The collapse of the state’s (latest) real-estate bubble has sent California’s economy into free fall. A short list of the state’s current problems would include surging unemployment, struggling schools, and a budget deficit larger than the entire budget in almost every other state.
"The California Experiment," The Atlantic, October 09
Fiscal troubles are just the tip of the iceberg. California's percentage of adults without at least a high-school education is the second-highest in the nation (and the fact that 72% of those without diplomas are immigrants only fuels the state's growing problem of social stratification). The Commonwealth Fund has ranked the quality of California's health care lowest of the 50 states. The state has the highest rate of criminal recidivism in the country. It has six of the ten worst cities in the country in air pollution. Los Angeles and San Francisco have some of the most congested roads in the nation, which costs the state's employers billions in lost productivity each year. The state is seriously discussing mandatory water rationing, and has in recent years experienced severe disruptions of its electricity supply. Unemployment is over 11%, and a recent survey of corporate CEOs ranked California the worst state in the country in which to do business. It is losing native-born citizens faster than any other state.
"Who Killed California?" National Affairs, Fall 09
(If you read the second article -- spoiler alert: liberalism killed California -- you'll also want to read the VDARE Foundation's rebuttal.)
As industries in other U.S. states prepare to rehire on signs of recovery, firms in California are still waiting for their economy to rebound.
The state has 12.2 percent unemployment, above the national U.S. level of 9.8 percent.
"Sorry, No Jobs. This is California," Reuters, Oct 13, 09
As a Californian and a taxpayer, I should probably be super-worried about the spate of "Oh, God! California is befubared!" articles that have popped up. However, I am also a member of the media and not a day goes by where I don't read about my chosen vocational field heading off a cliff. So, you know, meet the new panic, same as the old panic.
And for those of you who aren't working in an industry enthusiastically chronicling why it deserves to be driven into extinction or living in a state enthusiastically driving itself into extinction with every successive proposition on a ballot ... enjoy the schadenfreude.
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