Secession Movements on The Rise Worldwide

There’s a new movement in Europe that could potentially lead to a country splitting apart. Catalonia is one of the wealthiest regions in Spain, and their local government leaders say they don’t want to deal with the many layers of national bureaucracy. Instead, they want to build a better government on their own. The northeast region will vote next week to go ahead and force the issue with Madrid, who has said they won’t recognize any push for independence.

It’s very similar to a recent vote for independence in Scotland. Ultimately, the Scots voted to stay within the United Kingdom, but the move to split away from the nation is not singular to Europe. In fact, the independence movement may be closer to home than you realized.

A new Reuters poll reveals 1 in 4 Americans are open to the idea of their state pulling out of the Union and forming their own nation. Just barely over half of the poll participants said they opposed the idea. While it may be a popular move across the pond, but here in the US, no state has been so bold to try and secede from the Union in the last 150 years.

When you break it down by key issues, the unhappy voters were most upset by the failing Obama administration in several areas. Obamacare, the unraveling conflicts in the middle east, growing tensions with Russia and China and a deteriorating relationship with Israel are all reasons why Americans might consider voting to secede.

Until last year, the idea might have seemed far-fetched. But one of the strongest catalysts to the secession movement in the US stems from a recent story in Nevada. The southwest region was most likely to vote for pulling out, posting a 34 percent approval rating of the idea. The new wave of independence support is directly linked to the Bundy Ranch Standoff. When the Feds came to take control of the ranch, a handful of self-empowered militia members stood their ground. When the Feds finally turned away and retreated, many Americans realized their power to influence government is stronger than they first thought.