The Fractured Union

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

This is a what-if scenario about a massive economic collapse, followed by secession, civil war, and so on. But fear not! This is not one of usual scenarios of the South suddenly deciding to revive the Confederacy, nor is it a scenario of the Republicans or Democrats just leaving the Union because they don't like the opposition. No, this is a general collapse of the Union into several groups. I know it isn't THAT realistic, but I will try my best. Advice is always welcome!

April 3rd, 2013

April 3rd seemed to be yet another day in post-recession USA. The economy's growth was, as always, "sluggish", as the experts said. The war in Afghanistan, though scaled down, was still a constant, and the war in Libya was largely held together by a coalition with very little US interference.

However, on this fateful day, things took a turn for the worst. The DOW Jones took a few slight hits, and suddenly began dropping thousands of points in minutes. However, at the same time, the value of the Dollar began to drop as well. The Federal Reserve initially remained uninvolved, but then began to attempt to prop up the dollar and DOW, to no avail. The sudden collapse was slowed down when the exchanges were closed, but each time they reopened the DOW continued its fall.

April 10th, 2013

President Obama, having won a relatively easy victory in 2012 against Mitt Romney, waited out the week, hoping the problem would simply go away. The fall of the DOW and dollar began to slow, but didn't show any sign of disappearing. Obama decided that action would need to be taken, and many new regulations were imposed on businesses via  executive orders, bypassing the heavily Republican congress and narrowly Republican senate, believing that new regulations were required to save the economy.

May 7th, 2013

Fearing collapse of their own, local economies, the governors of North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho seceded from the Union, forming the Rocky Mountain Federation. Meanwhile, governors from other states began to demand assistance from Washington as their own economies began to fall from the dollar's decline. The DOW's fall ended and began to slowly rise, but the dollar kept going down.

May 20th, 2013

Militia groups across the US rose up against the Federal government, demanding a return to "sound currency" as a result of the dollar's fall. New Hampshire's new Republican governor, supported by his almost-entirely Republican legislature, officially seceded from the union to form the "Free State of New Hampshire". Heavy fighting broke out in New Mexico, Colorado, and Michigan between rebel forces seeking secession and Federal forces. The states of Kentucky and Tennessee seceded to form the "Appalachian Alliance".

May 23rd, 2013

The dissolution of the Union sped up. The states of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi jumped ship, creating the "Republic of America". Notably, the RoA's interim congress decided to declare war on the United States, as they sought to recreate the USA rather than simply leave it (as the previous states had). Texas and Louisiana both left the Union as well. Both were offered to join the RoA, but ultimately rejected the offers, forming the Republic of Texas and Republic of the Bayou, respectively.

May 29th, 2013

Alaska and Hawaii both declared independence from the Union. The governors of Washington, Oregon, and California ultimately announced their decisions to remain in the Union, as did those of Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and West Virginia. Heavy fighting broke out in several states that were considering their options.

Notes about seceded areas of interest:

Rocky Mountain Federation:

-A bit chaotic as of May 29th, as they are still attempting to organize a proper government
-No legal tender, everything from precious metals to old Greenbacks to barter is in use, and the markets haven't yet adjusted to the change so some make easy cash from buying in one area and selling in another
-Divided between Social Conservatives, Libertarians, and some Liberals, though the lack of an election hasn't revealed the numbers yet. Political parties haven't even been established.

Free State New Hampshire:

-Overwhelmingly dominated by Republicans, though generally of the Libertarian variety. However, there are still plenty of Democrats left (though many fled to Massachusetts).
-Unlike in several other states, fighting here is minimal, as is looting. The economy isn't doing poorly, but it isn't very strong, either.
-The election of 2012 gave the Republicans a strong enough majority in legislature to pass nearly everything they wanted, this being made even easier by a Republican governor.
-However, the old parties are gone now, and have reformed into three groups: the Libertarian party of New Hampshire, supporting overwhelmingly free market and individualist parties, the Conservatives, being a bit more moderate than those in other states, but supporting a smaller but still sizable government and some intervention into personal affairs, and the Progressives, in favour of enlarging government but against intervention into personal affairs (for example, they support the legalization of most drugs). The Libertarians and Conservatives are the two largest parties respectively, but the Progressives serve as kingmakers, with enough votes to help one defeat the other (though notably there is enough agreement on most issues to change laws quickly).
-The Libertarian Party is split between moderate Libertarians in favour of gradually decreasing government size and radicals supporting a complete change in state laws.
-The Conservatives are more or less all on the same page, as are the Progressives. Another thing of note is that most of the Union supporters have already left the state for Massachusetts, so all three parties are supportive of secession.
-Taxes in New Hampshire are remarkably low; almost all revenue currently comes from a relatively small sales tax and property taxes, with no income tax and no corporate tax (which are intended to bring business to the state).
-New Hampshire currently works with a gold standard, though there is debate as to whether to keep this or change it (radicals within the Libertarian party want to simply allow private banks and individuals to issue their own money, while Progressives want to create a form of fiat currency instead)

Appalachian Alliance:

-The Republican and Democratic parties are currently preserved, though the parties are being radically reformed to suit the citizens of the area. Rand Paul is a shoe-in for leadership of the Republicans, though the Democrats are still searching for a strong leader.
-Most Appalachian laws are simply Federal laws with new names. The only notable difference is that taxes are a bit lower, farmer subsidies are a bit higher, and some federal programs have been removed (generally environmentalist programs).

Republic of America:

-The main parties are the Christian Democrats (social conservatives), the Freedom party (also social conservatives, but slightly less so), and the Republican party (a coalition of moderates, technically the largest party but also the most fractured).
-Social laws have been completely revamped, with harsher penalties for drug possession, new laws against forms of "moral depravity". Economically, the Republic issued "Republican Credits", considered to be worth 50 greenbacks each, though a fiat currency. Taxes and regulations have also been cut back slightly (though most spending from the Union is still present, and programs such as Social Security remain untouched).

Republic of the Bayou:

-After the Governor declared independence, chaos broke out across the area, as fights broke out between nearly everyone. The governor was assassinated, and new "leaders" took control every couple hours. After several days of fighting, a kind of anarchist status quo appeared, with different groups seizing small areas of territory and adopting wildly varying policies. Though uneasy peace between groups in the outlying areas eventually formed, chaos took control in major cities such as New Orleans, where a "live and let live" attitude would not work. Federal troops were dispatched to retake the Bayou, but only managed to fuel the flames.

Republic of Texas:

-The two major parties are the Patriot Party (led by Gov. Rick Perry) and the Liberty Party (led by Rep. Ron Paul). The election between the two parties is expected to be quite close, though both parties are much farther to the right than the previous mainstream was in the Union. The Patriots are generally more in favour of social conservatism and are a bit more moderate on scaling back regulation and taxes, whereas the Liberty Party favours a roll back and reform of the tax code and regulations of Texas.
-Fighting has broken out on several of the borders of Texas, but the state is, by and large, peaceful. Refugees from the Bayou are fleeing from the chaos, though some are also coming from states with active civil wars, such as Oklahoma.

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Okay. I am sorry on a bit of a lack of detail. I would have included maps, but I don't know how to make them sadly enough (if someone could teach me, I would include 'em). Any advice, etc is quite welcome. Also, some states aren't especially important right now, so I may neglect them. Finally, I WILL have images included later, but I will include them once I figure out how to make maps.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Interesting. I find the inclusion of two different member of the Paul family, directly related, in two different countries' politics, interesting. Would they retain contact? Would the family spread into one or both of the countries?

Also, I'm hoping there will be infighting between different countries as smaller ones fall to bigger ones. I could see Texas taking control of the Bayou Republic, as well as New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Arizona.

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

The Pauls certainly aren't guaranteed anything in their states; Ron is facing very stiff opposition from Rick Perry, and Rand may have issues if the Democrats get a good candidate. Assuming both took power, the two nations would probably have reasonably good relations, though they are already on decent terms (some states are gaining vendettas with other states, though I will go into that later). Whether that will last, though, is up in the air.

There is plenty of infighting, though it isn't especially organized yet. The RoA is more focused on beating out the USA and therefore becoming the "legitimate government" than it is on seizing little pieces of land, and it is probably the most organized group right now (ignoring the Feds, of course). The Rocky Mountain Confederation has the disadvantage (or advantage?) of lacking a particularly organized state apparatus, and are probably going to be a non-factor for a while. With the way things are going, it could actually dissolve into... something (a balkanized region of loosely allied mini-nations? Anarchy?) or it could strengthen a bit and flex its muscles at some of the more chaotic neighbors. New Hampshire probably couldn't get congressional support for any conquering, since the Libs and Progs could block it (both being relatively anti-war), though a little regional war could start up if things got nasty. Texas is the only new nation that is up for conquering, but it depends on whether Paul or Perry is elected as President. Perry is certainly up for "restoring order" to Texas's neighbors, but Paul is as anti-war as ever (though a big incident could probably push him towards it anyway). Mind, Paul is getting quite old...

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Okay, thanks.

I'd like to see how each nation evolves, what their "Founding Fathers" would be, and how they would create their own militaries. I imagine it would be from either taking control of army bases, the police, and the national guard, or for things like a Navy, seizing certain factories and organizing deals between nations, etc.

Is there a map that you can show us?

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

The military's involvement gets a bit... interesting later on, but I am not there yet. Suffice to say things get a bit more complicated as the troops are brought home. Also, some of the nations (including the Feds) are getting a bit of foreign support as well.

As I said, if I knew how to make maps, I would.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

http://www.uselectionatlas.org/TOOLS/evcalc.php

There. The 2012 one gives you four options. If you need more, there's a thing at the bottom that allows you to adjust the number of Independents and such to give you more color options. To get rid of the congressional districts, popular vote, and electoral vote numbers, there's a list of what to show and what not to show above the map.

When you're done, just click on "show map link" at the bottom, and copy that into your post.

[Bacon King]

Saw duplicate post, deleted it for you.

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

Thanks

I am currently quite busy, but I have not abandoned this. I will post an update sooner or later.

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

A map of the current situation:

More Notes:

Blue states are officially siding with the Federal Government, and are reasonably stable (at least, they aren't on the verge of revolution or a collapse of government)

Red states are in the "Republic of America", and are relatively stable.

Green states are in the "Rocky Mountain Federation", and are somewhat stable.

Yellow states are "seceded", but aren't in one of the big blocs (I would differentiate, but I can only seem to get up to 5 colours). Their stability varies (The Bayou is in complete chaos, New Hampshire and Texas are more or less stable).

Grey states could potentially go either way.

Also, Oregon is supposed to be blue, but it isn't appearing correctly. Go figure.

[Ⓐnarchy in the ☭☭☭P!]

---Short update, map, pictures to follow---

June, 2013

Attempts to form a proper government in the RMF fail. The Republican and Democratic parties dissolve as people within the Federation consider their options. Some industry from more turbulent areas begins to move into the state, encouraged by the relative safety of the area in addition to the complete lack of government control. A gem backed currency, issued by the Free Bank of Idaho, becomes the prime currency of the area, with most other currencies being  compared to the "Diamondback" as a measure of value.

A group of radical Socialists form a militia in Vermont called the "Revolutionary Front of Vermont". While most other factions in the state are in relative disarray, they organize and march on the sparsely populated capital of Montpelier. While there are only around a thousand militiamen, they easily scatter what is left of the Federal forces in the area. Not long after, the state is effectively taken over by the Revolutionary Front. Many flee the state for Federal territory or New Hampshire, though an influx of immigration is received from sympathetic Progressives from New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The People's Republic of Vermont officially secedes from the US, but does not declare war.

After very heavy fighting, democratic socialists in Maine successfully defeat both right wing secessionists and federal loyalists to form a new government. While the rebels in Maine are quite similar in nature to those in Vermont, they differentiate themselves by establishing a democratic system (Though the interim government maintains friendly relations with Vermont). Many right-wing Mainers attempt to secede from the new nation for New Hampshire, and the new government sends forces to prevent this from occurring.

There are rumours that certain elements in the Canadian government (specifically, the New Democratic Party) have been sending supplies and volunteers to assist the socialists in Vermont and Maine, though Canadian officials ardently deny the allegations and announce neutrality in issues pertaining to the USA.

Major nations within the European Union pledge support to the United States government, and call upon other member nations to do likewise.

Corporate interests in the Russian Federation push for official support towards the Rocky Mountain Federation, eager to take advantage of the weakness of the area's central government to exploit natural resources in the area.

Fighting breaks out in Virginia and West Virginia between troops of the Republic of America and Federal forces. Little progress is made by either side, though the area is desolated by raids from both forces.

The elections for Governor and Congress in Texas begin to heat up. Rick Perry states that he supports the use of Texas's strong military force as a stabilizing power in the region. Ron Paul, meanwhile, demands that Texas's military be used for defensive purposes only, saying that interventionism is one of the causes of the USA's downfall. The polls show the two to be neck and neck in the race, which will occur in September. In the meantime, while Rick Perry is still the interim governor, he cannot pass any new bills nor authorize the use of the Texan army for anything besides defense of the state.

President Obama, after much deliberation and planning over the previous months, formally declares war on the Republic of America through use of the War Powers act. American troops in all nations, including Afghanistan, are brought home to fight the rebellion. Obama reorganizes the military so as to place personnel from loyal states to the top of the chain of command. While he does not recognize the independence of the other states, he does not officially declare war, either.

July, 2013

The Fourth of July is celebrated in 2013 with artillery fire rather than fireworks. Skirmishes on the Maine frontier lead to more advances by the new government in Maine. They discover that many of the secessionists in the west are being funded and assisted by people from New Hampshire. The government of Maine formally protests to their counterparts in New Hampshire as to this. Concord responds by claiming that the New Hampshirites supporting the rebels are not representatives of the government, and states that many of Maine's troops are actually Canadian volunteers. They nonetheless refuse to apprehend the New Hampshire volunteers. Outraged, Maine declares war on New Hampshire, and shortly after gains the support of Vermont. The initial attack by Vermont's militiamen is repulsed despite some strong gains in the state, as New Hampshire's progressives in Keene proved unexpectedly loyal to the state.

Little progress is made on the Virginia-West Virginia front, though commanders on both sides promise to muster forces to make a strong advance.

In an unexpected turn of events, Sharron Angle's right wing supporters take control of Nevada. After the fighting, much of Las Vegas lays in ruins, forcing her to relocate the capitol to Reno while LV is rebuilt. She sets up an interim government for the new "Mojave Union". Meanwhile, while not officially declaring war on the US, she strongly encourages her veteran Liberty Guard to begin attacks in California, in addition to using much of the wealth gained from taking Las Vegas for the funding of right wing rebel groups in inland California.

California, which has previously been a relative safe haven in the loyal states, finds itself under attack. Nevadan irregulars begin to pour over the border, seizing towns in the west and gathering support from disgruntled locals. Meanwhile, previously quiet rebel groups take this as the signal to rise up, leading to many inland Californian cities to be seized. To compound problems, gangs in LA take the chance to attempt to seize territory for themselves while the police and military are busy, leading to riots and chaos. The Californian capitol is officially moved to San Francisco, the most secure area left in the state. Oregon and Washington face minor issues with dissent in the eastern sections of their states, but find themselves relatively secure thanks to the isolationism of the Rocky Mountain Federation.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

Interesting updates. Where are certain military figures involved in this? I'd like to see the roles someone like Petraeus, McCrystal, or Powell might play either in defense of the US or in helping the country that their homestate is in to set itself up.