tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38775555428613793312023-11-16T00:43:41.150-06:00Lost StatesFrom the author of "Lost States," a blog about proposed U.S. states and other geographic curiosities. Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.comBlogger250125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-8404106021738319022014-12-01T19:08:00.000-06:002016-09-06T19:36:23.538-05:00New book by Michael Trinklein<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Check out the new book from Michael Trinklein, the author of Lost States. Titled <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QEMK8SW/oregontrailwe"><i>Fun Maps: A quirky collection of geographic curiosities</i>,</a> it's an eclectic collection of grin-inducing maps—priced at just $3.99.<br />
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Richly illustrated, this book offers an entertaining stream of delightful maps and fascinating facts. Discover the city that wants to switch states, the patch of Idaho where crimes can’t be prosecuted, and the Civil War plan for the <i>north</i> to secede. </div>
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Learn about the U.S. Congressman who made the most incredible geographic blunder of all time, the U.S. coin that botched the map of Georgia, and a list of movies that get their geography all wrong. Find the place where 5 states meet (almost), and learn the most-likely location of Atlantis. Best of all, <i>Fun Maps</i> has dozens of original maps, all optimized for viewing on your Kindle.</div>
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Many of these tidbits have been written about in this blog; <i>Fun Maps</i> brings it all together in one entertaining package.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QEMK8SW/oregontrailwe">Get your copy here.</a></div>
Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-88444433307350155842013-12-07T11:56:00.001-06:002013-12-07T11:56:03.787-06:00Canada - U.S. merger<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Should Canada and the United States merge? What once might have seemed like a crackpot idea is given a very serious look in Diane Francis' new book <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Merger-Century-Canada-America-Country/dp/0062325019/oregontrailwe">Merger of the Century: Why Canada and America Should Become One Country. </a> </i>Her premise is that Canada needs the United States' protection—and capital. And the United States needs Canada's untapped natural resources and strategic land mass. It's a perfect match according to Francis. Of course, this isn't a new idea. Had a few battles in the War of 1812 gone differently, the amalgamation of the two countries might have happened 200 years ago. And whenever Quebec threatens secession (as it did seriously in the 1980s and again in the 90s), there is talk about which of the other provinces might join the U.S. What's new is Francis careful weighing of the economic and political issues as they stand today. The Wall Street Journal found the idea interesting, and devoted two-thirds of a page to Francis' ideas. But the Journal had no map! So I created one (above.)Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-33677061967820535282013-11-27T09:30:00.001-06:002013-11-27T09:30:16.362-06:00How the British see the states<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Buzzfeed asked a bunch of British people to fill in a map of the states, and many did surprisingly well—better than the average American. Some of their state names were wrong, but better than the actual names. For example, one person filled in the Nebraska space with "Middleshire." Nice. And what elementary school kid wouldn't agree that a better name for Colorado is "Squaresies." My personal favorite was the person who (working from north to south) added North Dakota, South Dakota, and Further South Dakota (above). See all the maps <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/robinedds/its-thanksgiving-so-we-asked-some-brits-to-label-the-us-stat">here</a>.Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-20711513904943303312013-11-06T10:22:00.001-06:002013-11-22T18:46:33.229-06:00Denver Post fact-check<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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I take no pleasure in correcting the <i>Denver Post, </i>or their source Prof. Richard Collins, a constitutional law expert at the University of Colorado—but, well, <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_24461077/11-counties-weigh-secession-from-colorado-formation-51st">they got it wrong yesterday.</a> In the Post's article on state secession efforts in Colorado, writer Monte Whaley wrote, "The last time a state consented to the loss of territory was when Maine split from Massachusetts in 1820." That's not accurate. First, West Virginia split from Virginia in 1863. Thus the Virginia legislature did consent to the loss of territory. However, many would argue that the Virginia legislature that signed off wasn't the "real" legislature, it was a dummy group that was quickly formed by northern politicians when the "true" Virginia seceded from the United States.<br />
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So I can forgive Prof. Collins that oversight, but not the split of California in 1859. Southern "Californios" were so concerned about the massive influx of gold rush miners in the north, they pitched the idea of splitting California. And in 1859 the California legislature DID consent to split the state in two. The U.S. Congress did not act, but the state did, an important landmark that is often forgotten.<br />
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And if we want to get technical, there have been dozens of times that states have consented to give up small bits of territory. For example, in 1977 Texas gave away land to Mexico near the city of Rio Rico. So hopefully the Denver Post will issue a correction, and Prof Collins will pick up a copy of <i> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lost-States-Michael-J-Trinklein/dp/1594744106/oregontrailwe">Lost States</a> </i>;)<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">by Michael Trinklein</span><br />
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<br />Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-38506748139270034602013-11-05T13:10:00.001-06:002013-11-22T18:46:47.046-06:00Raise a Stink<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Jake Grovum at Stateline talked with me last week... and wrote a nice piece focusing on the side of the 51st state issue that is all too often forgotten. That is, the goal in places like Colorado isn't really to get a new state, it's to get the government pay attention. From that perspective, the Colorado movement has been a big success. <span class="s1"><a href="http://kunc.org/post/squeaky-wheel-politics-colorado-secession-vote">Read more here.</a></span><br />
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="font-size: x-small;">by Michael Trinklein</span></div>
<br />Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-3341767251258246842013-10-18T14:50:00.000-05:002013-11-22T18:46:57.805-06:0061 State map<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The <i>New Republic </i>envisions all the statehood movements getting approved... and creates a map to reflect the new reality. While none of the statehood movements on their map stand much of a chance, it does help to visualize the red/blue divide even more precisely than the usual presidential election maps. While I appreciate writer Nate Cohn taking on this issue, he oddly neglects the one statehood movement that actually has a chance: Puerto Rico. <a href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/115001/state-secession-61-states-america">Read the article here.</a><br />
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="font-size: x-small;">by Michael Trinklein</span>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-20776478747039537222013-10-15T14:49:00.003-05:002013-11-22T18:47:10.496-06:00Business Week weighs in<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Claire Suddath from <i>Business Week</i> weighs in on the current flurry of statehood proposals. (She interviewed me for about a half-hour or so a few days ago). The story does a nice job of putting the issue in some historical context, and connecting these movements to the recent polarization in politics. <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-10-14/why-are-so-many-counties-trying-to-secede-from-their-states">You can read the full story here. </a><br />
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="font-size: x-small;">by Michael Trinklein</span>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-88302399038981897482013-10-07T14:54:00.000-05:002013-10-15T15:00:31.985-05:00New York Times<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The <i>New York Times</i> includes a quote from me on their story about the proposed state of West Colorado. Thanks Jack Healy. <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/07/us/fed-up-on-the-prairie-and-voting-on-seceding-from-colorado.html">Read the story here.</a>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-54061261596072114052013-08-27T18:08:00.000-05:002013-11-22T18:47:23.318-06:004 new states from Maryland?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Just looking at map of Maryland makes it clear it's one of the most poorly-designed states—with ungainly tentacles spreading in all directions. The result has been a long list of proposals to carve out new states: Folks on the eastern side of Chesapeake bay have regularly clamored for separation. Washington DC (which is not actually part of Maryland, of course) also wants statehood. Now, western Maryland is getting into the act. <a href="http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/local/new-windsor-man-seeks-amicable-divorce-of-five-counties-from/article_f35d3ff4-a991-5e5f-8a5e-0fb725ed3a08.html">“Western Maryland: A New State Initiative,”</a> has been launched by a guy named Scott Strzelczyk. My map above overlays Strzelczyk's proposed state on top of the other statehood proposals in the region. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">While the West Maryland idea has no practical chance to create the 51st state, there is a strategy that separatists like Strzelczyk might consider. I'll call it the "Middle County Swap"—and it would work like this:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Let's say you have two states that border each other, Blueland and Redland. Blueland tends to vote 51 percent for the Blue Party, and Redland votes 51 percent for the Red Party. Those margins are too close for the majority leaders in each state--who sweat out each election. Now, let's say the overwhelming majority of the voters in the Middle Counties vote for the Blue Party. They are sick of being governed by the Red Party so they petition to secede from Redland and join Blueland. This is actually good for Red Party leaders in Redland, because—despite becoming a slightly smaller state--they could now be assured of Red victories going forward. Because if the Middle Counties secede from Redland, then Redland has a higher percentage of Red voters. Blue Party leaders in Blueland get the same desirable outcome, that is, a higher percentage of Blue Party voters in their state. And Middle County voters get what <i>they</i> want; governance by the Blue Party. The only people who don't win in this scenario are the minority parties in each state who lose clout. They might not like it, but because they are minorities, they can be outvoted. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">So if </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Scott Strzelczyk really wants to make changes to the governance in his region, he might look to join neighboring Pennsylvania, West Virginia, or Virginia. It's still a long, long, long shot... but it seems more feasible than creating a 51st state. </span><br />
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><span style="font-size: x-small;">by Michael Trinklein</span><br />
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Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-74771657916091987142013-08-25T14:43:00.000-05:002013-10-15T15:01:11.101-05:005 Tips for "North Colorado"Time Magazine asked me to write a piece offering tips to proponents of the 51st state of "North Colorado." <a href="http://ideas.time.com/2013/08/25/5-tips-for-north-colorado-1-get-a-new-name/">So here are my top 5 ideas...</a>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-72554520723558011242013-08-22T07:50:00.001-05:002013-10-15T15:01:46.521-05:00"Time" quotes yours truly<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I talked with <i>Time</i> magazine yesterday about the statehood plan brewing in northern Colorado. Nate Rawlings wrote a nice piece which includes a couple quotes from me and a mention of <i>Lost States. </i>Thanks Nate!<i> </i><a href="http://nation.time.com/2013/08/22/red-state-blue-state-old-state-new-state-northern-colorado-tries-to-secede/">You can read it here.</a></span></div>
<br />Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-422086293603314472013-08-20T20:23:00.001-05:002013-10-15T15:01:31.935-05:0051st State in the High Plains<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfQOUhA_vCJNaEYrUezs4CpV7YL3dsWRPD3vKsf8s9SSTz2OHmEK9Rw-wzh26rl3TfHxhq1f6lXtegRQNmnkHlVJY5S8mjAXjs3prh8sknSx1eToRpyAPPUiddpPt-tFBazFoemE2rJ_Bb/s1600/high-plains.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;" /></h2>
<span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">A number of counties in northeastern Colorado are <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2013/08/19/colorado-county-to-vote-on-secession/">talking about creating a new state</a>—and it's more than just talk, as ballot measures and votes are happening in several counties. Does this movement have any hope? The answer may surprise you. First, if the question is, "Will the movement get results for its backers?" then the answer is almost certainly "yes." Every time a movement like this gets going, it stems from some perceived inequity. Typically people in outlying areas feel like the central government isn't responsive. So they threaten secession, which attracts enough attention to get some concessions from officials in the more populated areas. In the case of Colorado, the end result of this might be some compromise on fracking laws which have been divisive. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Now, if the movement truly wants to create a new state, they have some work to do. First, the counties of northeastern Colorado don't have nearly the population they'd need to start a new state. So I'd suggest they expand their reach and try and join with other statehood movements in the region. Western Kansas pushed for statehood in the 1990s; residents of eastern Wyoming and western South Dakota have long pressed for a state called <a href="http://loststates.blogspot.com/2009/12/new-york-times-on-absaroka_26.html">Absaroka</a>; and several movements have attempted to split off the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles to form the state of <a href="http://loststates.blogspot.com/2011/07/family-trip-be-thankful-for-good-roads.html">Texlahoma</a>. Melding all these together creates a legitimate-sized state. I'd call it High Plains, but that's open for debate. Maybe "Lincoln" would be better. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I give credit to Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway who <a href="http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/northeastern-colorado-is-getting-ready-to-secede-20130820">seems to understand</a> that, practically speaking, states have to enter the Union in pairs (One leaning Democrat, one Republican). Puerto Rico wants statehood, and would be the perfect match for High Plains.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">While High Plains would be among the reddest of red states, Democrats are realizing this might not be such a bad idea. New Republic magazine notes that removing red counties from Colorado <a href="http://www.newrepublic.com/article/114384/democrats-could-gain-northern-colorado-secession">would make the state more blue overall</a>—important in that tipping-point state. </span></div>
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Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-2947998443274481472012-11-07T10:29:00.002-06:002012-11-07T10:29:29.676-06:00Puerto Rico Votes for statehood.The 51st state just got closer to reality than any time in the last 100 years. In yesterday's election, Puerto Ricans voted--for the first time--to embrace statehood. Both Republicans and Democrats have voted to follow the will of the people on this one... so stay tuned. And buy stock in a flag company! <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/zekejmiller/puerto-rico-votes-for-statehood">Read more here.</a>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-32433896150944325692011-11-23T14:16:00.000-06:002011-11-23T14:16:03.421-06:00Chicago the 51st state?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimsDW_R7AycD88V6hlsAzn0QGUBzZDrYTqrQMCdVC171aCrHhYMIKtqviLtturGYQYUc8mrJhm9GQJU_w-gnhPlrekKK4lbH3QAYGLsxFbq2V0_sNEhGhiTR81Ja_zd4e2QIY9sePcl4PH/s1600/chicago430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimsDW_R7AycD88V6hlsAzn0QGUBzZDrYTqrQMCdVC171aCrHhYMIKtqviLtturGYQYUc8mrJhm9GQJU_w-gnhPlrekKK4lbH3QAYGLsxFbq2V0_sNEhGhiTR81Ja_zd4e2QIY9sePcl4PH/s1600/chicago430.jpg" /></a></div>
Two rural Illinois legislators want to expel Chicago from Illinois. Their idea is to force Chicago to become the 51st state, so the rest of Illinois won't be dominated by the Windy City. News reports, however, miss the irony of all this—it used to be the other way around. That is, back in the 1920s, Chicagoans were the ones who wanted to form a new state, because <i>they</i> felt dominated by "downstate" legislators.<br />
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The current movement doesn't seem to have all that much support, but the 20s version did... at least in Chicago. The city council actually voted in favor of beginning a secession movement.<br />
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So if the 1920s' Chicago rabble-rouser John B. Fergus could meet with the current separatist leader, Rep. Bill Mitchell of Decatur, the 51st state movement might have some legs.<br />
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News reports <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/illinois-republican-wants-chicago-area-51st-state-160924927.html">here</a> and <a href="http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/local&id=8442703">here</a>.Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-42155692143212318942011-11-09T08:22:00.000-06:002011-11-09T08:22:22.522-06:00The town in two states<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfhmrMfVI9ViASk6P0UFVO2BoJY-GxAHB1jaEQjCAlDmBPFgnCvyr1CdYkq6XR2ohM14PPrVQzZQTCc2o3u6IE37xs2RJDrBrQD7jpbHi3vlYMIkxMAHni_djtKbazd9gpP6fUzu2CkRo/s1600/priceplace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdfhmrMfVI9ViASk6P0UFVO2BoJY-GxAHB1jaEQjCAlDmBPFgnCvyr1CdYkq6XR2ohM14PPrVQzZQTCc2o3u6IE37xs2RJDrBrQD7jpbHi3vlYMIkxMAHni_djtKbazd9gpP6fUzu2CkRo/s400/priceplace.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
The fine folks of Price Place, Arkansas seem to live in two states simultaneously. They pay taxes to Arkansas, but their kids go to Missouri schools. Their Arkansas drivers licenses say they live in Missouri. It's really weird. And now it's about to change. These Arkansas residents will actually get Arkansas addresses... and they are really mad about it. Yeah, I don't get it either, but one thing is clear: this is one state border that should be re-routed. You can get the<a href="http://www.kspr.com/news/local/kspr-arkansas-residents-upset-over-missouri-address-change-20111108,0,6933675.story"> full story here</a>.Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-87833916535859583092011-09-27T07:27:00.000-05:002011-09-27T07:27:02.000-05:00All 50 states mentioned in movies<iframe width="430" height="321" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/pXAtv_FrHCk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>I'm not sure how anyone could have enough free time to create this, but I'm glad they did. If you are studying state capitals in school, or just curious, here are all 50... through snippets in movies.Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-18094692738187739752011-09-14T07:16:00.000-05:002011-09-14T07:16:09.564-05:00HiatusReal life is ramping up—so I'm going to have less time for this blog in the coming months. It's a bit of a bummer, because creating a new map every day has been a lot of fun. But, alas, my family needs me to do stuff that actually pays the bills. I'll try to post occasionally... but the daily geographic curiosity... well, that's going on hiatus. MIKEMichael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-910886637404220502011-09-13T07:46:00.000-05:002011-09-13T07:46:57.980-05:00Weekly World News - flag "fail"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRd6ZOsqlNIscvN9bljjvV03gO4ZuZbQZ8TRtiO5IlZxGDFxnPdSseeYs9BiAZWuUbbnUksKskcKG5kMdEEsmuJv0n35NngZ4oCPlmjy3WYDs5xmfEdvJEGpNaLPmD3xdiEbPUIlEQ6oSc/s1600/mexico.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRd6ZOsqlNIscvN9bljjvV03gO4ZuZbQZ8TRtiO5IlZxGDFxnPdSseeYs9BiAZWuUbbnUksKskcKG5kMdEEsmuJv0n35NngZ4oCPlmjy3WYDs5xmfEdvJEGpNaLPmD3xdiEbPUIlEQ6oSc/s1600/mexico.jpg" /></a></div>
I put "fail" in quotes, because, of course, everything in <i>Weekly World News</i> is a silly joke. After all, this is the paper that once defended itself in a libel case by telling the judge that no one actually believes anything they write. So I wasn't all that surprised by an <a href="http://weeklyworldnews.com/headlines/38222/new-push-to-make-mexico-51st-state/">article that claims</a> Mexico will be the 51st state. It's all in good fun. But what <i>was</i> surprising was the flag they used to illustrate the story (above). It has 140 stars! I could understand a 51-star flag, or maybe a flag with 81 stars.... adding in the 31 states of Mexico. But a 140 star flag? Does no one at the paper know how many states we have? Or did they think their audience is stupid enough to think that 50 + 1 = 140. Oh.Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-76493383741734614752011-09-12T06:59:00.000-05:002011-09-12T06:59:40.056-05:00Young state riddle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcHExpR9MQ37EMwejph1L2zrSMcZRn3aXkWWPXiXjOdNfE5bS-GC_zmbndj8m7-pd-dU658p0DojwbHcqJoaj54HCRl-gILva80TDKv2nDbyJ8wqYLxpG_Wc7NRvGZWWTLz4-iFFIjz0u/s1600/99states.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmcHExpR9MQ37EMwejph1L2zrSMcZRn3aXkWWPXiXjOdNfE5bS-GC_zmbndj8m7-pd-dU658p0DojwbHcqJoaj54HCRl-gILva80TDKv2nDbyJ8wqYLxpG_Wc7NRvGZWWTLz4-iFFIjz0u/s1600/99states.jpg" /></a></div>
Just four US states are less than 100 years old. Can you name them? Two are so easy, I included them on the map above: Alaska and Hawaii. But can you name the other two youngsters? <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/loststates/6139557494/">The answer is here. </a>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-51257124762031161002011-09-09T06:30:00.001-05:002011-09-09T06:30:01.721-05:00County named after killer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwhsCuxLwxUEp3Iv6gsQ4scR4ibQn7-5wGeuPdqsGGTbxxW4vCAihJvEx-AJb94em6QAD6sDfS4W-LZb4K7LoE8bxETqlnbQUNNHfpS2Wf11uhXYliiHwj6l2gDUhHDl6fby6FrW3dkkuG/s1600/louisa_county.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwhsCuxLwxUEp3Iv6gsQ4scR4ibQn7-5wGeuPdqsGGTbxxW4vCAihJvEx-AJb94em6QAD6sDfS4W-LZb4K7LoE8bxETqlnbQUNNHfpS2Wf11uhXYliiHwj6l2gDUhHDl6fby6FrW3dkkuG/s1600/louisa_county.jpg" /></a></div>
So an outsider comes to town and shoots one of the locals dead in cold blood. The shooter is then hailed as a hero, and the townfolk decide to name a county after the killer. This is the true story of Louisa County, Iowa. <br />
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In the 1830s, William Smith wanted a mining claim owned by the Massey family. So Smith and his son shot and killed Woodbury Massey... and then rode through town proclaiming that they'd kill any other Masseys they could find. At this point, Woodbury Massey's brother, Henry, took preemptive action and killed William Smith. Then the story gets interesting. 16-year-old Louisa Massey, sister of Woodbury and Henry, arrives in town and cooly proclaims she's just doing some shopping. But when she spots the younger Smith in the store, she pulls out a gun and shoots him dead too.<br />
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Louisa became an instant hero. Newspaper reports wrote: <i>"The upper river county went wild with her praise. No war hero was ever welcomed with greater enthusiasm... cheering throngs greeted her at every stop." </i>What is the moral of this story? I have no idea. Certainly, no one today wants 16-year-old girls involved in revenge killings. It might be one thing to exonerate Louisa, but to make her a hero, and name a county after her? It all seems very strange. You might explain it by saying that times were different then; but after Lincoln was shot, nobody was clamoring to create John Wilkes Booth county. About the only explanation I can come up with: the Smiths must have been some really mean and nasty dudes.<br />
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You can read<a href="http://yesteryearsnews.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/louisa-massey-avenges-her-brothers-murder/"> contemporaneous news reports about Louisa Massey here.</a> And <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=S4EUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA71&dq=louisa+massey&hl=en&ei=BrVoTqb2N4W_gQeP7oXWDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=louisa%20massey&f=false">a book here.</a> <i>(Another great story for a screenwriter. But who to play Louisa? Hailee Steinfeld? Dakota Fanning? Selena Gomez?) </i> <a class="twitter-share-button" data-count="none" data-via="LostStates" href="http://twitter.com/share">Tweet</a><script src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0Louisa, Iowa, USA41.193300099999988 -91.28910359999997641.017542099999986 -91.558975599999982 41.36905809999999 -91.019231599999969tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-81159607701811147142011-09-08T07:08:00.000-05:002011-09-08T07:08:33.915-05:00Sitcom quiz - Packerland version<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUM7QQh_DRGAdWmpluSJ5JlOXkHCpFWOwJYRzOzAATxvf6iBKAGQgK04EfTpMLx5TC0C2RIDaSrWbXMomuhDlRlsThzIfMJRgnHaE-TnjFmcf-1atj5ZcNyBX6lizIR-s-KGfODevO_Mxt/s1600/sitcoms_without_430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUM7QQh_DRGAdWmpluSJ5JlOXkHCpFWOwJYRzOzAATxvf6iBKAGQgK04EfTpMLx5TC0C2RIDaSrWbXMomuhDlRlsThzIfMJRgnHaE-TnjFmcf-1atj5ZcNyBX6lizIR-s-KGfODevO_Mxt/s1600/sitcoms_without_430.jpg" /></a></div>
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You expect TV sitcoms to be set in Los Angeles or New York. But Wisconsin? Sure enough, at least five major sitcoms have been set in the Dairy state. Why is Wisconsin so popular? I have no idea. But as a Wisconsinite, I do get a laugh every time I see mountains in the background on one of these shows. Or actors who try to have a Wisconsin accent, but invariably sound Chicago-ish. Anyway, <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/loststates/6116386987/in/photostream">you can see the 5 shows identified here. </a>And if you can think of any others, let me know...</div>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-76403406112106015832011-09-07T06:56:00.000-05:002011-09-07T06:56:10.462-05:00Why is this street sign illegal?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUl-Nk6ZAPmJAyeVpBv1mPkA27FSbGWmAuCFGzqt5yzADZyckxzgZflgEq8OjiIMjn8Me7UpivZDQ0-Z4jPbwWR-CT1Wrl5lY7KA4AM1GHEJc6riTo17s0YmeJ7g6JVfC9YopVKo54fxW/s1600/street_sign_430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUl-Nk6ZAPmJAyeVpBv1mPkA27FSbGWmAuCFGzqt5yzADZyckxzgZflgEq8OjiIMjn8Me7UpivZDQ0-Z4jPbwWR-CT1Wrl5lY7KA4AM1GHEJc6riTo17s0YmeJ7g6JVfC9YopVKo54fxW/s1600/street_sign_430.jpg" /></a></div>
Can you guess why the top sign is illegal and the bottom one is not? It's because he Federal government just doesn't like all caps—and it was forcing cities to rip down perfectly good all-cap signs and replace them with mixed-lettering signs. Until last week, that is—when common sense prevailed, and the Feds backed off on their demand. New York City alone projected the cost of changing the signs to be $27 million. <a href="http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/128711248.html">Milwaukee would have needed $5 million</a>. Even if the all-cap signs are harder to read, there is a sane way to handle this. Just replace the all-cap signs with mixed signs <i>when they wear out. </i>Is that so hard? Apparently it is, because it took our Federal government many months to capitulate. At the same time, I do understand that you want uniformity in traffic signs—you wouldn't want red stop signs in Iowa and purple ones in Minnesota. But ripping down a street sign only because it's all-caps? That's just bizarre. The only people in favor of that would be the sign manufacturers... hmmm.. better check their campaign contributions.<a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="none" data-via="LostStates">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-27867623702130096192011-09-06T07:26:00.002-05:002011-09-06T07:32:53.049-05:00Our government's geography test: full of bias and errors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1iMM6ptNkYhCvFCMyqQZL2-c7IrOjsgOo1sIRPjT6bdNzFHIargFQVkH6Smx6yYk_4WCWnbzuMw_X57OMnBnMrpIdS1ikpY20x-ioxxt2UChOPRelt83SkMstaaaZJwf147vjL2mv-H6V/s1600/naep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1iMM6ptNkYhCvFCMyqQZL2-c7IrOjsgOo1sIRPjT6bdNzFHIargFQVkH6Smx6yYk_4WCWnbzuMw_X57OMnBnMrpIdS1ikpY20x-ioxxt2UChOPRelt83SkMstaaaZJwf147vjL2mv-H6V/s1600/naep.jpg" /></a></div>
The National Association of Educational Progress is a government organization that tells us how our kids are doing in many subjects, including geography. But digging into the actual standardized test questions reveals some biased politics and bizarre geographic ideas. Let me give you one sample question that our American kids have to answer:<br />
<i>2010 ACTUAL QUESTION: Tropical forests are being destroyed at the rate of at least eleven million hectares each year, an area the size of Pennsylvania. About half of all tropical forests are already gone. Discuss two major reasons for this high rate of tropical deforestation.</i><br />
OK, this is wrong on so many levels. Let's break it down:<br />
<b>"11 Million hectares destroyed"</b><b> </b><br />
No serious scientist today would validate this number. It dates back to a rough estimate made by a single Brazilian scientist looking at satellite photos of fires in the Amazon—in the 1980s! Yeah, it's a 30-year-old number based on sketchy information. Scientists today put the number at one-tenth that figure.<br />
<b>"...each year."</b><br />
This implies there is a steady onslaught of rain forest destruction. Not so. There were some bad years in the 1980s, but things have changed radically since then. <a href="http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2010/09/deforestation-rate-continues-to.html">A report from last year</a> showed a 90 percent <i>drop</i> in lost forest area.<br />
<b>"About half of all tropical forests are already gone"</b><br />
Why is this sentence here? Seriously; it is absolutely unnecessary. The only reason to include this sentence is to make a political point.<br />
<b>"Tropical Forests"</b><br />
This seems like an innocent phrase, but it's actually very tricky. Note how the test uses the term "tropical forest" not "tropical <i>rain</i> forest" That's because the test writers know full well that most deforestation in the Amazon is taking place in the <i>chaco </i>(dry forest) which is not an area of biodiversity. The wet tropical forests have a much slower rate of deforestation than chaco land.<br />
<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>"already gone"</b></span></b><br />
Another subtle bias here: The word "already" is unnecessary, added to create a sense of urgency. In truth, deforestation has been going on in the Americas for hundreds of years.<br />
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Don't misunderstand—I'm not in favor of deforestation. But a standardized test isn't the place to push a point of view. And this wasn't the only question that had an obvious agenda. You can read through the questions <a href="http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/itmrlsx/search.aspx?subject=geography">on your own here.</a><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="none" data-via="LostStates">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-28720799696589624822011-09-02T06:55:00.000-05:002011-09-02T06:55:01.708-05:00One letter wrong<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6d6bXTZvai_Y9tUCe3Fdnm9S2lHQpDbJl3ZbX9WULfRfspWR-i7ozjDzkaMlezUloI88LYJfHJLNSJrkgL8GKT2_H1X-moAnx37uxWinYUPCagW02Zzvww_0yGOex84pyIGTpQO2z9wco/s1600/arkansaw_0149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6d6bXTZvai_Y9tUCe3Fdnm9S2lHQpDbJl3ZbX9WULfRfspWR-i7ozjDzkaMlezUloI88LYJfHJLNSJrkgL8GKT2_H1X-moAnx37uxWinYUPCagW02Zzvww_0yGOex84pyIGTpQO2z9wco/s1600/arkansaw_0149.jpg" /></a></div>
Yesterday I was driving through Tichigan. Yes, you read that right. There is a small town on Wisconsin named Tichigan. Passing through, I wondered: how many times do they have to say, "It's <b>T</b>ichigan, <b><i>not</i></b> Michigan"? It must be exhausting. That made me think there must be other places that are one letter off from famous locations—causing endless confusion. Like the beleaguered folks from Milwaukie, Oregon... or residents of The Dalles, Oregon (who at least have that weird "The" at the beginning to prevent complete confusion with Dallas, Texas). My personal favorite is a small town in Wisconsin named Arkansaw... yeah, with a "w" (above). Of course, the biggest example of this problem is Iran and Iraq; Tim Pawlenty <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ers5qV93h_8">embarrassed himself badly</a> mixing up the two recently. Maybe that's why he left the race. See, geography really is important!Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0Waterville, WI, USA44.633121658588216 -92.03162722275391244.589296158588219 -92.114198722753912 44.676947158588213 -91.949055722753911tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3877555542861379331.post-66240599616758585812011-08-31T06:51:00.000-05:002011-08-31T06:51:01.862-05:00Forgotten secession: when the original 13 tried to split.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiLUPkxT54qlv8HR6PKgwW7zHyD7XnqEZ1GysRVA-RMciwxqkoTCqtMgfoBpUFZmTV92OdMfttuqMlNGnBIafDGqrflOSRDGiRhbLAPG5QuqWkfIoI22GDSlNazmnTb33JHsKxZC_JsvyL/s1600/USA13_430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiLUPkxT54qlv8HR6PKgwW7zHyD7XnqEZ1GysRVA-RMciwxqkoTCqtMgfoBpUFZmTV92OdMfttuqMlNGnBIafDGqrflOSRDGiRhbLAPG5QuqWkfIoI22GDSlNazmnTb33JHsKxZC_JsvyL/s1600/USA13_430.jpg" /></a></div>
In 1812-13 there was a movement in the original thirteen states to secede from the rest of the nation—an idea first championed by a guy named John Lowell of Massachusetts. You have to admit there was some logic to this. As the United States expanded, the original 13 states had less and less influence. Even a third grader can do the math: in the late 1700s, the two Massachusetts senators made up nearly 8 percent of the US Senate. Today, it's just 2 percent. Lowell thought his state had less and less control of its own affairs, so he advocated expelling the western states from the Union. The governors of both New York and Maryland liked the idea. Lowell laid out his argument in a tract with the less-than-snappy title: <i>Thoughts in a series of letters, in answer to a question respecting the division of the states. By a Massachusetts farmer. </i>The idea was popular in certain influential circles, but eventually it died out. Maybe if Lowell had come up with a more catchy title... like "Think Small." <i><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=_c09EJgek50C&lpg=PA173&dq=john%20lowell%20secession%20thirteen%20states&pg=PA173#v=onepage&q=john%20lowell%20secession%20thirteen%20states&f=false">You can read more about it here</a> </i> or read all of <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/thoughtsinseries00misc">Lowell's original tract here.</a>Michael Trinkleinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11645783926251634203noreply@blogger.com0