Posted on 11/29/2019 11:31:33 AM PST by RightGeek
California, America's version of the Land of Milk and Honey, is comparable to the Republic of Congo.
Middle class voters have been the bedrock of American democracy since the country was founded. It really has to be that way. If this isn't a middle class country, it can’t be a functioning democracy. But in California, which is at the leading edge of everything, middle class is vanishing. California's medium home price is twice the national average. It's got the country’s highest gas prices, it has some of the highest taxes as well. The results of all of this? You know what it is. The middle class is fleeing California. The ones staying are falling into the poverty. The state has the highest poverty rate in the United States. California’s Gini coefficient, a measure of inequality is identical to that in the republic of Congo. Literally.”Homelessness is a problem in California. Of course the only fault is supply and demand capitalism. It is refreshing to hear Ronald Reagan blamed instead of "Orange Man" Bad.
To blame this all on California or Californians is lazy and wrong. The U.S. once had a national, federally funded safety net. Ronald Reagan took care of that, and it will take a president who is not craven and who can admit the obvious and maybe even withstand predictable whining from red-staters who don’t have a homeless crisis to restore it. (We do not have such a president.) But homelessness is particularly bad in California because housing prices are particularly bad in California. They are bad because of a lack of supply, yes, due to restrictive growth and zoning laws, but also distortions in demand. If nobody could afford to pay $1 million for a 950-square-foot bungalow in Palo Alto, nobody would. Since there are a precious few drunk on Silicon Valley treasure who can, they do—and anyone making real-person money is faced with a choice: fleeing the state, or living in an RV.Of course there is no mention of illegal immigrants. Just a short 8 years ago they made up 7% of California's population.
Unauthorized immigrants make up 7 percent of California’s total population. But little is known about exactly where they live. This report presents the first authoritative estimates of this group within the state’s regions and counties. It shows the unauthorized living in all parts of California, with Shasta County housing the smallest share and the Monterey/San Benito County region the largest. This report was supported with funding from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.Who controls immigration and who fights for the rights of illegal aliens?
Not content to allow millions of illegal immigrants to populate their state, State and local officials have allowed their streets to be inhabited by mentally ill and addicted individuals.
The Times, however, found that about 67% had either a mental illness or a substance abuse disorder. Individually, substance abuse affects 46% of those living on the streets — more than three times the rate previously reported — and mental illness, including post-traumatic stress disorder, affects 51% of those living on the streets, according to the analysis.California is a beautiful state. The weather is splendid. However, you could never pay me enough to move there.
The good news, I guess, is that all my old friends are selling their homes for outrageous prices and getting out while the getting is good.
My time in California was spent at Fort Ord ,LOL
“Those...those...middle class rag-a-muffins think they can be on my beach and my highway! They must go away! Let’s tax them back to Oklahoma!”
Things have changed...especially a few blocks away from the tourist areas.
Now the city looks like most major cities: dirty, unkempt, but with the addition of human feces on the sidewalks, people passed out in doorways, and needles in the gutters. I will not be returning.
Seattle was a pleasant surprise and cleaner than most.
“However, you could never pay me enough to move there.”
That depends entirely on where in CA one chooses to live.
For instance, the City of Folsom. Intel has a large campus there, employees making from entry at $100k to several million per year for executives.
Nestled in the rolling Sierra foothills with the best schools in the state and 30 miles of paved bike trails along the American River, without motor traffic.
Only twenty miles from Sacramento and two hours from San Francisco.
No homeless, no bums. Cops make sure. Very low crime rate.
It would not at all be difficult to “pay people” to live there.
I was just in Seattle last week. Loved it !
Sliding into an abyss ain’t all it’s cracked up to be..
ask the CAGOP how it feeels...
if there is anyone still acknowledging it ever really existed and was just a mirage after the ex-Terminator ‘saved’ the state from ruination at the hands of liberals.
Been here over 40 years and have never seen a stae so desperate for a reset both politically and morally.
As a former native Californian, I can say CA stopped being “Cool” around 1977 or thereabouts...It incrementally became more and more crowded, jammed highways, more illegals, more expensive with the cost of *everything* going through the roof. Want a nice home in a nice area? expect to pay $700,000++ with property taxes, gasoline, insurance and utility prices that’ll make ya curse!
There is nothing cool about any of that.
California is in a death spiral.
I was on a business trip for a week to Seattle about eight years ago. The number of homeless encampments and bums everywhere downtown just shocked me. I have no desire to go back.
Last Sunday was a beautiful day, so I took our doggy up to San Fran to hike around the Presidio, over to Fort Point, and back along Crissy Field to the Palace of Fine Arts. That part of the city is as spectacular as ever. No bums, no crap on the sidewalks, almost zero graffiti, everything well kept and in good repair. Of course, all of that is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area — at least the Feds are doing a great job keeping things spruced up, even if the City of SF can’t do it.
High home prices is good news for people fleeing the state with their loot. But people all over the west HATE Californians arriving with all that wealth and driving up local prices.
Bull Crap. It's because the public policies encourage the homeless to come here. Ronald Reagan nailed it: "If you want more of something, subsidize it; if you want less of something, tax it."
The influx of fleeing Californians has raised the value on my home.
Big deal.
Where would I move to?
California?
What has really risen is our property taxes.
Our county is controlled by Democrats.
The Democrats have four areas to steal from:
1. Federal taxes
2. State taxes
3. County taxes
4. City taxes
If they lose the federal elections, they just steal more from the states or counties or cities.
The liberal Californians are bringing their misery to you.
worked in building FM4 FM6 and FM7 Prairie City Road
I was in FM1.
yes, the once-great State of Californication is now a horrid place. Highest taxes in nation, generally quite poor public services including worst roads in America...despite at least 6 kinds of gas, vehicle, and other taxes supposedly to build and fix highways
(the highways have gone staright down to Hell since Gov. Brown, Junior abolished the state highway department, reformulated staff as a ‘transportation agency’ and put mostly unqualified persons in charge..)
you don’t just pay the highest taxes there.
you pay the highest prices for goods and services, too, since all the merchants ALSO have to pay those highest taxes
...
mostly poor schools, too, with a few exceptional districts.
shit all over the sidewalks in LA, SF, etc.
and instead of fixing what they broke, the politicians keep feeding Californians more and more tax and regulate poison
so it keeps getting worse and worse
Forget SF, just look at the *middle class* young folk. If they ever expect to have a home of their own, most have come to the brutal conclusion it isn't going to happen in CA. Hell, most can't even afford a down payment and that's the only thing that'll bring down those a massive CA monthly mortgage payments is putting big money down! It's simply not happening for the most part...
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