(2010-07-13) Saffo Bay Area City State

Paul Saffo says the Bay Area should start acting like a City State.

As a City State, the Bay Area needs to remind our representatives in Sacramento that they represent us, not the entire state, much less a political party. Our local politicians also need to make themselves heard directly in Sacramento and Washington as Bay Area voices and not merely as representatives of local cities. And Bay Area business, academic and cultural leaders need to do the same. This sounds like a recipe for regional selfishness, but it also could be what breaks California's ruinous political gridlock and rescues the Golden State's economy.

Good luck with that. And if the rest of the state doesn't come to its senses, perhaps the Bay Area should follow Singapore's example in 1965 and threaten to secede (Secession). If we stopped tax payments to Sacramento and embargoed the export of IPhone-s, the rest of California would beg us to return - and on our own terms.

This reminds me of how New York State (Albany) blocked New York City from putting in Congestion Pricing.

Is there a more pragmatic City Region mentality that can help?