(NaturalNews) In recent years, we have seen states beginning to question federal laws and regulations regarding a range of subjects. States voting in favor of marijuana decriminalization in defiance of federal laws is possibly the most high-profile example in the news these days, but there has been an anti-fed backlash at the state level addressing a number of issues, including healthcare, environmental regulations, education, fiscal policies and other topics.Some of those disgusted with the current leadership in Washington and the general direction that the country seems to be headed, are now calling for the secession of states -- a notion almost unthinkable for most Americans, at least until recently.Many of our nation's citizens are now convinced that the state of affairs in Washington is "unfixable" and that the only hope for America is the breakup of what was once considered an indivisible union.One of the champions of the anti-fed movement is former presidential candidate and member of Congress, Ron Paul, who spoke recently at the libertarian Mise Institute as part of a conference titled "Breaking Away: The Case for Secession."In his speech, Paul noted that secession is "gonna happen" and that this is "good news":Paul pointed out that secession will be a "de facto" movement, not an official one, and that states are already beginning to stand up against the authority of the central government, including the Federal Reserve:"The Fed is gonna end. There is going to be a de facto secession movement going on. The states are going to refuse to listen to some of the laws. We've seen tremendous success already with states saying to the federal government, 'We're not gonna listen to you anymore about the drug laws.' And they're getting out of it, and I think the American people are waking up to that, and as far as I'm concerned, the more the merrier."An article by Chuck Baldwin posted on the WesternJournalism.com website echoes Paul's sentiments and illustrates why many Americans are reaching the same conclusions. Baldwin, like so many other fed-up citizens, firmly believes that things are irreparably broken in our nation's capital, and that the only answer is the rejection of central authority.Baldwin stated:"As much as we liberty-loving, Constitution-loving, America-loving patriots hate to admit it, the government in Washington, D.C., is NOT fixable. The elitist power structure in D.C. is too ensconced and too powerful. ... [N]either party in D.C. has enough Ron Paul-types to thwart the evil machinations of the power-drunk leviathan that is Washington, D.C."Baldwin is one of the growing number of people who see the so-called leadership in Washington as headed in completely the wrong direction, both at home and on the international stage:Those are very strong words, indeed, but is it really surprising that so many Americans are beginning to share the same views? Perhaps it truly is time to seriously consider a dissolution of the central authority in America -- before it's too late...