SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – As the national debt ticked up to an all-time high, a person found a unique way to pay it down — even if it is just a joke.

Change.org user Ian Hammond created a petition that calls for the sale of Montana to Canada for $1 trillion to “eliminate the national debt.”

As of Tuesday morning, the petition had garnered more than 8,000 signatures.

The petition is two sentences long: “We have too much debt and Montana is useless. Just tell them it has beavers or something.”

The petition’s signers included people from Montana.

“I’m Montanan and hoping to join Canada without the moving costs,” wrote CJ Williams. “Let’s do this. Please adopt us.”

“I am from Montana and if enough people see this state as ‘useless’ then I will gladly go with it because I don’t want to be part of a country that disregards an Agriculture based economy and it’s national parks it’s so proud of,” wrote Jessica Moody. “Peace out Montanans will take the good stuff you didn’t realize they had with them!”

Other signers wondered if additional states could be added to the sale.

“Can we get the south in this deal too?” wrote Charlene Larson. “I would love to be a part of Canada and have health care and be able to afford to go to the doctor!”

One signer reiterated a point made in the petition.

“It totally has beavers,” wrote Eric Johnson.