The land you say the Mexicans crossed the Rio Grande to enter was an area that the two nations were in dispute over. President Polk had said " We just have to have California " and sent envoys with an offer to buy it. The Mexicans refused to sell it so Polk sent soldiers into the disputed area knowing full well they would draw fire from the Mexicans, and when they did Polk used it as a pretext to urge Congress to declare war on Mexico and take it. After the war Polk paid Mexico five million for it in order to assuage his guilt. But the war was for the express purpose of taking California and the southwest from Mexico as part of Americas manifest destiny it was called. War was then waged on the plains Indians who were crushed by 1890 in order to complete our manifest destiny.

By Naomi Spencer
21 August 2015
The city of Huntington has the distinction of overdose capital of West Virginia, which is the state with the worst overdose rate in the US.
Since January first, at least 520 Huntington residents have overdosed, and 34 have died. Two-thirds of the deaths are attributed to heroin. The rate is 13 times the national average.
Over the past two weeks, Huntington has seen a surge in overdoses involving heroin spiked with the drug fentanyl. According to the Mayor’s Office of Drug Control Policy, samples with fentanyl tested 50 times more powerful than heroin. Heroin users who injected the laced drugs were sent into comas and stopped breathing. In two days’ time, the city saw at least eight overdoses.

I totally signed. :)

I read some of the responses and most of them are typically ignorant. People see how much money California spends and they try to make this big case out of it. Well, California has way more people than most states so that's why we spend so much, but the part that right-wing media always conveniently leaves out is that California also earns a lot more than any other state. The bottom line is California can afford their own expenses. What we can't afford is to keep subsidizing the other states.

As it stands, federal law actually prohibits any state from leaving the Union (which sounds a little draconian to me), so as much as we want to secede we know it's going to be a long process and this initiative is only a step in that direction.

Your notation on secession and the rationale for leaving the Union could easily have been written in 1860 by Southerners seeking a new nation for the South. You do realize that, don't you?

Here are some reason's the California Freedom Coalition presents for working toward this goal of liberty.

1. Taxes:
Since 1987, California has been subsidizing the other states at a loss of tens and sometimes hundreds of billions of dollars in a single fiscal year. As a result, we are often forced to raise taxes and charge fees in California, and borrow money from the future to make up the difference. This is partly why California presently has some of the highest taxes in the country, and so much debt. Independence means that all of our taxes will be kept in California based on the priorities we set, and we will be able to do so while repaying our debts and phasing out the current state income tax.

2. Elections and Government
California’s electoral votes haven’t affected a presidential election since 1876. On top of that, presidential election results are often known before our votes are even counted. So, why should we keep subjecting ourselves to presidents we play no role in electing, to 382 representatives and 98 senators we can’t vote for, and all the government officials and federal judges appointed by those very same people we don’t elect.

3. Trade and Regulation:
The U.S. Government maintains a burdensome trade system that hurts California’s economy by making trade more difficult and more expensive for California’s businesses. As long as California remains within this burdensome trade system, we will never be able to capitalize on the trade and investment opportunities that would be available to us as an independent country. On top of that, the United States is dragging California into the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement which conflicts with our values.

4. Healthcare and Medicine:
The Affordable Care Act was enacted by the U.S. Government to lower the cost of health care and expand health insurance coverage to the uninsured, yet millions of Californians still lack access to quality health care because they can’t afford it. For many, access to hospitals and medicine is a life or death issue. Independence means we can fund the health care programs we want and ensure everyone has access to the medicines they need because our taxes will no longer be subsidizing other states. Finally, California can join the rest of the industrialized world in guaranteeing health care as a universal right for all of our people.

5. Natural Resources:
Certain minerals and other natural resources like coal, oil, and natural gas are being extracted from California at below market value rates by private corporations with the permission of the U.S. Government. While a small portion of the revenue is shared with us, our share has been withheld during times of sequestration. That means the U.S. Government is paying their debts with royalties collected from selling off California’s natural resources. Independence means we will gain control of the 46% of California that is currently owned by the U.S. Government and its agencies. We will therefore take control of our natural resources and be the sole beneficiary of royalties collected if and when they are extracted from our lands.

At this point I would support ANY state that's ready and willing to leave the Union. The federal government is failing the people. It would be nice to see things get better but it's looking like that's a longer shot than Californian Independence.

Somehow it didn't post. What I wanted to say was that your rationale for secession would be close to what Southerners might say when they wanted a new nation free from the burdens of the North. You do realize that, don't you? In the meantime, what happens to San Diego Naval Air and Edwards AFB, plus the scattering of numerous other US armed forces installations in the state? Is Gov Moonbeam prepared to send commissioners to DC to negotiate their turnover to Cal as the Confederates did in 1860-61 with the US Govt?

As I noted earlier, all this "secesh' talk ended at Appomatox in April, 1865. The genie was back in the bottle and now crazy people in California wanted to pop the cork once more! Unbelievable!

Somehow it didn't post. What I wanted to say was that your rationale for secession would be close to what Southerners might say when they wanted a new nation free from the burdens of the North. You do realize that, don't you? In the meantime, what happens to San Diego Naval Air and Edwards AFB, plus the scattering of numerous other US armed forces installations in the state? Is Gov Moonbeam prepared to send commissioners to DC to negotiate their turnover to Cal as the Confederates did in 1860-61 with the US Govt?

As I noted earlier, all this "secesh' talk ended at Appomatox in April, 1865. The genie was back in the bottle and now crazy people in California wanted to pop the cork once more! Unbelievable!

Surely if CA does become a nation all to itself, we will see a civil war between the northern CA and the loopy southern CA. Mexico will do a 'walk-over' and take southern CA and that crazy guy Tucker allowed to wobble around the microphone will be named ambassador, dictator for life or some other hugely honorable position.

Hollywood screen writers could not make this nonsense up.