Arizona's previous split

Arizona's been talking a lot lately about splitting into two states: dividing north-south. In the Civil War era, Arizona (and New Mexico) went through a similar north-south division. When the Union failed to keep mail service going, the southern part of the Arizona territory got miffed and decided to slice itself off and align with the Confederacy. (Northerners apparently weren't so outraged.) Southern Arizonans didn't want slaves, they just wanted somebody to deliver the dang mail--which the Confederacy promised to do. To our modern eyes, it might seem like a silly reason to switch loyalties, but take away WiFi today and you might see a similar revolt. Zoom in on the map above and you can see the actual mail road that was shut down.

Mystery of Pawnee, Indiana SOLVED

NBC's "Parks and Recreation" is located in the fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana. A big fan of the show, I realized the producers had provided enough clues to make it possible to locate the exact position of Pawnee on the Indiana map. That's right, our team of TV forensic scientists have cracked the code and discovered the city's "actual" location. Watch the video! Tweet

Wisconsin battle: Gouda Girls

The fight in Wisconsin gets a lot clearer once you look at a map. The key to Republican strength is the support of the "Gouda Girls" (more on that in a bit). First, look at the 2008 election map (above)--it's positively bizarre! All the state's big cities voted Democrat. The rural counties also went Democrat. The university towns went Democrat. So how did Republican Scott Walker get elected? The exburbs. That is, the areas surrounding the major cities went overwhelmingly Republican. Note the ring of red around Milwaukee. And a similar ring of red in the northwest, just outside the twin cities. That's enough red to win. In Wisconsin, it's the wealthier exburbs vs everyone else. I live in one of those red counties (Ozaukee), and it was fascinating to me that immediately after the Republican convention in 2008, the FIRST place John McCain and Sarah Palin visited was Cedarburg, Wisconsin... in red Ozaukee County. And most of the people in the audience were women. But don't call these staunch Republicans "soccer moms." The weather's only conducive to soccer for about 20 minutes a year. Better to call them "Gouda Girls".... that is, cheeseheads who can afford the fancy stuff. 

Baja Arizona is fresh

Southern Arizona is getting a little fed up with politics in Phoenix—and rekindling the quest for the 51st state. Call it "South Arizona" or "Baja Arizona," the idea is the same—splitting off the more liberal south from the more conservative north. In the last few days, a new committee has been formally created in Pima county, and leaders are working to get the topic on the ballot for the next election. Like most statehood proposals, this isn't a new idea—I documented past efforts in Lost States. While cleaving the 51st state from Arizona seems unlikely... so did ousting Hosni Mubarak. And you'd think the folks in the north would love this idea, since adding a "buffer state" would mean they'd no longer have a border with Mexico (kind of like the imagined Southwest of the infamous Peggy West). Read more in the Tucson Citizen or KOLD-TV.

Marines: Liberia 51st State

When a U.S. military leader "looks at" Liberia as the 51st state, of course, I'm going to take notice. Liberia was actually in the book Lost States, until the publisher had to remove it for space considerations at the last minute. The forward thinking military man is U.S. Marine Master Sergeant Monte C. Stevens, senior enlisted advisor with Operation ONWARD LIBERTY" (How does that fit on his uniform?). The official press release from U.S. Africa Command says "Stevens looks at Liberia as America's 51st state." It's nifty that a government leader made that connection.

In the original manuscript of Lost States,  I wrote: During the mid-1800s, Liberia was an American state. Not officially, of course, but I think you’ll agree that the resemblance was strong enough to merit its inclusion in this book. A peek into the history, culture, and loyalty of the Liberian people reveals the most state-like character you’ll find outside the official 50. Here’s what happened: In 1847, the United States wholeheartedly supported the founding of a mini-America on the west African coast. The idea was to create a place for freed slaves to live in peace. There was just one hitch: Ex-slaves returning to Africa had spent generations in the United States. They were Americans. So when they arrived in Africa, they attempted to set up American institutions. Thus the culture that developed in Liberia reflected the pre-Civil War south, not traditional Africa. The Liberians spoke English, named their cities after the United States’ founding fathers, and even created an American-style flag. If this all seems a bit odd, it shouldn’t. People are products of their surrounding culture, not their ancestry. And that points to the biggest problem faced by the returning ex-slaves. That is, they didn’t have much in common with the Africans who never left. The ex-slaves, dubbed Americo-Liberians, ruled Liberia for more than 200 years, even though they were vastly outnumbered by the native Africans who also called Liberia home. Ethnic tensions gradually rose, leading to a military coup in 1980. That marked the end of legitimate elections, as Liberia devolved into a strongman dictatorship. It’s a sad ending for an idea that began with so much hope and optimism.

While it's fun to see Monte C. Stevens make the same "leap" statehood, I'm even more encouraged by his support of the Liberian people. He said, "This is the most fulfilling assignment I've had in 21 years of service. We are building a relationship here that will never end, and I feel blessed to be a part of it."

If you have any doubt about the Liberian-American connection, check out the flag on the Liberian uniform above.

Pickles and the 53rd state

It looks like an example of product placement in a comic strip, but I'm not that clever. Nonetheless, I think it's cool that one of my favorite comics, "Pickles," made the strongest case yet for adding new US states. See it full size here. (And thanks Fred Bersch, for pointing this out)

4 in 10 Americans want to annex Canada

A very well-administered poll by Leger Marketing of Montreal found that nearly four in 10 Americans favor annexing Canada. So should we get ready to fly a 60-star flag (ABOVE)? Not quite yet. The same poll found only 2 in 10 Canadians wanted to join the U.S. That statistic makes it seem like Canadians have a low opinion of the U.S.--then again, nearly 60 percent of our northern neighbors are in favor of adopting the U.S. dollar as their national currency. Yes, you read that right... they like our money, but don't want to become citizens. That's kinda like the boyfriend who wants all the privileges of living together, but doesn't want to get married. C'mon Canadians, time to commit. And if you don't want to lose your unique culture, maybe we should join you. Yeah, if Canada annexes the U.S., then America's huge national debt would go "poof" because there would be no America. (Enough silly ranting... but do check out the poll here)

51st state elects representative

The 51st state of Washington DC elected it's representative to Congress Tuesday. OK, so Washington DC isn't a state yet. But like most wannabe states, they do have an official-like election to chose a "shadow" representative. The winner receives permission to wander around Congress and pretend; he gets to sit in a special chair and probably wear a secret decoder ring. No disrespect to winner Mike Panetta (above) ... it's just that shadow representatives don't get to do the important stuff... like vote. But I wish him all the best in his 51st state quest. And his 51st state license plates are really cool. I want one.

Law professor wants statehood for bird-poop islands

How's that for a bizarre headline? But you can read the article for yourself--the one where Columbia law professor Christina Duffy Burnett says she's "pulling for" statehood for the tiny island of Palmyra. The US got Palmyra (and 100+ similar islands) in the guano boom... when bird poop was a prized fertilizer. Congress passed a law saying that any unclaimed island with lots of guano could be claimed for the U.S. The learned Prof. Christina Duffy Burnett says that US law creates a legal slippery slope that--in theory--should mean statehood for each guano island. Before professor Burnett, I was the only person goofy enough to propose statehood for a guano island (Navassa, in Lost States). Now there's two of us--and one of us actually knows what she's talking about (hint, it's Prof. Burnett.). Before I get carried away, I should mention that Prof. Christina Duffy Burnett was making a point about the law, not the likelihood of statehood for some abandoned rock in the Atlantic. She kiddingly suggested herself as senator of the new state. At least I think she was kidding. Read the whole thing here. 

Long Island "state flag"

I'm sure that Cesidio Tallini is an excellent designer... and I'm certainly not against Long Island statehood. But the color combination he chose for the state flag of Long Island... is kinda giving me a headache. I thought it was just me, but some specialists in color theory at Penn State agree that orange-on-blue is  a no-no. But don't give up Cesidio... just tweak the colors a bit! Read more here from the Long Island statehood site. And look away before you get a headache!

Yooper rest area = tree

Mother Jones just did a piece on Yooper statehood. For you non-locals, a Yooper us someone who lives in the U.P. (Upper Peninsula) of Michigan. So U. P. = Yoop.... get it? Anyway, statehood for the Upper Peninsula (including portions of northern Wisconsin) has been discussed for many years. Occasionally, the talk gets more serious--like the 1970s proposal of a new state of Superior (see above). The Mother Jones writer makes the point that it's easy to see the cultural difference between lower Michigan and the U.P. by counting the number of public rest areas. The lower part of Michigan has lots of 'em. The U.P.??.... well, they just use a tree. Read more here.

Author talks - Book signing thingy

If you're in the Milwaukee are and you want to catch my Lost States talk, you have two opportunities coming up. (Hey, it's free—and worth every penny!)
-Monday August 23rd at 7PM at Boswell Books on Downer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
-Tuesday August 24th at 7 PM at Next Chapter Books in Mequon, Wisconsin
Of course, I'll sign your book--and I'll even sign that copy you're buying for Uncle Fred for Christmas.
(Wisconsinites, if you're wavering, check out this recommendation from the Journal-Sentinel's Jim Higgins, who I think deserves a Pulitzer this year)
Mike

Is Alaska leaving the U.S.??

Is Alaska leaving the United States? Newsweek magazine tosses around the idea this week. It's not as bizarre as you might think. There is a growing independence party in Alaska; the state has lots of natural resources; and it's only been a U.S. state for 51 years. Heck it wasn't that long along that Alaska was part of Russia. Of course, de-statehood would be a boon to flag makers--we'd all have to go back to a 49 star flag (above).

51st state plates

For ten years, the license plates for residents of the District of Columbia have been emblazoned with the slogan "Taxation Without Representation." It's fine, but a little old school. Now, DC's shadow representative Mike Panetta has proposed a 51st state plate. "We really deserve full statehood," Panetta said. Many DC residents agree, so expect this idea to catch on. So Puerto Rico, the stakes are rising--what's your move? Read more here...

Statehood for Northern Virginia

I thought I covered every possible 51st state proposal in Lost States, but I did miss one or two—like North Virginia. Since the 1970s, the cosmopolitan folk of the northern Virginia area near DC have been kicking around the idea of separating themselves from the downstate folks. The common joke is that if you take Northern Virginia out of Virginia, you get Arkansas. Ouch. It's true that Virginia is big; the twelfth biggest state. And it stretches farther west than Detroit. Some very important people have suggested splitting the state, including supervisor Martha Pennino (pictured above). The idea hasn't gotten too far... yet. But if you meld it with the DC statehood proposal, it makes both ideas more feasible. Read an extensive article about the differences between north and south Virginia here. And for more about the idea to combine Northern Virginia with DC to make the 51st state, read this. 

The Last, Worst Place

What place name is dead last in the geographic dictionary? It's Zzyzx, on the Interstate between LA and Vegas. It was a resort, of sorts, created out of nothing by Curtis Howe Springer. Springer made enormous sums of money by selling "medicine" that was nothing more than fruit juice. Eventually, the FDA caught up with him and the whole enterprise went belly-up. But the remains of his resort still exist... read more about it here.

How many states again?

American Crossroads is one of those political action committees that likes to communicate via TV ads. They may be fine folks, I don't know. What I do know is that they seem confused about the number of states in America. In the ad slamming Harry Reid, the narrator says:
Recent data show Nevada ranks 50th in the money received from Harry's stimulus bill. That's right -- Senate leader Harry Reid has gotten his own state less help than every other state but one. 
But one? Huh? If you rank 50th, and one state is worse, that means America has 51 states. Didn't someone involved in this production notice this? Watch the ad for yourself, above.

Stephen Colbert explains DC statehood

OK, so Washington D.C.'s not a state, but why can't the residents of DC at least get their own senator or member of congress? The most cogent explanation around comes from Stephen Colbert. Watch it here.

When Japan invaded America

It's true. Nearly 70 years ago, during WWII, Japan invaded a portion of the U.S. and held the land for more than a year. The location was Alaska, specifically Attu and Kiska islands. The invasion took place on June 6th and 7th 1942. The U.S. didn't put up much of a fight, since most of the island's residents had been evacuated--sort of. The U.S. government had sent the native Aleuts to internment camps on the mainland. Nearly a year later, US forces took back Attu, but the hand-to-hand combat meant considerable loss of life on both sides.  After victory in Attu, the US invaded Kiska, but the Japanese had already secretly evacuated. July 28th marks the 68th anniversary of the end of Japanese occupation of American soil.

Ann Coulter supports Alberta statehood

Love her or hate her, you have to admit that Ann Coulter knows how to get attention. And so when she mentioned that Alberta should become the 51st state, Canadian ears perked up. While Canadian media were all over the story, Americans didn't hear much about this when Ann made her remarks a few months ago. In case you missed it, here is the link. Of course, you can read the full story of Alberta's (and British Columbia's) potential statehood in Lost States.