Upstate New York, the 51th state?

Spend even a little time in public life in the North Country and you’ll hear this argument: our taxes are so high because we’re sending money down to New York City to support all those people and the public services they consume.

We’ve reported quite a bit over the years that it’s actually that opposite. As NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg testified in January, NYC sends $11 billion more to Albany than it receives. And Queens lawmaker Peter Vallone, Jr., wants the City to secede from the state:

“Every day we are given another reason to secede,” he said, offering as but one example Albany’s paralysis over a rescue plan for the city’s transit system. The Legislature, he said, is “probably second only to Somalia when it comes to ineffectiveness.”

As a lifelong Upstater, I’ve heard numerous calls for secession from our side. A friend of mine used to say, “I Love New York…but I draw the line at Yonkers.”

Do you think Upstate New York could survive as its own entity? Or do our fortunes rest in the five boroughs?