An Early Christmas Present

Bryce Canyon, Utah. Photo by JoAnn Sturman

Scott Sturman
fliesinyoureyes.com


The country received some good news this week from the results of the 2010 census. California will not be awarded additional seats in the United States Congress! The real winner, however, is the state of California which will be deprived of more political ammunition to shoot itself in the foot.

It is old news, but the 2010 national election provided a strong message that something was terribly wrong with the direction of the country, and the vote validated this sentiment. Even Massachusetts, the bastion of Eastern liberalism, elected a Republican to Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat. Not so in the Golden State, as every Congressional Democrat was returned to office. On the state level Democrats won every state wide election, most by substantial majorities.

With the unemployment rate above the national average, the state budget billions in the red, businesses leaving the state in droves, the most generous welfare benefits in the country, a horrendous illegal alien problem, and taxes already some of the highest in the nation it seems California voters would at least send a shot across the bow of the ruling Democratic Party. Evidently, it is preferable to have a drunken skipper at the helm as long as it is a familiar face.

Why do wealthy states have such great difficulty making ends meet? One of every eight Americans is a Californian, and at $1.8 trillion the California economy remains the 8th largest in the world. It accounts for 13% of the national GDP, making it about 50% more productive per capita than the rest of the United States. But here is the wringer. Not only are California politicians inept at handling state finances, but each year in the last twenty the state has sent the federal treasury $3.65 billion more in tax revenue than it has received in federal services. It’s a good deal for the rest of the country, but indicates something about the level of competence of the average California Senator or Representative. With this year’s $20 billion state budget deficit the implications are obvious, but to the California politician it is a difficult concept to fathom. What is wrong with paying our fair share of the national tax burden and insist on revenue neutrality as a reasonable goal?

Perhaps the misfortunes of the census will quell the California hubris and force its leaders to adapt a semblance of fiscal responsibility. Yet the same crew of Brown, Pelosi, Boxer, Feinstein, Waters, Lantos, Costa, and their fellow rogues never have been shy about squandering other people’s money or seen a problem that could not be solved by the implementation of an expensive government program. Let’s face it. They are addicted to spending money, and inculcated with the idea that the inherent productivity of Californians will compensate for their profligacy. Abundant natural resources and a favorable climate do not automatically confer wealth. Poor governance trumps this, as seen in the extreme examples of Argentina and Zimbabwe.

So during this holiday season, it is time for non Californians to rejoice. The California juggernaut is beginning to lose its political clout, and despite the economic woes at home, its leaders give no indication billions of dollars will cease to flow from the Golden State to the other forty nine.