Random Question About the US

What is the District of Columbia and why is your nation's capital in it instead of Virginia?

Pitchfork Material, Rebecca.

Who the hell knows? Or maybe I should say who cares? LOL I do know that some DC residents are pushing for statehood now.

Your question made me wonder so I googled it and found this: Article One of the United States Constitution provides for a federal district, distinct from the states, to serve as the permanent national capital.

The idea is that because the US federal government is made of people who are to represent their state, if the capitol were to be in a state, that state may have an economic or representational advantage over other states. DC is like a city, with a mayor. They don't have a Congressman, a Senator, and can't vote in national elections. Our capitol has been in Philadelphia, New York, Annapolis (Maryland), Baltimore (Maryland), Lancaster (Pennsylvania), York (Pennsylvania), Princeton (New Jersey), Trenton (New Jersey), and briefly during the war of 1812 it was supposed to be in Danville, Kentucky, although in reality it was traveling around Kentucky on horseback because they didn't have time to build a building.

But the idea came about because when we first formed up, we were more like Europe (a bunch of small nations that decided to use the same money) rather than a nation. The states that joined didn't trust that whichever one had the capitol wouldn't use it to screw the others.

what Karen said, and why I knew that I dunno.

Good to know. Thanks!

Yep. thats just one of those bits of trivia that you know, but you dont know how you know.. LOL

The people who live in DC actually have less 'federalness' than the ones that live in Purto Rico.

I think the general thinking was it just being a 'place to stay and work' not a HOME type place. BUT many people made it home. People who are not even in the govt.

thebigscott wrote: Our capitol has been in Philadelphia, New York, Annapolis (Maryland), Baltimore (Maryland), Lancaster (Pennsylvania), York (Pennsylvania), Princeton (New Jersey), Trenton (New Jersey), and briefly during the war of 1812 it was supposed to be in Danville, Kentucky, although in reality it was traveling around Kentucky on horseback because they didn't have time to build a building.

I never knew this! I hated History but this part is pretty darn interesting.

Connie, they used to move it around during war times to prevent attacks and to protect the leadership. The move to Kentucky was planned because it was thought that Kentuckians were so uncivilized and dangerous that no European force could possibly take the capitol if it was in Kentucky. We Kentuckians were known throughout Europe for gouging out eyes during unarmed combat and one of the Prussian generals in WWI commented that Kentuckians entirely missed the point of warfare. We didn't care about winning or losing, we only wanted to kill people!