abstract
| - 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 fighting 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 satellite 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.
|