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Wired reports that:
While ostensibly a plan to make the entire state of 38 million people more governable, the six-state initiative is being led and funded by a member of the Silicon Valley elite, many of whom would no doubt welcome the increased political clout that would likely come from carving out their own statehood. In the hands of most, the six-state initiative would look like a pure stunt. But with Silicon Valley behind it, this effort's chances at the ballot box can't be dismissed out of hand. Unlike most other would-be revolutionaries, Silicon Valley has a long record of taking ideas that sound outlandish at the time--affordable computers in every home, private rocket ships--and managing to make them real. It also has a seemingly endless stream of money that, combined with heavy doses of ingenuity and shamelessness, give its goofball ideas the fuel they need to take off.
...
"Our gift to California is this--it's one of opportunity and choice," Draper said at a press conference yesterday where he announced the campaign had collected far more than 800,000 signatures needed to get the measure on the ballot. "We're saying, make one failing government into six great states."
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 23 2014, @09:21AM
> people up there. Being ruled tyrannically
I do not think that word means what you think it means.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Yog-Yogguth on Wednesday July 23 2014, @12:48PM
I think it means exactly what he thinks it means.
At what ratio does "representative democracy" turn into tyranny? Has it happened when there are 296875 citizens per elected (State) politician? Has it happened when there are 716981.132 citizens per elected (Californian federal) politician?
Numbers used: 38 million people who can vote for 128 politicians on the State level and 53 on the federal level (and 55 electoral votes but I haven't bothered including the US president). Combining State and federal "representation" into one number would be misgiving as it's only a political division of labor and not added influence when compared to being a non-federated independent nation.
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 23 2014, @07:59PM
> At what ratio does "representative democracy" turn into tyranny?
It never does. Ratio is not what defines "tyranny" because if that were the criteria then all minority groups in the US would qualify. Do you think Khmer in the US are being "ruled tyrannically?"
Of course not.
Tyranny is about oppression. The idea that northern californians are being oppressed is farcical hyperbole.