A Futuristic Illinois

I can’t honestly tell you who came up with the idea to break up the states in the way that they did or how that decided to do it for that matter. I know part of it was geographically. Rivers run this way and that ways, so those are easy boarders. Some of it was by the way the United States acquired the land.

However, I as a young citizen of Illinois see that this is not working. I grew up in a southern part of Illinois, not far from Saint Louis and fifteen minutes from where the Mississippi meets the Illinois River. I’m a country girl by nature and a farmer family by trade.

My state government however is made up majority of people who do not understand my needs. They don’t  understand my need as a lower middle class citizen to protect my home by the Second Amendment. They don’t understand that I don’t want their aide. They don’t understand that I still want to work; I still want to be able to make a living and care for myself and my family.

Maybe my beliefs are old fashioned for Springfield but I have an idea that maybe Washington needs to interfere with.

But first here’s what spawned that idea. I have always been a history buff, always proud of where I came from. I was a United States citizen and I was from the great state of Illinois who gave the world one of the best men Abraham Lincoln (The President, not the Vampire Slayer) and then this questionable yet history book making (only because of Lincoln) man named Obama. I was home to farmers, the world tallest man, and other cool things on a small scale.

By high school, I realized what a joke that was. Politician after politician was being indicted with corruption charges yet nothing was being done. Tried, possibly convicted, short stupid sentence. (Note: I was in high school during the Rod Blagojevich incident).

Finally when I was a senior in high school I got to set down in government class. Ah what a joy Mr. Gracey’s 7:30 a.m. early bird class was. Once you got worked up in government class you were pissed off all day long. And I got worked up a lot.

I remember one day after discussing God only knows what at least one other classmate and myself realized how easy it would be to just “fix” Illinois. Separate Chicago from Illinois.

Two years later, I still believe this is a real possibility. It has been suggested by some of my fellow Illinois citizens we even start a petition.

It’s not that we want to just kick out Chicago. We don’t hate them. We hate the fact that Chicago has the population and the money to have a pull in the Illinois General Assembly.

I’m not Democratic or Republican but General Illinois knowledge dictates that Democrats will, on almost every case have the ruling hand when it comes to the Assembly. But that hasn’t been working. There hasn’t been an even balance enough to get anything accomplished.

America has states for a reason. Because policies that work here in California might sound ridiculous to people in Delaware. That’s the problem in Illinois. What is good for Chicago isn’t good for a good chunk of Illinois. Chicago has a higher population, more varied ethnic groups, crime rates, variations of ideas.

Not that this isn’t a problem among the rest of Illinois just not always in such intense ways. Most of Illinois is still blue collar Americans. Many of which have agriculture based families and business who make their living from the land.

A project that would be high priority in Chicago such as programs to help keep children from gangs would sound ridiculous for most of Illinois because we don’t live with that problem day to day. While to average Chicago people dealing with agriculture problems would sound ridiculous to them.

Yes I understand all states have their rural areas and major cities. But my point is there are so many differences between Chicago and the rest of the state the irreconcilable differences could be cited on the divorce papers. There is no middle ground with Illinois General Assembly. Chicago needs one thing and Illinois needs another.

The best proposal for the new state lines is that everything North of 1-80 be Northern Illinois and everything South be Southern Illinois.

There are too many opportunities that the separation can help fix to go into in such a short time but the ideas the same. Some things just don’t work out.

I find it’s a good idea. Some others will, some more won’t. Just some marriages can’t be saved and must be ended for the good of the couple and the good of the family Illinois and Chicago needs separated for the good of each other and the United States in general.

Feel free to give me your thoughts and ideas.