They dodged the searchlights, the hounds, and the barbed wire. Now, they are on the loose… and we and others are planning our escape.

"Frexit!" say the French.

"Nexit!" say the Dutch.

"Ciao!" say the Italians.

"Italy may be next," says the Financial Times, anticipating a crucial vote coming up in October. And after more than 1,000 years of empire building, even the United Kingdom looks less united.

Scotland is now likely to hold a second referendum on independence from the rest of Britain – which, if successful, would allow it to rejoin the EU.

And Irish republican party Sinn Féin is calling for a vote in Northern Ireland on whether it wants to rejoin the EU by unifying with the Republic of Ireland (which remains in the now 27-country EU bloc).

Here in the U.S., "Texit" – independence for the Lone Star State – has already been proposed. Maryland's elders have so far held their tongues. (They remember that the last time they spoke in favor of "Maryexit" Lincoln put them in jail.) But other states must be considering their options.