California -- America's first failed state?

The crazy thing is, it's in California's state constitution that the governor must submit a balanced budget, the legislature must pass a balanced budget, and the state cannot carry over a deficit. So what the hell happened?

 

Makes no sense? The sense is the so-called rich have to pay higher property taxes so the less fortunate can have equal schools.

 

For Pete's sake.. when Willie Brown is admitting that the state government is nothing more than an incestuous pot of overpaid leeches, its time to blow it up.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/01/03/BA2V1BBGHH.DTL

If we as a state want to make a New Year's resolution, I suggest taking a good look at the California we have created. From our out-of-sync tax system to our out-of-control civil service, it's time for politicians to begin an honest dialogue about what we've become.

Take the civil service.

The system was set up so politicians like me couldn't come in and fire the people (relatives) hired by the guy they beat and replace them with their own friends and relatives.

Over the years, however, the civil service system has changed from one that protects jobs to one that runs the show.

The deal used to be that civil servants were paid less than private sector workers in exchange for an understanding that they had job security for life.

But we politicians, pushed by our friends in labor, gradually expanded pay and benefits to private-sector levels while keeping the job protections and layering on incredibly generous retirement packages that pay ex-workers almost as much as current workers.

Talking about this is politically unpopular and potentially even career suicide for most officeholders. But at some point, someone is going to have to get honest about the fact that 80 percent of the state, county and city budget deficits are due to employee costs.

Either we do something about it at the ballot box, or a judge will do something about in Bankruptcy Court. And if you think I'm kidding, just look at Vallejo.

 

Between Calpers, Calsters and the University of California's retirement system, the state of California is *underfunded* by, oh, half a trillion dollars. The numbers are laughable at this point.

Every politician promising everything under the sun to every state employee. Awesome.

2.6 million state workers. Their pension underfunded by an average of almost $200,000.

Clusterfuck of momumental proportions.

http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2010/4/6/study-california-public-pensions-underfunded-by-over-500b.aspx

 

Is there any way out of this other than a monumental federal govt bailout of California? Man is the rest of the country ever gonna be pissed at you guys if it comes to that.

 

Don't pay every retiree 70-90% of their bloated annual salary for lifetime at their early retirement dates.

 

Let Mexico have it.

 

And yet, somehow California will scrape together the millions needed to take Prop 8 to the Supreme Court.

You tax dollars at work.

 

I have no idea why anyone would move there.

It has the equivalent of typhoid, economically. And now the state is literally sinking.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/gps_fooled_010822-1.html

 

Guam: "See, it was THEM! not US!"

 

Then what would you do to fill the huge gap in the US Federal Budget that would be left behind. After all, as the Republican California Governor frequently points out, for every $1 the state's taxpayers send to Washington, they only get .78 cents back!

Just think if California got the 2.08 that New Mexico gets!

 

City of Vallejo opened that can of worms already. Bankruptcy.

http://articles.sfgate.com/2008-05-07/bay-area/17156524_1_public-safety-city-s-financial-mess-generous-contracts


Also, I read on this board alot about the threat of rioting. Go ahead and riot.