California

A major, M5.7 earthquake has struck off the coast of Northern California, just days after a devastating M7.1 quake hit Mexico, resulting in hundreds dead and at least 50 buildings collapsed. The initial quake was quickly followed by a second one coming in at a magnitude of 5.6, which hit closer to shore, the USGS said.

While the quake was luckily too far offshore to cause any damage, the Sacramento Bee writes that after Tuesday’s devastating earthquake in Mexico and the following smaller quakes that shook parts of California, "the West Coast is bracing for the worst."

Authored by Ryan McMaken via The Mises Institute,

In recent years, left-wing groups have often been the driving force behind secession movements. This has been the case in Scotland, in Catalonia, and in California. 

In each case, the secession movements have been initiated in part to forward left-wing goals, such as the creation of a larger welfare state or to escape limitations imposed by political interest groups and institutions deemed to be too right-wing. 

Authored by Mac Slavo via SHTFplan.com,

A volatile storm has ignited a slew of 40,000 lightning strike in southwestern California.

The strikes have hit Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura counties – all between September 10-11.

Authored by Frank Shostak via The Mises Institute,

After the 2007-2009 global financial crisis, fears of ballooning public debt and worries about the drag on economic growth pushed authorities in some countries to lower government spending, a tactic that economists now think may have slowed recovery. Note that in the United States the total debt to GDP ratio stood at 349 in Q1 this year.

On Sunday California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for Los Angeles County as the La Tuna wildfire encroached on L.A. and burned eerily on the skyline just north of downtown, keeping nervous residents on the alert as homes and business were threatened. What is now being reported as the largest brush fire in Los Angeles history began in Burbank on Friday, but the cause is still under investigation.