City States in America.

In the early 1970s there was a PBS (Public Broadcasting System) program called The 51st State. The idea was that New York City was or could be a new state with its own perspective and issues. I always liked the idea and wanted it to happen but with additions: Westchester county to the north and Long Island counties Nassau and Suffolk to the east. I wanted this group of municipalities to secede from New York state and join the union as the 51st state. The U.S. constitution has many flaws. An obvious one is the disproportionate nature of the Senate. The founders did not intend for the Senate to be proportionate but they could never have imagined that it would become so hugely disproportionate because they could not have imagined that cities would become so populous. By becoming a city state, New York City would have its own two Senators. This would still not make New York's Senate representation proportionate but it would be a big improvement. New York City State would get direct federal aid. It would no longer need to ask the current New York state legislature for permission on local issues like increasing local sales tax. Currently the rural upstate tail wags the dog. Once New York sets the precedent, all large U.S. cities should follow. They all have the same problem: lack of representation in the Senate proportionate to their large populations. Once cities started to secede the Congress would have no choice but to admit them as city states. If not, they could each become an independent country. Then they could form an alliance. Cool.