It's time for me to revive an idea I broached in this column nearly two decades ago, before the mad rush to be first on the block with a presidential primary. Back then, a state gained prominence by being big and populous, regardless of when it held its primary.

So my proposal was for the creation of a megastate out of that beautiful, sprawling land that gets no respect in cultural, economic or political circles: the land we call Appalachia.

This year, Florida and Michigan Democrats got themselves into trouble by reaching rashly for prominence. They wanted their states to share in the glory of early primaries, hoping thereby to have greater influence over the choice of the presidential nominee, whoever he or she might be.

The party told them to wait their turn, but they held their primaries anyhow, and the party stood its ground: Michigan and Florida broke the rules, so the delegates chosen in their primaries wouldn't be counted.

Seeing as how those delegates could decide which of the surviving candidates gets the nomination, the Democrats are between a rock and a hard place. All because those states tried to defy the mother party and grab a few headlines every four years.

Neither Florida nor Michigan needed the glory. Florida is a megastate, with nearly 18 million citizens standing on its spongy soil. Michigan comes close, with more than 10 million citizens trying to keep the automobile assembly lines going. Other than Florida, only one former Confederate state — Texas — has made it into the megastate category.

But then Texas and Florida are not really Southern states anymore. Texans think of themselves as Westerners, and Florida is really a piece of Long Island that broke away and drifted south, accumulating sand as it went, until it snagged against the coast of Georgia.

The South has a hard time competing with the West for the evolution of megastates. Our states are just too small. So back in the early '90s, with the help of a dinner of crawdads and grits down in Charleston, S.C., I dreamed up an idea. Why don't we create a big old megastate out of a section of the Southeast that nobody wants anyway? Why don't we create the Great State of Appalachia?

Wouldn't Nashville, Richmond, Raleigh and Frankfort love to get rid of those hill folks who keep pestering them for more money for roads and schools (but no new taxes, perish the thought)? Do the people on Hilton Head Island, that lush colony of golf-playing millionaires at the southern tip of South Carolina, really have at heart the interests of Walhalla, at the gateway to the Blue Ridge? Wouldn't Montgomery and Mobile love to get rid of Huntsville as a rival for Alabama's second-largest city?

The Appalachia of my vision would take in the vast territory stretching from the Maryland Panhandle across West Virginia and Southwest Virginia into Eastern Kentucky, Eastern Tennessee, Western North Carolina, Northwest South Carolina, North Georgia and Northeast Alabama.

It would take in the entire state of West Virginia and 33 counties in Virginia, starting just beyond the Washington suburbs and extending down the Shenandoah Valley and westward to the coal fields. It would include 35 counties in Tennessee, stretching from Chattanooga toward the North Carolina and Virginia borders. It would follow the mountain ridges across 25 North Carolina counties. Kentucky would contribute 25 counties. South Carolina would give up four. Georgia would chip in 19 small ones and Alabama would ante up 10. Maryland would come across with four.

The resulting state would cover around 110,000 square miles, making it about the size of Colorado. It would boast a population of 10 million or more, putting it right up there with Michigan. But look at the room it would have to grow! If it could just reach the population density of non-Appalachian Virginia, it would have more than 22 million people.

Appalachia would include a number of bustling metropolitan areas. I stopped its boundaries just short of Atlanta and Birmingham. Neither city is a cultural part of Appalachia. Tennessee would contribute three major metropolitan areas: Knoxville with more than 600,000 people, the Tri-Cities — Kingsport, Johnson City and Bristol — with more than 450,000, and Chattanooga with upward of 450,000.

The largest metro area would be Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, which fits into the small corner of South Carolina where the Georgia and North Carolina borders converge. It boasts around 800,000 citizens.

Other sizable metro areas would be present-day Charleston, W.Va., Roanoke and Lynchburg in Virginia, Asheville, N.C., and Huntsville, Ala. The big state would embrace the football powers of Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Clemson.

Where would its capital be? Charleston, W.Va., already has a state house and a governor's mansion, so it would be a strong candidate. Knoxville and Chattanooga would press powerful claims. If you're looking for the most central location, the Tennessee Tri-Cities would be about at dead center. But if Tallahassee in the Panhandle can exercise hegemony over the whole Florida peninsula, why shouldn't Huntsville be the center of government for Appalachia?

Let Michigan and Florida arm wrestle ministates such as Iowa and New Hampshire for the primary bragging rights. If we hurry, Appalachia can become the 51st state, ahead of Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia and we can throw our weight around in the Electoral Collage. Who's gonna introduce a statehood bill?

(Readers may write Gene Owens at 317 Braeburn Drive, Anderson SC 29621, or e-mail him at WadesDixieco@AOL.coml)