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Why I Left California

By: jimbo51 (Diary)  |  November 28th, 2010 at 01:55 PM  | 

RESIZE: AAA

I moved from Orange County, California to Oklahoma in 2003 and I’m never going back. Jobs were fleeing California back in 2003 due to the incompetentness of Gray Davis and I saw the handwriting on the wall.  Already evident back then was the coming growth in taxes, spending, energy costs and the corresponding loss in manufacturing jobs to the the tax and regulatory burden.  Also evident was the public pension crisis as the unions had pushed through massive increases in salaries and pensions during the post-9/11 love-in for Fire and Police Departments.

I’ve since moved for job opportunities to Nevada and Texas (where I have now resided since 2008).  What a difference!  Housing costs are 30% of California.  No personal income taxes.  Lower fuel and energy costs.  Lower insurance, vehicle registration, grocery — almost everything.  From a business standpoint — less regulation and paperwork, lower worker’s comp. and fewer lawsuits.  California could learn a lot about how to attract business from Texas.

But I believe that California has passed the point of no return.  It’s hopeless.  Bankruptcy looms.  One big reason is that California has become a sanctuary state.  Years back, under Pete Wilson, we Californians passed Proposition 187 which essentially denied all state benefits and services to illegal aliens.  We were called heartless and even racist for insisting on fiscal responsibility.  When one of our liberal courts ruled it unconstitutional, our newly elected Governor (Gray Davis) refused to appeal the ruling and it died.  It’s been downhill ever since and the flood gates opened for new illegals.

Why will this never change?  Well for one thing voter registration requires no proof what-so-ever of citizenship.  You only have to attest that you are a citizen eligible to vote. Likewise no I.D. required to vote (in fact, you can sign up for permanent absentee ballot by mail — how convenient).  It wouldn’t surprise me at all if 1 million+ illegals were registered to vote (how do you prove otherwise?). After all, this would be consistent with La Raza: “We didn’t cross the border, the border crossed us”.  So California — welcome to the 3rd World.

COMMENTS

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  • http://www.flaliberty.org scorpio0679

    California, as per usual, will lead the nation. Into bankruptcy. I just hope it will get there quick enough to show the rest of the country that it is time to hit the e-brake!

    My parents moved to California in 2005, against my vocal objection, near the height of the housing bubble. They put all of their (substantial) home equity into a new home in Riverside County. Long story short, by 2009 they were under water by as much as they had put cash into the home, and were feeling taxed to the hilt and unable to breathe.

    So my father (who is nearing retirement) walked away from his job, they let the house fall into foreclosure, and moved to Bermuda for a better opportunity in an income tax free haven. I suspect this story is all too common in California.

    When California fails, and there is no bailout, that will be the final call to get aboard the reform train. Hopefully, by then, we will be in control and can turn the U.S. around.

  • http://barbershopvalues.com daconia

    I lived in Orange Co. until 1994 when I took a job overseas. When that job was finished in 2002, I returned to Orange Co. when my company was located. After finding there were no jobs for an old guy, I retired. I found California depressing. My favorite radio stations were replaced with rap and Spanish language stations. The neighborhood I lived in when I first moved to California in 1967 had been completely Mexicanized. With little freeway building for years, traffic was awful. Stopping for gas near the airport left me in fear of my life. The state was relentless in trying to get taxes from me. Housing costs were ridiculous. Taxes were high. Idiotic regulations abounded. The state was “represented” by idiots like Barbara Boxer.
    Disgusted, I relocated to Missouri, though I must confess, your state of Texas sounds great. Missouri has its own tax problems, and we are “represented” by people like Claire McCaskill. How would you like a new neighbor?

  • http://www.nighttwister.com NightTwister

    I moved out in early 2000, and I really only miss the great weather. That no longer outweighs all the negatives. I’m very glad my kids didn’t have to attend those schools.

    I have a lot of good memories there. I don’t know if the place will ever turn around or not, but it’s clear with the latest election they’ve got to go further down the wrong road before anything changes.

  • izoneguy

    They must have passed each other up…..
    My parents moved from Texas to California in 1987 during the tech boom. My Dad started working for Cisco and did quit well for awhile.
    They moved from California in 2005 to Nevada, just over the border to escape the taxes and declining quality of life near San Jose. They moved back to Texas in 2007 to escape the casino lifestyle near Lake Tahoe. My dad could stop when he wanted, but my mother loved the slots too much.

  • Menlo

    Rather my family did; I was only 7 years old at the time.

    We were in Irvine, and my mother still wishes she could move back to Orange County and would if she could have afforded it. Since about the time we left, only the super-wealthy could afford a house or rent there, let alone taxes and utilities! I was too young to know what was going on, but the cost of housing there must have skyrocketed between the mid and late 1980′s.

    I hadn’t visited the place since the mid-90′s. I don’t know what it’s like now.

  • conservativecurmudgeon

    …or, something like that.
    And California Dreamin’ has become a Nightmare…

    If there is one thing in this whole California thing that really torques me, it’s that the whole La Raza crowd is allowed to be as nationalistic and xenophobic as any Archie Bunker, but let the voters of California determine that they don’t have to fund the healthcare of the entire Latin American world, and they are called bigots by the courts.

    And another thing: Mexico sold us California, along with the parts of Arizona and New Mexico for some sixteen million dollars, and the cancellation of a huge Mexican debt. Then, some years later, Ambassador Gadsden purchased the rest for $10 million.

    And its a good thing, too. Imagine the sort of shape California would be in now, if the US hadn’t acted: The cities would look like Mexico City, with crime running rampant, corruption the coin of the realm, the hospitals would be overrun, the gangs would run rampant, and, wait… Oh, yeah: That IS what they look like.

    Maybe Mexico would take it back.