Okay, when I finally stop laughing I will be able to continue to read this story.....

With analysts like him working for the KGB, I now understand how the Soviet Union collapsed.

A note to Mr. Panarin: literally nobody in any of the "6 regions" would accept the overlords you propose. You have no understanding of the resolve of Americans, or any free people, to continue to live freely.

But hey, if you're gonna fantasize, you might as well go big.

See you in 2011!

How much vodka does this guy drink a day?

One could take this seriously, but there is no serious response, except to say the guy has no understanding of the United States. The only rational interpretation is that this guy is putting out propaganda for the Kremlin -- which leads me to wonder why some US news agency is repeating it.

really?
Russia can have Alaska if they take Palin with it
because she can see Russa from her house any way

"because she can see Russa from her house any way"

She never said that. The person playing her said that on SNL.

Yeah, this is strictly propaganda. And this guy is an expert on the U.S.? Please, say it ain't so.

This guy believes that the Western states would willingly be influenced or taken over by China? Nice joke.

He also believes that the North Eastern and Mid Atlantic states would join the E.U. Another nice joke.

What about the South Eastern states joining Mexico, come on! This guy can't be serious. Lmfao!

If the U.S. collapses financially, this is my prediction: the North American Union probably becomes a reality. I won't type(write) a thesis on it, but a North American Union sounds a lot better than being divided and subjugated by a bunch of foreign despots. Or the U.S. recovers financially and the march to a North American Union still proceeds but at a slower pace.

Secondly, Russia is dreaming if they think they can take Alaska, let's say for the sake of argument that the U.S. collapses. Alaska has a lot of nukes on its soil, most of the northern command, air force is there. Russia can dream. I bet the Alaskans wouldn't lose sleep lodging a few nukes at Moscow.

You're dealing with the Russian mentality here. I think this article sheds more light on the Russians than it does us. Their solution to financial crisis is civil war, and one would only have to look at their history to see this. The American people have shown that they will resolve a financial crises without resorting to violence and breakup to achieve financial stability.

I am an undergraduate political science major at UCSD. I just happened to find this article while browsing. I must say that this Russian professor either does not understand United States at all, he is insane, or this is state propaganda like some have said in their response. According to the current situation, the nation will not break up unless there is really that much of a difference and tension between the sections. So far I have not seen the tension. If we actually collapse I agree that we will actually proceed into North American Union.

Civil war by next fall? I don't see any one issues being pressed that hard that we are going to be killing fellow Americans in the next few months. We might have our differences, but we have learned to solve them over the two centuries history of this republic. This is why there is federalism. For doesn't it say in our motto E Pluribus Unum; Out of many, one?

Thus may God continue to bless these United States of America

Sorry, I meant, "lobbing", not, "lodging" on my first post.

this seems more like a wish than a real analysis. This guy is smoking some good stuff. This guy absolutely does not understand the fabric of this country. The most important and basic element of economics is 'Demand' and as long as Americans keep demanding and consuming products from all over the world the world will do everything it can to support the American system. America lives on...... Anyone can succeed here.

Phone call between Russians:

Um, hullo there Ivan this is cousin Grigory, put vodka down and listen to me, if US splits into 6 separate countries then swine will fly and some fat guy in a red and white suit will bring us more vodka. I want that one place they call Wisconsin, I hear the girls are with big breasts and they have winter like here...Let's have a toast to us eh, cousin...? Ivan? are you there? (snore...)

Okay uhh, call me today ok?, tomorrow I go to St. Petersburg and see our uncle Pitor. - Dosvedanya!

Who is Panarin kidding? - probably himself, but certainly not me.

now that the Weekly World News is out of business, and the market for wild-eyed, far-fetched predictions has consequently shrunk.

We may be facing the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, but we are a contrary nation. If you say we can't do something, you can be sure that we can. It is our freedom (and with that comes great flaws and even greater mistakes) that encourages innovation. Unlike many other countries, we have the ability to reinvent ourselves -continually. We aspire to that great ideal conveyed in our Constitution - aspire being the operative word. Let me know when you find Utopia Panarin. It's most likely found at the bottom of your bottle of vodka. Should the U.S. fall, it won't just be Americans mourning her death.

Florida won't be part of the Texas republic - jeez it will succeed and be part of a new country including Cuba and Puerto Rico and the Caribbean Islands!

The guy is a dingbat and not an original one at that. Back in the '70s and '80s there was a movement--if you can charitably call what was probably all of a dozen people a 'movement'--among some Americans to split the US into four regions. As I recall this would have been along the lines of the map shown here. The odd ducks are, of course, Alaska and Hawaii due to their relative geographic isolation from the lower 48. Panarin solved it by just giving these two states to other countries. I could not find anything about this earlier suggestion on the 'Net and I have long ago discarded the hard copies of the mags I first read this in. Anybody remember where this idea came from?

This theory was discussed on Michael Medved’s radio show yesterday (12-30-2008). His take and challenge to callers was that the US has been through many difficult crises in its history and has come through. This history he suggested makes such a scenario very remote. He challenged callers to suggest what could drive such a splitting of the country.

I wanted to call and suggest that the past history of the country does not provide for a couple of trends that have been occurring and could well lead to a substantial crisis and a splitting of the county.

The acceptance and reach of collectivism in the US has been growing for 150 years and now with the election of the democrats, we could be clearly past the point where most realize that they can “vote themselves money” by further undermining the individualism that has been the motive force behind our growth and wealth for over 200 years. People often invoke the analogy of a pendulum when talking about the oscillations of policy over time from individualism to collectivism and back. It could be that a ratchet wrench is a more apt analogy when it comes to the advancement of collectivism. Once a benefit is conferred, it is nearly impossible to roll it back. There have been some exceptions such as welfare reform. But the catastrophe of social security, medicare and Medicaid with a current unfunded liability of 100 trillion dollars according to a recent trustee report is a far more serious concern. These are Ponzi schemes as currently configured and the day of reckoning is not far off. (2010 could be a little premature.).

Look also at the continued progressivism in the tax code with the Obama administration wanting to increase and already unstable situation. If the tax burden is completely removed from most of the electorate, there will be no correction mechanism from further taxing of the “rich”. Since the “rich” includes the upper part of the middle class, this is seed for growing resentment and splitting the country by promoting class envy and a large client constituency of the federal government’s collectivist programs. It is very hard to see how this will reach equilibrium (the ratchet effect).

When the democrats go too far this time, it will be very difficult if not impossible to expect another Reagan like figure emerging that will bring us back. As much as Reagan accomplished, we must recognized that the growing collectivist state was not really brought under control. Now there will be too many people that will be vested in the collectivist state for a reversal to be possible at the ballot box. It could be that a split of the country, possibly along the lines proposed by Prenarin, will be the outcome of these building pressures.

Can we recover the limited government we once had where the 10th amendment was observed? It is hard for me to see how we can educate our populace at this point. I would love to see this happen but a serious revolution in the media and our schools must occur so that the masses can be re-taught about the importance of limited government and personal freedom and responsibility.

Russians have nothing to offer the world....stay in Line for Bread Commie!

That's sounds like so much fun I can't wait but when it happens I am moving from Mississippi to South Carolina I don't want to become a Mexican. Everybody should cut south carolina a break it really is a nice place. I don't think it will be a civil war people will probably realize how fun it will be and just seperate peacefully.

Wake up u dopes. y r we called the UNITED states of America if we fight. Were is every1's mind

While most American that have heard about the impending creation of a North American Union believe it to be propaganda, the proposed N.A.U. will be patterned after the European Union and it's threat to America is real and imminant.

With the formation of any concept of American structure changing our existance, the United States will cease to be, as it's Constitutuion will then be null and void.

There are now in place agreements to allow Canadian Military to enforce the law in America by placing their Canadian troops on American soil in the "event of disaster or civil unrest". Signed by George W. Bush without consulting Congress or notifying the American people.

Since America is prohibited from using it's troops against our own citizens, they are attempting to by-pass these provisions using Canadian forces to quell any problems arising from the forced change to the concept of a N.A.U.

Once America has lost it's Constitutional protections America will no longer exist and the American dream of freedom and security will vanish as quick as a wisp of smoke in a thunderstorm.

America has been driven into a bankruptcy even our great grandchildren would be trying to recover from during their lives. The situation naive Americans now preceive as troublesome are in actuality the beginning of a chaotic slide to inevitable distruction of American values.

American will only be saved by it's citizens accepting the true nature of the forces and intent of our internal enemies. There is a greater danger from within our borders than from those who now theaten us from abroad. Each terrorist activity has been a temporary situation with the combatants changing from generation to generation. The threat we now face from within America will be much more devastating.

Is this guy for real? He obviously has no idea what America is about. We're the UNITED States for a reason, it's not just a name. Russians... lol

And yeah we're going to take a LONG time to get out of this. So maybe our great grandchildren will be stil recovering from this, but our great-great grandchildren won't. It's not like America has an expiration date of 300 years and then suddenly (its ka-bam). It's just like a marriage, you work through things, even when it gets tough.

SO let me get this straight...in this retards infinate wisdom Alaska will go to Russia. I think this guy should be put in an insane asylum. With professors like this guy...I question the education system in Russia and fear their collapse rather than ours. I mean...if they don't have a country to hold all the stupid people in...they will spread stupidity throughout the world.

I wonder if this guy realizes the economy of California is as big if not bigger than that of the Chinese economy. Also, the government is less corrupt, the people are much richer, and the state has much more innovation. I doubt they would willingly go to China. Same with Texas. Something tells me Mexico doesn't have the ability to gobble up Texas.

Everyone would be opposed except Sean Penn and Barbara Streisand anyway.

Call me nuts, but I think the Republic can survive another two years.

Heee.. Igor busted out of the funny farm again

He's got the map wrong.

Idaho, Wyoming and Montana would stay together. He's apparently never been to those states.

When all comes down.....The Bible tells just what is going to happen! Try reading and studying it! As for all of us here in the USA... We are going to go down and not even see it happen as it is happening RIGHT NOW! As for us southern's, which I am born and breed, there will be a civil war if the new president implements gun control! Besides that, Bush has already screwed us up with his tag on marital law, that so quickly moved through Congress on the tail end of a piece of legislated material. Don't you people get it? Most of the presidents are ALL RELATED and go back to the Queen of England in family relatives.........The elite have it warpped up. How about reading about the Masons [most presidents were!] or the Bilderburg Society! 'Don't rememberr which president took the gold back dollar out or even institued the "Federal Reserve [it sounds good BUT GUESS WHAT! The Fed. Reserve is privately OWNED!] We have been SCAMMED
and becasue of that we are DOOMED!

America is indebted to china,europe,japan and others it makes sense that if we have a total collapse we will pay our debts to our debtors with our land and our soverinty..alaska to russia for oil...texas and others to mexico for oil ,some to canada for oil..some to china for sheer debt and some to japan for sheer debt...

Sounds nuts but this would all be done by our elite political class without the american peoples consent or knowledge until it was to late..chinese california for example would suddenly get an infusion of jobs and relief from china..the people would be greatful but not understand the full implications of why just yet..

Meanwhile for example the canadian sector would recieve the canadian health care package and survival assistance disguised as lets say ameri-aid and big agricultural aid to start growing and raising food again..

All of this would appear and be advertised to be getting done by our defunct bankrupt goverment which is at that point in reality merely dissolving our nation and acting as a liquidator and transition overseer...

In our particular rule based society and with the scum that govern our people this scenario could eventually happen but there is always going to be those of us that are prepared to try and stop it should it actually come to something like this...

There might be civil war, but this guy doesn't see the rivalry between states; and there is no way that Canada or Mexico are powerful enough to take over large chunks of America. Last time there was a secession, they formed their own country, the CSA. It wasn't taken over by Mexico. And I think Japan would want to stay out of this, especially after what happened in WW2. I think a North American Union would be formed before this happened, though. It's already on the way: think of NAFTA, GATT, SPP.

i can see the possibility of a breakup or civil war, but definitely not in 2010. then again, chaotic times breed great people, especially in powerful countries like america. it's really uncertain what'll happen, though i can see what he's saying, especially now.
either way, i don't see any of the potential nation-states being formed from this break being absorbed by other countries. at least not the the way that he said it'll happen. he may think he's an expert, but it doesn't really seem like he's done his research.