Talk:List of State-Like Areas

A COUPLE OF THOUGHTS ON POLITICAL IDENTITY OF COMMUNITY AND SEPARATISM

BIOREGIONALISM This would be a good place to link over to an article (needed if it doesn't already exist) on "bioregions". This is an actual, if small, political movement to recognize the similiarity of political and social situations and issues faced by people who live in just such areas as these. The emphasis is usually on developing a sense of political consciousness emergent from their living within a specific "biome" or "eco-region", in other words an area that a professional ecologist would recognize as a coherent biological community. (Links to such bioregionalists' websites should be possible)

There have also been attempts by a few geographers to "re-divide" the territory of the United States of America into geographically more coherent units. Some of these attempts may be little more than classroom exercises or speculative articles. While they may often share the rationale -- and even the results -- of the bioregional movement (or perhaps local activists in the bioregional movement may be relying on the geographers' work), these geographers' divisions should probably be recognized as politically distinct from the bioregional movement itself. (Links forthcoming)

MOTIVATIONS FOR SUCH All of these, whether "state-like" areas, bioregionalists, or geographic re-divisions, share an interesting motivation. They all attempt to recognize the existence of some features of an area that can tie the inhabitants of the area together to the area or to one another. And they attempt to do this specifically (as far as I know) primarily within Anglo-North America (this stands to be corrected). I'll attempt a theory here: these represent a stage in the development of the cultural consciousness of colonizing settlers along a path of 'indigenization' to a given landscape or ecological region. These may be expected to occur in 'colonizing' or 'creole' societies as subsequent or descendant generations acclimate themselves to the new landscape they inhabit, instead of continuing to culturally identify themselves with their ancestors' remote homeland.

It would be interesting to see if there is any discernible correlation with other political philosphies. Is there any correlation with a community's adherence to democratic processes? Is this sort of attempt at indigenization more likely to occur the further away a colonizing community is from it's 'homeland'? How does straight distance compare with changes in ecology or physical geography or terrain? What about physical breaks in terrain that separate otherwise similair areas, as with mountain ranges separating valleys, or seas separating islands from coastal areas?

POLITICAL CONSIDERATIONS Are even slight physical differences in landscape more likely to engender this sort of eco-political conciousness when the people involved have a strong tradition of democracy, or at least settlement-level autonomy?

CULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS Is this likely to be a 'more politically correct' form for expressing different social identities, when adjacent landscapes come to be settled by differing ethnic groups of colonizing settlers? This may be especially important when these ethnically distinct groups have turn out to have economically distinct ways of organizing themselves, or of understanding the purpose of their settling in the new region.

SOME OTHER ATTEMPTS AT SEPARATISM (the below may best be served as a separate article) There have been specific attempts at regional separatism within the political confines of the United States, a few of them successful. Apparently, these usually start in areas that already have some sense of themselves as "state-like" or otherwise geographically distinct areas. These feeling of separate identity may not be acted upon, though, unless or until relations with the political core area or capital become strained, perhaps over percieved disparities in program benefits recieved per taxes paid, or a lack of consideration of regional views in some political issue of the day. (the following are from memory, and need specific documentation)

1990's? The Panhandle of Western Nebraska: some residents attempt to break off from Nebraska and join the Wyoming. Nebraska's state capital of Lincoln is far away, while Wyoming's capital of Cheyenne is just across the border.

(Listed elsewhere in Wikipedia as an attempted separate country, or micronation) the Conch Republic, i.e., the Florida Keys

Island of Nantucket -- once attempted to separate from Massachusetts (1970's?), a tax dispute?

Chicago/Gary -- (1970's?) discussion-stage only, not sure if this was the big cities getting away from their states, or the states getting away from the big cities.

New York City -- similiar discussion, about the same time.

Northern and Southern California -- has there ever been a discussion of these two seriously splitting up?

SEPARATE LIST/ARTICLE IDEA -- ATTEMPTED U.S. STATES THAT DIDN'T MAKE IT It's more than just the State of Franklin (see Wiki article)

Sequoyah -- What is now Eastern Oklahoma was then Indian Territory, an area allotted to, and settled by, the "Five Civilized Tribes" in the "Trail of Tears". They attempted to join the U.S. in 1906, to avoid being joined with Oklahoma Territory, a white-settled area. The U.S. Congress rejected the petition, and the territory was admitted to the Union in 1907 as part of the State of Oklahoma.

Cimarron -- What is now the Oklahoma Panhandle had been originally separated from the Republic of Texas upon its admission to the US. As various former portions of the Texas Republic became parts of Kansas, Colorado, etc., a strip south of Kansas became known as "No Man's Land". (see Wiki article on Cimarron). Prior to being admitted to the Union as a part of Oklahoma, settlers in the area petitioned Congress for separate entry into the US as their own state. Congress rejected their petition as well. Eventually the eastern Indian Territory, central and western Oklahoma Territory, No Man's Land, and an area known as Greer County were joined together and admitted as the single State of Oklahoma.

Are you aware of List of regions of the United States, which already lists many of these? As it stands, this list seems somewhat unclearly defined and I'm inclined to merge it with the previously existing list. older≠wiser 15:26, Jan 23, 2005 (UTC) PS, Historic regions of the United States also is a list of historical entities.

Agreed. Should be merged - perhaps as a section there if not redundant, and turned into a redirect. Vsmith 16:57, 24 Jan 2005 (UTC)