We have actors and Hollywood types wanting to harm Trump, Justice Thomas, Gov. Abbott and Gov. DeSantis. Alex Baldwin actually shot someone on a film set. Our campuses have become headquarters for the KKK, Palestinian terrorists, pedophile promoters and haters. Our schools have become indoctrination centers.
Drug legalization is being pushed, $20 minimum wage, schools taking away parental rights, the killing off of jobs and industries.
Not only in California intellectually bankrupt, it is morally and economically bankrupt.
Is California intellectually bankrupt? By Richard Eber
Richard Eber, Exclusive to the California Political News and Views, 3/30/22
Liberal minded Californian’s led by Governor Gavin Newsom take pride in the State income tax is among the most Progressive in the country. This means the poor pay the least and the wealthy are assessed the most when returns are due April 15th.
This disparity is even greater for the extremely wealthy for whom the top 1% end up springing for approximately half the revenue generated from income taxes. Of course this is never enough as each year Sacramento tries to squeeze more revenue from the super rich.
There seems to be little concern for collateral damage as entrepreneurs such as Elon Musk prefer to move away along with their businesses to greener pastures in Arizona, Nevada, Texas, the South etc… The question remains how long will government continue to kill the Golden Goose of prosperity that has contributed to California’s past greatness?
Indications of the decline are everywhere as a good portion of the States highly skilled work force has migrated elsewhere. Despite this alarming trend, billions of dollars in excess funds are floating around Sacramento gained from what Congress has allocated in the aftermath of the Covid-19 epidemic.
Much like Aesop’s Fable about the ant and the grasshopper Gavin Newsom and his progressive cohorts don’t realize their current budget excess is a temporary phenomenon which will soon dry up. Instead of paying down bonds and long term debt, they have embarked on initiating new social programs. Between expansion of Medi-Cal towards universal healthcare, free community college and expansion of affordable housing, homeless services, he has a lot on his plate.
To top things off the Governor wants to include undocumented illegal aliens in his freebee proposals.
There seems to be a complete lack of trust between the Legislature and their constituents. To deal with the shortage of affordable housing the state feels they must be involved subsidizing the process. Unfortunately between meeting complicated guidelines and high construction costs of Project Labor Agreements (PLA’s) the end product isn’t very affordable in most cases.
As an alternative San Jose has a successful program of rebating planning fees and permits to developers who construct lower cost units. Similar templates should be adapted around the state. The private sector can work if only given the chance.
Another priority that should be immediately addressed is the floundering public school system in California which ranks in the bottom 10% in the USA when test scores in math and English are tabulated. This situation has been made worse the last couple years between remote learning and mask requirements
To improve public schools extra days should be added to the calendar to deal with basic literacy issues. In addition, the State needs to stop pandering to the teachers unions and allow parents more freedom in placing their children in Charter, STEM, private, and other programs that fit their families needs.
Again why can’t the judgment of parents be utilized above the edicts of the California Teachers Association (CTA)? What could be the loss in doing so?
Gavin Newsom doesn’t see it that way. All he sees is Blue Light Specials intended to expand the role of government. Unfortunately, with virtually no opposition from Republicans or much of anyone else what should California’s leader be doing with the excess Covid-19 funds?
A few suggestions from me include:
- Use money already in the treasury to create needed water storage throughout the state. The goal should be to provide enough H2O to support farms, residents, and environmental needs. As this is an emergency, the permit process needs to skirt to avoid unneeded environmental Impact Reports (EIR) and costly litigation with special interest groups.
- Utilize similar tactics to rebuild highways while reducing subsides to public transportation few will use. Try to put a dent in the cost of infrastructure work which for California is among the highest in the nation.
- With no recourse for changing the California Rule to trim pensions costs for public employees, pay down future obligations to help reduce costs to assist municipal agencies.
- Provide clean, safe, facilities for the homeless who provide adequate food, shelter, clothing, and counseling services. Those individuals who opt out of government services will not be allowed to squat on public or private property. At the same time the State should reconnect some of the homeless with their families by subsidizing them moving back in with relatives or friends.
- Do not go thru with Governor Newsom’s hair brained scheme to reduce the impact of rising gas prices by sending out $ 500.00 rebates to registered car owners. Such a program will be expensive to administer and lead to fraud. How about freezing sales and excise taxes at $ 3.50 a gallon until conditions improve? Why send a check to wealthy electric car owners who hardly need a rebate?
- If the State wants to subsidize public transport riders, this can be looked into. This is not a bad idea because the overhead for mass transit and buses should not be adversely affected by having more people utilize these services. Low income folks would be the main beneficiaries of such programs not to mention fuel savings.
- Further reduce energy costs by cutting Cap and Trade, modify the higher cost California Blend of gas and stop opposing all fracking and oil exploration in the state. With gasoline prices hovering at around $6.00 per gallon, lowering fuel costs of all kinds should be a priority.
- Temporarily reduce the non-progressive State sales tax which adversely affects the poor more than any other segment of society.
We are in a force majeure situation dealing with inflation and high energy costs that call for new approaches. Low income and middle class families need some immediate relief from the burdens they are bearing each month to keep their families afloat.
This will not take place until the voters cry “Uncle” and elect moderates to make better use of tax dollars or even better reduce the scope of government, Ronald Reagan style.
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