re: If secession was legal then what right did the North have to keep the South in the USA?

quote:

---

He claimed that in order for the states to sign on the dotted line to agree to become part of the union of states, they were given guarantees that they could withdraw from the union if they felt that the federal government wasn't living up to their end of the agreement.

---

I mean it's possible, but this seems highly unlikely, especially since usually the potential states were the ones petitioning to join. It doesn't make sense that the Federal Government would have the advantage, yet give the states this disproportionate advantage as a condition to join them.

quote:

---

He had a great analogy about a woman having to stay in an abusive marriage because divorce was not an option given to her.

---

This analogy is flawed, because in this case, it would mean, abused or not, the woman would then be the only one with the power to divorce. The man couldn't, and an agreement is not necessary, nor is any legal process really required to re-mediate or arbitrate that matter.

In other words, it would in theory allow a woman, married to a perfectly fine and very rich husband, to divorce him, take all the assets she enjoyed on his behalf, and give him no legal recourse or power whatsoever.