German author Franz Kafka wrote in The Metamorphosis, “There is an infinite amount of hope in the universe ... but not for us.” The legendary writer might as well have been writing about the state of California, a progressive wasteland that is the personification of everything wrong with leftist orthodoxy. In the mid-19th century, when it became a state, tens of thousands of people headed west. Today, those with a modicum of judgment and respect for their pocketbook are heading anywhere that is not named California, attempting to flee the incompetent mismanagement of Governor Gavin Newsom and his Democratic friends in Sacramento on every subject, from the economy to civil liberties.
The Exodus: A Primer
California Nightmarin’
In August, California Democrats proposed a significant tax hike on the wealthy. The Assembly legislation includes raising the top income tax rate to 16.8%, retroactive to January of this year. It would boost the top rate to 14.3% for households earning more than $1 million, 16.3% on income over $2 million, and 16.8% on income above $5 million. A separate bill would slap a 0.4% tax on assets topping $30 million. While this is damaging to the economy and may be considered isolated to the rich, everything else that California is doing is hurting and will continue to hurt everybody else. Newsom recently signed an executive order that phases out the sale of all gasoline-powered automobiles by 2035. The EO will still permit these cars to be owned and sold on the used-car market, but the measure will certainly push consumers to switch to the heavily subsidized electric vehicle market. In a statement, Newsom also endorsed a ban on petroleum fracking. However, instead of taking executive action, he urged the California Legislature to adopt prohibitions or restrictions on fracking. This could potentially impact the more than 360,000 people who are employed in the oil and gas sector. Despite being one of the wealthiest jurisdictions in the world, California is mirroring Venezuela by enduring rolling blackouts. For the first time in nearly 20 years, California is launching planned blackouts, prompting the governor to concede that the state needed to "sober up" about renewable energy sources failing to offer enough power for millions of residents at peak demand. Although local left-leaning politicians and the mainstream press will allude to the widespread wildfires as evidence of climate change, it has been years of gross negligence contributing to the disaster. As Liberty Nation wrote in January 2019:“Most forests are engulfed in dead trees. The saplings are crushed together and consume the water that old-growth trees need, causing them to endure an infestation of pests and a precipitous slide to death. What is necessary is thinning, which can be performed by private logging firms.”Not only is California going through power shortages but also suffering a government-induced water shortage. The state allowed clean fresh water to travel from rivers into the Pacific Ocean, refusing to consume the natural resource as part of efforts to appease green zealots. The other problem is that farmers are exempt from water restrictions and do not pay market prices. And yet residents can face fines of up to $500 per day if they take a long shower.






.jpg&w=1920&q=75)





