While I'm not a native born Californian (although I do live here), and thus I don't harbor the same feelings regarding immigration etc as many who have been here longer, I do have a rather clever solution to our problems. Let's make all of the illegal aliens citizens, and make the legal residents illegal aliens. In effect let's trade our legal status to them for their illegal status. I believe if you are a trader and live here, you will appreciate my sardonic proposition.
Public employee unions are bankrupting the state. Here is an exllent book on the subject. http://www.amazon.com/Plunder-Emplo...Bankrupting/dp/product-description/0984275207
When you've got a Mayor of a town of 38K making $796K a yr, and the Police Chief of same town pulling in $400K a yr, no. No amount of taxation will ever be able to catch up, ever. Will that one Mayor and one PD Chief bkrpt the states coffers? No. But spread out that mindset to all public "employees", and then try to pay those bills. Can't be done.
Moving is not always easy. It is not cheap. That doesn't mean that I won't move. One thing I love here is the weather. Otherwise I may live in Ann Arbor where cops are civilized and you don't have to speak Spanish to get a fast food job. I am not against immigrants who want to work -even though jobs are hard to come by these days. Those who are making babies they cannot afford in order to get more and more benefits are another story.
There are other places with nice weather, and moving is a lot cheaper than it used to be. And you might try learning some Spanish. There is one Spanish expression that neatly sums up existence: La lucha por la vida, which means the struggle for life. If you're not struggling, you're either super rich or dead. And many of the super rich are still tormented by personal demons. As far as those who are making babies they cannot afford, it's called the process of natural selection in action. Their descendants shall inherit the earth. The future belongs to those with the faith and determination to bring the next generation into the world. Keep the faith.
Keep the faith? No problem is they are working to support the babies they cannot support. When kids are used in order to get welfare, that is the problem. Some of these kids have fathers with decent jobs, but choose not to marry the mom so that she is a "single mom", get more welfare help that way. And taxpayers here are taxed and again and again all for these people (legal & illegal) who exploit our stupid system.
Some of these kids have fathers with decent jobs, but choose not to marry the mom so that she is a "single mom", get more welfare help that way. -------------------- Funny how that happened. The 'welfare" benefits for the mother are greater than the income a father could earn. We have a disconnect between breadwinner getting a good paying job and the gov't benefits. In the meantime, we kicked dad out of the house. We have even go so far as to disincentivize the mother from going to work, even part time. it is not worth it. Hmnnn. Probably should calculate various social aid programs for a family and see what this comes out to in dollars per hour. If you consider, food stamps, energy help, housing vouchers, health care, health care is free to mothers and children (at least in NY). Who knows, these benefits might add up to 10 - 15 dollars an hour if you had to get a job. Now if you had to replace these free benes, you might have to make 20 bucks an hour to net an extra 50 dollars a week after taxes (now is that worth it?). Where's that job at? Not anywhere I know for no skills or poor skills.