“A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the public treasury with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy, always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through this sequence: From bondage to spiritual faith; From spiritual faith to great courage; From courage to liberty; From liberty to abundance; From abundance to selfishness; From selfishness to apathy; From apathy to dependence; From dependence back into bondage.”
― Alexander Fraser Tytler
So, it is time to end this “experiment” (Thomas Jefferson always thought that it might end within his lifetime .. and was fine with the federation at that time splitting into North, South and West (current Midwest) nations.
Secession CAN be done peacefully (as long as you keep tyrants like Abe Lincoln away) … California agrees to split into three states and become part of a Pacific Coast nation, then a Mountain West nation (two to four states north and south), and Texas obviously as a real lone star nation. When you get to the east it becomes pretty difficult as many existing states have some very different cultures. Here, city-states might work best (i.e. Chicago, Atlanta, etc.) and allow the balance of these states for form alliances (federations) that make economic and cultural sense.
In hindsight, why couldn’t Lincoln have just let the South (7 states) secede peacefully? It wasn’t his love for blacks that’s for sure (read his quotes from the 1830s – 1860s and you will see) .. it was about both finding the general government (revenue) and keeping the “Union” big enough for the big business to be able to parasite on government .. and therefore become dependent and under government’s control (railroads, steel industry at the time and more).