with the county commissioners of other Colorado counties, pursue becoming the 51st state of the United States of America?"

The vote, however, has been regarded as largely symbolic, since the new state would have to be approved by the state legislature, the governor and Congress.

“We had to do something that would grab Denver’s attention,” said Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_3781503.html

Sounds like they have gone farther with it than I expected. Good for them.

[Trip McNeely]

In lots of states the population heavy urban areas drive the politics of the rest of the state leaving the folks in the rural areas at the whim of those who don't really give a shit about anything but a free ride. Illinois is a prime example where Cook County pretty much sets political tone for the rest of the state.

Yep. Other states such as California, NY, and here in PA is the same. Hopefully this will touch off a new beginning of something. Hopefully it goes somewhere. it will give me a bit of hope. Let the big cities bankrupt themselves.

[talisman]

Meanwhile:

DEER TRAIL, Colo. (AP) — This tiny plains town an hour east of Denver doesn't have much to offer visitors — a gas station, a bar and a small-time rodeo one weekend a year.

But Deer Trail, population 500, is considering a proposal to make itself a national attraction for gun enthusiasts and people skeptical of government surveillance. Citizens on Oct. 8 will vote on whether to issue permits to hunt drones.

Yes, those drones. Shoot 'em down for $25. With a $100 bounty reward for shooters who bring in debris from an unmanned aircraft "known to be owned or operated by the United States federal government."

The initiative's architect insists it's a symbolic stand against government surveillance.

"These are not big drones you see on TV that look like airplanes. These are little 55-pound things that can come right down into your land," said Phillip Steel, a traveling structural inspector.

Steel got the idea after seeing news reports about the National Security Agency's domestic spying efforts. "Do we really want to become a surveillance society? That's what I find really repugnant," Steel said.

The measure drew a stern warning from Washington, which is considering several regions — most of them in Colorado and other Western states — where civilians can use drones on an experimental basis.

"Shooting at an unmanned aircraft could result in criminal or civil liability, just as would firing at a manned airplane," the Federal Aviation Administration warned.

The proposal has sharply divided this tiny burg that lays claim to the world's oldest rodeo and not much else. (Some historians credit Deer Trail's 1869 rodeo as the first, though Deer Trail is just one of many claimants to the title.)

Taking a break from dishing up beef plates at the rodeo recently, Libby Mickaliger said it could be a great low-cost fundraiser for this dusty outpost. "If it raises money for the town, why not? It's not like people are going to go and shoot one down," she said.

Harry Venter, editor of the weekly Tri-County Tribune, worries the proposal sends the message that Deer Trail disapproves of the military, not domestic surveillance. "It's embarrassing to most of us, to be honest with you," Venter said.

Drone hunting has become the dominant topic at the Brown Derby, Deer Trail's only bar.

"I try to play pretty impartial with it. 'Cause if you own the bar, and you go out and speak for it or against it, you're going to make people mad," said owner Carl Miron. "But I don't like the fact that the government can sit and spy on you, I'll tell you that."

Miron pointed to dilapidated buildings surrounding the Brown Derby, their window frames pockmarked with broken glass. Deer Trail could use some extra cash, he said.

And if the initiative passes, he'd like to organize mock-drone-hunting weekends to draw visitors to the sleepy town. "I don't know what the government would think about it," he said, "but it would be fun."

[GhostTX]

In lots of states the population heavy urban areas drive the politics of the rest of the state leaving the folks in the rural areas at the whim of those who don't really give a shit about anything but a free ride. Illinois is a prime example where Cook County pretty much sets political tone for the rest of the state.

Yep. Other states such as California, NY, and here in PA is the same. Hopefully this will touch off a new beginning of something. Hopefully it goes somewhere. it will give me a bit of hope. Let the big cities bankrupt themselves.

Just have to look at county maps...(2012 election shown)


And compare to state map to show how heavy the cities are:


Pretty interactive map here. Can click on each state and zoom in to it for the county views:

http://www.politico.com/2012-election/map/#/President/2012/