Ep. 020 — A State of Mind (I of II)

Some Noise

“Mr. Statham, would you consider giving San Francisco to Hawaii?”

—Former Calif. Assemblyman Bill Morrow (Oceanside-R)

About:

If President Kennedy’s moon-shot set the tone that no challenge was too difficult, Donald Trump’s presidential victory reminds us that anything is possible, even creating a new U.S. state. In Northern California, like the proper north, there’s been a generation of folks who believe the time for 51 is now. And given the state of the current political landscape, now may be their best shot.

Far from the reach of Sacramento, they’re living off the dream of a failed 1941 movement to split from the Golden State and live out their ideals in the name of the late president Thomas Jefferson.

The first part of this two-part story welcomes you to the State of Jefferson. It’s an episode that dives into some of the history, the people, and most importantly, the reasons why thousands of ranchers, farmers and folks from Northern California passionately want nothing more than to leave.

Show Notes:

1. [00:20] Number counts on U.S. Presidential Monuments (Parade)
2. [00:30] Some more tidbits on the Jefferson Memorial (Mental Floss)
3. [01:35] This short clip from HBO’s John Adams is a good primer (HBO)
   1. “Hamilton and Jefferson: The Deserving and the Deserter” (National Review)
   2. The Rivalry That Forged a Nation (NY Journal of Books)
   3. A popular Broadway musical called Hamilton (PBS)

4. [01:40] “Paddy on the Handcar” by The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps
5. [03:35] ”Lowlands Away/Trenton” by The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps
6. [03:40] Light reading on Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemmings (New York Times)
7. [04:30] Light reading on the history of the
   1. Washington Monument (The Daily Beast)
   2. Lincoln Memorial (Mental Floss)
   3. And photos of the Jefferson Memorial under construction (Curbed)

8. [06:05] “Erafnaf Fanfare” by The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps
9. [06:30] FDR at the 1943 unveiling of the Jefferson Memorial (FDR Presidential Library and Museum)
10. [08:00] “State of Jefferson” by Rock Creek Jug Band
11. [09:50] More on Lisa Gioia and the Siskiyou County Museum
12. [10:30] “Soothe” by Blue Dot Sessions
13. [10:40] Light reading on the early attempts at splitting California (Wikipedia)
14. [10:50] Some additional context about this movement led by Pío Pico (KCET)
15. [11:00] Light reading on William Greent T’Vault and the Territory of Jackson (The Oregon Encylopedia)
16. [11:30] More on Gail Jenner and her book, The State of Jefferson
17. [13:00] Archival video and interview on the 1941 revolt (Yreka Community Television)
18. [13:05] “Horns for Breakfast” by Asthmatic Astronaut
19. [14:00] Worth watching this program on the State of Jefferson for more backstory on figures like Gilbert Gable (Oregon Public Broadcast)
    1. Related reading on State of Jefferson history here

20. [14:15] Light reading on Stanton Delaplane (Wikipedia)
21. [15:40] Light background on FDR’s Pearl Harbor address (FDR Presidential Library and Museum)
22. [16:40] Light reading on Randolph Collier (New York Times)
23. [16:40] Light reading on Yreka (Wikipedia)
24. [17:30] More on Dan Walters (@DanCALmatters)
25. [18:40] Light reading on the etymology of California (Wikipedia)
26. [19:00] “Last Lights” by Blue Dot Sessions
27. [19:40] More on California’s GDP (San Jose Mercury News)
    1. Related: Economic role of SIlicon Valley in California (Real Clear Markets)
    2. Related: California’s rank on the world stage (Bloomberg)

28. [19.50] More on California’s welfare statistics (UC Berkeley)
    1. Related: Top 20 zip codes in America (Forbes)

29. [20:05] More on California’s poverty statistics (Sacramento Bee)
    1. Related: Federal poverty guidelines (Families USA)
    2. Related: A deeper dive on poverty stats in California (Public Policy Institute of California)

30. [20:30] Light reading on the rural welfare state in California (San Jose Mercury News)
31. [22:15] Light reading on the Immigration Act of 1990 (Wikipedia)
    1. George H.W. Bush statement on the signing of the act
    2. And a video of him signing it (CSPAN)

32. [22:30] More on the immigration breakdown of the 1990s in California (Public Policy Institute of California)
    1. Related: More on the hispanic migration to the state (Pew Research Center)
    2. Related: Breakdown of undocumented immigrants in America (Pew Research Center)
    3. Related: Further breakdown of undocumented immigrants by city (Pew Research Center)

33. [24:20] Light reading on the 200 attempts to split up California (Los Angeles Times)
    1. Additional reading here

34. [24:30] Tim Draper’s six-state plan turn three-state plan
35. [24:40] Light reading on the Calexit plan
    1. Related: Silicon Valley support by Peter Thiel and Shervin Pishevar
    2. Related: Calexit’s Kremlin connection (Snopes)

36. [25:50] More on Daniel Webster (SF Gate)
    1. Additional reading on Webster (SF Weekly)
    2. News of the Pioneer Press shutting down (Siskiyou Daily News)

37. [26:00] Webster’s two news operations / Facebook pages here:
    1. Scott Valley News
    2. Yreka News
    3. Related: Background on Siskiyou County
    4. Related: Background on Etna

38. [28:20] “Cases to Rest” by Blue Dot Sessions
39. [28:55] Light reading on the:
    1. California Fire Tax (San Francisco Chronicle)
    2. California Gas Tax (San Francisco Chronicle)
    3. California’s ‘regulatory’ maze
    4. California water rights (Wired)
       1. In this area, debates flare over the proposal of the Klamath Dam removal project (Eureka Times Standard)
    5. Light reading on the spotted owl and coho salmon

40. [31:05] Additional background on Felice Pace
41. [32:30] Related: State of Scott Valley watershed
42. [33:30] Felice Pace at the 1993 Forest Conference held in Portland, Ore. (CSPAN)
43. [33:55] “Olivia Wraith” by Blue Dot Sessions
44. [34:20] That time Felice Pace was accused of being the Unabomber (Los Angeles Times)
45. [36:40] “Thru the Cosmic Dust” by Wayne Kinos
46. [37:10] Coverage of the 1993 debate on AB 3 proposed by State Assemblyman Stan Statham (CSPAN)
    1. Related: Light reading on Stan Statham (Los Angeles Times)
    2. Related: Light reading on Statham’s Three-State Plan (Sacramento News and Review)

47. [42:00] A little bit more on Daniel Webster…
48. His case back in 2004 (The Mail Tribune)
49. See related background on Webster (SF Weekly)
50. [43:00] Felice Pace’s views on the Pioneer Press as seen on the header (Klamath Forest Alliance)
51. [44:50] Some of Daniel Webster’s earlier reporting on local scandal
52. [44:10] Daniel Webster’s series on the State of Jefferson
53. [45:55] “A Simple Blur” by Blue Dot Sessions
54. [49:50] More on the debate over clear cutting (Sciencing.com)
55. [50:20] Fact check on the carbon emissions of wildfires vs cars in California (Live Science)
    1. Related: Additional findings on greenhouse gases emitted from wildfires (UC Berkeley)

55. [52:20] More on preservation of the gray wolf population in California (CA Dept of Fish and Wildlife)
    1. And the related concern of spotting gray wolves (SF Gate)
56. [53:40] “Steps” by Podington Bear
57. [55:20] “Una Cosa” by Podington Bear
58. [57:00] “March” by Podington Bear
59. [62:50] More at thisissomenoise.com
60. [63:20] Follow us @thisissomenoise
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62. [63:50] Thank you @radiopublic. Download here.
63. [64:00] Listen to this More Perfect episode while waiting for the next episode