# United States contraction: Which states should go? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 7, 2002, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283 "2002-04-07T05:50:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JonScribe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3be4f8/32.png) [@JonScribe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JonScribe)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/1 "2002-04-07T05:50:07Z")
While BigKahuanaBurger is asking about adding states ([http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=107976](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=107976)), I’m feeling a little Bud Seligish and wonder if it wouldn’t be in the best interests of our nation if we contracted our great country and eliminated a few of those states that are, well, more of a drain than a plus, overall. After elimination of a state, its citizens and any significant cultural sites (e.g. South Dakota’s Corn Palace) would then be distributed in a draft, with the selection order determined by the remaining states’ rank in Forbe’s list of most liveable states. I’ll start. Really, the last useful contribution Rhode Island made was providing a useful area comparison to the size of the Ross ice shelf that sloughed off into the sea. Any other nominations? ---
**Author:** ![Fairy\_Princess\_Kitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Fairy\_Princess\_Kitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fairy_Princess_Kitty)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/2 "2002-04-07T06:57:18Z")
A friend and I were actually talking about this a few days ago… Alabama… I can not think of a single redeeming quality, the only thing I think of is that alphabetically, it’s the first state North Dakota… it just seems like big empty space, kinda like canada but without the mounties Kitty ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/3 "2002-04-07T07:10:26Z")
> [@](#): > > North Dakota… it just seems like big empty space, kinda like canada but without the mounties Kitty, think [Mondakoting](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=107976). ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/4 "2002-04-07T07:35:14Z")
I remember this conversation in high school where some friends and I, realizing that North and South Dakota were only there to take up space and make the drive from Minnesota to Montana longer, were proposing that we eliminate both Dakotas and combine Montana and Minnesota into one state (called, of course, “Montasota”.) Yep, the Dakotas have to go, especially North Dakota (Don’t try to fool us with this “dropping the ‘North’” bit, either!) Alabama and Mississippi look like contenders, too–aren’t they always taking up #49 and #50 in state-by-state rankings on various subjects? I’m sure we could fudge–er, I mean _find_ some numbers to support that. And Idaho–I mean, it was just the [state of what was left over](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=40009) in the first place, right? ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/5 "2002-04-07T07:39:20Z")
I think it’s usually Mississippi and Louisiana pulling up the rear in social indicators. Unless it’s education. Then it’s California. I would get rid of Delaware. Does it exist anyway? ---
**Author:** ![andygirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@andygirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andygirl)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/6 "2002-04-07T07:47:23Z")
Nope. The N.G.C. in my profile stands for “nonexistent government conspiracy” ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/7 "2002-04-07T07:48:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BobT \* > \*\*I would get rid of Delaware. Does it exist anyway? \*\* [Delaware closed May 21, 1965.](http://www.delawareonline.com/newsjournal/opinion/themal/11151999.html) ---
**Author:** ![heptapod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@heptapod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heptapod)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/8 "2002-04-07T09:10:32Z")
I wish that the government would take states like North and South Dakota, North and South Carolina, West Virginia and Virgina and merge them into a single state. ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/9 "2002-04-07T10:00:08Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by heptapod \* > \*\* West Virginia and Virgina and merge them into a single state. \*\* Well, West Virginia and Virginia were one state until 1863. When the NW corner of Virginia didn’t want to join the rebellion, they applied to the U.S. for statehood on thier own (yes, I know I oversimplified it). Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/10 "2002-04-07T10:53:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by heptapod \* > \*\*I wish that the government would take states like North and South Dakota, North and South Carolina, West Virginia and Virgina and merge them into a single state. \*\* Boy, that’d be an area code nightmare if the Dakotas, Carolinas and Virginas were condensed into a single state 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/11 "2002-04-07T11:27:35Z")
> [@](#): > > North Dakota… it just seems like big empty space, kinda like canada but without the mounties But you know, of course, that that whole area is really South Saskatchewan anyways… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/12 "2002-04-07T11:46:50Z")
Fuse the Upper Penninsula of Michigan (sp?) into Wisconsin. The residents of that area have been complaining about poor administration for over a century. A contigious border & reduced transportation problems would open up this arera for development. Fuse the upper New England States,_i.e. Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire et al–_ into one meta stater. Motive–economy. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/13 "2002-04-07T11:50:04Z")
Government statistoics show that North Dakota has a negative GSP-it takes in more fedrral money (crop subsidies, etc.) than it produces. Its farmers do little for us except raise the national debt. Therefore, it makes sense to close the state down-nobody in his right mind would want to live there anyway. Actually, large parts of the central prairies shoulsd be left to revert to their original wild state-this would greatly reduce the amount we pay out in crop subsidies. A while back, a whole town in N. Dakota was for sale-for $1.00-provided you could find enough people crazy enough to move there! ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/14 "2002-04-07T12:43:02Z")
Florida ---
**Author:** ![peepthis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9d8465/32.png) [@peepthis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peepthis)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/15 "2002-04-07T13:05:57Z")
I’ll be deep in the cold, cold ground before I recognize Missourah! ---
**Author:** ![gex\_gex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/94ad74/32.png) [@gex\_gex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gex_gex)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/16 "2002-04-07T13:26:06Z")
give texas back to mexico. ---
**Author:** ![Skerri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f04885/32.png) [@Skerri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skerri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/17 "2002-04-07T14:08:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by heptapod \* > \*\* North and South Carolina, \*\* Hey hey hey… We residents of South Carolina are already lumped in with those Crazy North Carolinians. And I for one am tired of it, so I say we get rid of North Carolina and call it South Virginia.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Yossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/9de0a6/32.png) [@Yossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yossarian)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/18 "2002-04-07T15:29:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gex gex \* > \*\*give texas back to mexico. \*\* Wasn’t that Joe Bob Briggs’ platform when he ran for Governor? “Let’s give ourselves back to Mexico?” Or maybe Kinky Friedman… I can’t quite recall. ---
**Author:** ![Azure\_Eternity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@Azure\_Eternity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azure_Eternity)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/19 "2002-04-07T15:32:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fairy Princess Kitty \* > \*\*Alabama… I can not think of a single redeeming quality… > Kitty \*\* Me. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![lolagranola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ea5d25/32.png) [@lolagranola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lolagranola)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2002, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283/20 "2002-04-07T15:45:00Z")
We’ll be happy to take Alaska off your hands and make it our next province or territory. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/united-states-contraction-which-states-should-go/102283.md?page=2)