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When I was younger, CA was the place to be. The success of the state has perhaps never been more vibrant than it was in the 1980's. Hollywood made movies (and stayed away from politics), it seems all sports teams from the state were great! The economy was booming with a surplus and the middle class was the envy of the nation. About the only negative you heard from CA was the LA traffic and smog.
Now, even with a 3 billion dollar economy, it is but a shadow of what it once was. The beautiful Golden State is deteriorating to what some would call a third world state. Is it it's socialist tendencies of the past 30 years? Is it the wrong kind of immigration? Did it just become too big, too quick and is my home state of Texas in danger of suffering the same fate one day? Thoughts?
That's because Reagan subsidized the California based aerospace industry with military spending and research. COL and traffic also hadn't reached a tipping point yet.
The problem is today its a corporate run state with massive mergers in both Hollywood and Silicon Valley. Nothing to do with Socialism.
That's because Reagan subsidized the California based aerospace industry with military spending and research. COL and traffic also hadn't reached a tipping point yet.
The problem is today its a corporate run state with massive mergers in both Hollywood and Silicon Valley. Nothing to do with Socialism.
Interesting. I brought up the socialism question simply because I have family that came to the U.S from Latin America mostly in the 1970's and 80's. In those days, most all of them chose California over Texas. Perhaps it was because of the job opportunities but also, it was well known that California offered better social services. Now I understand that doesn't make a government socialist of communist, but I could see how that has attributed to some of the problems that the state has today. In the mean time, most of that family has moved to Texas now.
Interesting. I brought up the socialism question simply because I have family that came to the U.S from Latin America mostly in the 1970's and 80's. In those days, most all of them chose California over Texas. Perhaps it was because of the job opportunities but also, it was well known that California offered better social services. Now I understand that doesn't make a government socialist of communist, but I could see how that has attributed to some of the problems that the state has today. In the mean time, most of that family has moved to Texas now.
California does have a large welfare/social service network (which, like you said, is not socialism) but I think most of their problem comes from the high cost of living which artificially raises the poverty rate and weighs heavy on the social service system.
COL isn't just about housing, but also the over-concentration of wealth and population distribution by big company organizations in San Francisco, San Diego, and LA-Orange County.
Weather is also a factor that has been a blessing and a curse.
It all started in 1965 with the passage of the Hart Celler Act.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NorthTexasGuy
deteriorating to what some would call a third world state.
Is it it's socialist tendencies of the past 30 years? Not sure.
Is it the wrong kind of immigration? YES
is my home state of Texas in danger of suffering the same fate one day? YES
California and the US import millions of low skilled, uneducated, non assimilating, agrarian, over birthing, resource consuming third world peasants. This situation is getting worse and is very unlikely to ever end. Europe is having very similar problems.
When I was younger, CA was the place to be. The success of the state has perhaps never been more vibrant than it was in the 1980's. Hollywood made movies (and stayed away from politics), it seems all sports teams from the state were great! The economy was booming with a surplus and the middle class was the envy of the nation. About the only negative you heard from CA was the LA traffic and smog.
Now, even with a 3 billion dollar economy, it is but a shadow of what it once was. The beautiful Golden State is deteriorating to what some would call a third world state. Is it it's socialist tendencies of the past 30 years? Is it the wrong kind of immigration? Did it just become too big, too quick and is my home state of Texas in danger of suffering the same fate one day? Thoughts?
SJWs and the PC Patrol types will run anything and everything into the mud.
California does have a large welfare/social service network (which, like you said, is not socialism) but I think most of their problem comes from the high cost of living which artificially raises the poverty rate and weighs heavy on the social service system.
COL isn't just about housing, but also the over-concentration of wealth and population distribution by big company organizations in San Francisco, San Diego, and LA-Orange County.
Weather is also a factor that has been a blessing and a curse.
COL has certainly become an issue in Texas as well. It is is not as affordable as most people think. I hope the saving factor in Texas for real estate will be that the major metros don't have physical and geographical limitation for development. Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin can continue to grow with almost no limitations therefore hopefully keeping an abundant supply for the growing population; although urban sprawl will be another challenge.
The defense/aerospace industry went into a steep decline from the late 80's through the 90's. Rockwell was a major employer for defense aircraft.
With the exception of El Segundo and Fullerton: Hughes/Raython moved to Tucson
Lockheed Burbank gone
Autonetics Boeing Anaheim gone
Boeing Irvine gone
Teledyne gone
Boeing Huntington Beach sold half the facility and tore down Building 17
Boeing Seal Beach also sold half the facility
Rocketdyne sold its Canoga campus, everything at De Soto now.
The early 1970s were brutal (so were the early 1990s). Engineers were driving taxis and selling Amway.
Another thing that affected the socioeconomic dynamic of SoCal (and the rest of the US): Busing. This is one of the reasons Simi Valley exploded. People who lived and worked in the San Fernando Valley moved over the hill to Simi rather than have their kids get bused out of their neighborhoods.
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