Will you be going to the "Gulf of America"

[Blue_Roses]

this summer?

My grandparents lived in Galveston, TX and me and my sister used to spend the summers there. So many fun memories, but I never once heard my grandparents say, "WE need to change the Gulf's name". In fact, that's all we and 99% of the people who live or visit there, call it. The Gulf.

"Going to the Gulf this weekend...".

"Did you get that sunburn at the Gulf last weekend..."

"A jellyfish stung me at the Gulf this weekend..."

And on and on...

Anybody get why he's wanting to do this now? It's stupid and a distraction.

Distraction, distraction, distraction

[FarPoint]

1. My question is...

How can a tRump change the name when it is not owned by the United States?

[Blue_Roses]

2. Does he know that?

Technically, the US, Mexico and Cuba share control.

The nations with the most "control" over the gulf are the U.S., Mexico, and Cuba, and for years have shared the body of water. The gulf serves as an important center of economic activity, including fishing, electricity generation, and shipping.

Why does the gulf bear Mexico's name? It's actually not a reference to the modern state of Mexico, but rather to a Native American city bearing the same moniker, and it has borne that name for more than 400 years.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/owns-gulf-mexico-trump-rename-013501120.html

[FarPoint]

4. Ya know...he probably does know....

but he can sell the concept to look important and look like a victim with any refusals and court actions etc... These actions are all distractions to his plan to use the seat of the presidency to fleece America.


Since we have a lack of any sense of responsible journalism...this shit will be 24/7 for 4 years.

[Blue_Roses]

5. It's like when

French Fries were temporarily changed to "Freedom Fries"...

[Layzeebeaver]

3. The North Sea used to be "the German Sea"

But then various things happened in the early 18th 19th and 20th centuries.

Such a name change can only take affect if the countries that have interests all agree that a change is in their interests and reflects reality.

I doubt anything will come of it.

I agree it’s a distraction.

[LeftInTX]

10. He can change the name. No one else needs to accept it.

It will be the name that "the US uses". It's up to the rest of the world if they want to adopt it.
It's so dumb. In Mexico, the Rio Grande is know as Rio Bravo
There is also the Sea of Japan, which is also known as Sea of Korea (East Sea)

It's real dumb, but places can have numerous names.

The US is responsible for our maps. So we can change our maps etc.

It also may not work out and may be a very expensive project.

As such, within 30 days of the date of this order, the Secretary of the Interior shall, consistent with 43 U.S.C. 364 through 364f, take all appropriate actions to rename as the “Gulf of America” the U.S. Continental Shelf area bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida and extending to the seaward boundary with Mexico and Cuba in the area formerly named as the Gulf of Mexico. The Secretary shall subsequently update the GNIS to reflect the renaming of the Gulf and remove all references to the Gulf of Mexico from the GNIS, consistent with applicable law. The Board shall provide guidance to ensure all federal references to the Gulf of America, including on agency maps, contracts, and other documents and communications shall reflect its renaming.


https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/restoring-names-that-honor-american-greatness/

[Rocknation]

6. If Trump's problem is that "Gulf Of Mexico" seems to exclude the USA

Last edited Sun Jun 1, 2025, 11:21 AM - Edit history (9)

then calling it the Gulf of NORTH America is the only solution: it shares borders with the North American nations of the USA, Mexico, and Cuba.

More to the point, the Gulf of Mexico has never excluded the USA or Cuba: the Gulf is actually named after a region and civilization that existed centuries before the nation of Mexico did.

So it's actually a moot issue -- and besides, wouldn't it go against Trump's anti-DEI stance?


Rocknation

[NameAlreadyTaken]

7. I turned left at Greenland

[LeftInTX]

8. No...I've never liked the gulf...

The sand is dirty. There's seaweed all over. Always get sunburn. Too much sand. Too much salt. Too many crying kids.
Too many partiers.

Gulf of America might be more fitting.

[misanthrope]

14. Don't forget the jellyfish and killer storms

Oh and all the oil spills.

[Abolishinist]

9. This is so utterly ridiculous.

How about the oceans? Pacific? Atlantic?

No one 'owns' them, these are names that have stuck and are now a part of our vernacular.

My guess? He wants to open a map-making business, because these renamings will have to be incorporated into maps of the future, big money!

[kerry-is-my-prez]

11. I've lived on The Gulf of Mexico for 30 years.

I’m not going to start saying Gulf of America because some crazy fool has his panties in a bunch.

[SomewhereInTheMiddle]

12. I looked this up ...

When I heard this, I asked myself what the actual mechanism for changing the name of an international body of water is.

From what little I can find it seems like it would have to go through the UN Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN) to be internationally recognized.

Given Trump’s proven views on international organizations and cooperation therewith I don’t see him being able to push this through.

His executive order, if upheld, saying all government publications in the US are required to use the name, will make us more of a laughingstock, but it will have little impact on the rest of the world.

Or so it seems to me.

[LeftInTX]

15. The group is the International Hydrographic Organization.

Hydrography provides the basis for all activities which involve the sea. The International Hydrographic Organization works to ensure that all the world's seas, oceans and navigable waters are surveyed and charted, thereby supporting safety of navigation and the protection of the marine environment. It coordinates the activities of national hydrographic offices and sets standards in order to promote uniformity in nautical charts and documents. It issues survey best practices and provides guidelines to maximize the use of hydrographic information.

https://iho.int/

However, what we call our continental shelf is not regulated by anyone, but us. The UN is mostly a mediator. (Trump won't cooperate with the UN)
The IHO is more involved with shipping and maps.
What we call a body of water is also not regulated.
We are free to call it the Gulf of Garbage if we want.


A 1723 French map describing the sea as Mer de Corée (Sea of Korea)



The Sea of Japan has two names because Japan and Korea cannot agree on the name. South Korea argues that historically the more common name was East Sea, Sea of Korea, or another similar variant. South Korea further argues that the name Sea of Japan did not become common until Korea was under Japanese rule. The UN told Japan and Korea to "work it out amongst yourselves"

A dispute exists over the international name for the body of water which is bordered by Japan, Korea (North and South) and Russia. In 1992, objections to the name Sea of Japan were first raised by North Korea and South Korea at the Sixth United Nations Conference on the Standardization of Geographical Names.[1] The Japanese government supports the exclusive use of the name "Sea of Japan" while South Korea supports the alternative name "East Sea", and North Korea supports the name "Korean East Sea" . Currently, most international maps and documents use either the name Sea of Japan (or equivalent translation) by itself, or include both the name Sea of Japan and East Sea, often with East Sea listed in parentheses or otherwise marked as a secondary name. The International Hydrographic Organization, the governing body for the naming of bodies of water around the world, in 2012 decided it was still unable to revise the 1953 version of its publication S-23 – Limits of Oceans and Seas, which includes only the single name "Sea of Japan", to include "East Sea" together with "Sea of Japan"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_of_Japan_naming_dispute

Anyway, if the US goes through with renaming it, some countries will bitch and moan and maybe take it to the UN. The UN will say, "Work it out amongst yourselves". Of course Trump will just blow it off. Maps will have two names. I'm sure the US Navy, Coastguard and Air Force will object, so will many agencies, but Trump won't listen to them. Of course with doofuses that he's putting in charge of our defense, they will go along with it too.

[William769]

13. I live on the Gulf of Mexico.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

[Iggo]

16. No such thing.

[LeftInTX]

17. This reminds me of "Merry Christmas" and "Radical Islamic Terrorism"

We're gonna say "Merry Christmas again" and we're gonna call it "Radical Islamic Terrorism".

[Wounded Bear]

18. You answered your own question...

he did it because it is stupid and a distraction. That's his game plan.