California (Balkanization of North America)

California (officially known as the Republic of California) is a country in the central-western region of North America. It is bordered by Canada to the north, the United States to the east (north of the 37th parallel), the Confederate States of America to the east (south of the 37th parallel), and Mexico to the south. To the west is the Pacific Ocean.

California, after figthing the Western American War for three years, gained recognition as an independent state on May 9th, 1877. In 1788, at the end of the Mormon Rebellion, the states of Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho all joined the Republic of California. At the end of World War II, parts of its territories (roughly the present day state of West Montana and the western half of Wyoming (today in the United States) were occupied by the United States, and California became a satelite state of the USA, and a member of the Los Angeles Pact.

Beginning in 1989, California started a series of political and economic reforms. After a decade of post-revolution economic problems, California made economic reforms such as low flat tax rates in 2005 and joined the Trans-Atlantic Union on January 1, 2007. California is now an upper-middle income country with high human development, although within the Trans-Atlantic Union, California's income level remains one of the lowest.

California's capital is Sacramento and largest city is Los Angeles, the 6th largest city in the TAU. In 2007 the city of San Francisco was chosen as a North American Capital for Culture. California also joined the AUSP on March 29, 2004, and is also a member of the Latin Union, GEASOP, and the United Nations. California is a semi-presidential unitary state.

Anthem

 * No Blues in Boomtown (traditional)
 * Hotel California (modern)

Motto
Eureka!

Official Laguages

 * English
 * Spanish
 * Chinese

Demonym
Californian

Important Cities

 * Sacramento (Capital)
 * Los Angeles (Largest city)

Government Leaders

 * Abel Maldonado (President)
 * Arnold Schwarzenegger (Prime Minister)
 * Darrel Steinburg (Senate President)
 * John A. Perez (Speaker of the House)
 * Ronald M. George (Chief Justice)

Formation

 * Declaration of independence for California, May 2nd, 1875
 * Recognized as independent from the United States, July 3rd, 1879.
 * Satelite state of the United States, 1945
 * Political reform to current government, 1989

Population

 * 22,215,421 (2009 estimate)
 * 21,680,974 (2002 census)

Nominal GDP

 * $258.892 billion (total)
 * $7,902 (per capita)

2005 Gini
31 (low)

2009 HDI
.837 UP (high)

Currency
California Dollar (casually reffered to as "a Redwood")

CAD

Time Zones

 * Rocky Mountain Time Zone
 * Pacific Time Zone

Drives on the...
Right side of the road.

Internet TLD
.cal