[nontechdude1]

i don't want california to grow. the traffic is too bad and people are less happy. in fact, i've been cheering trump deporting all 3 million illegal immigrants here because it's a legal way to alleviate the housing crisis.

CA was an environmental gem and still is to an extent. i don't want to invite the whole world here. i dont want immigrants, rich and poor, coming here and forcing out people who were born here.

i believe there are too many people here. unfortunately my voicing of this opinion is confined to a niche web forum for tech nerds.

i have a different opinion than you about whether CA growing is a good thing. however, i think wieners bill allows for growth without increasing traffic--i'll take it.

[wjnqx]

>the traffic is too bad >CA was an environmental gem and still is to an extent

If the traffic is bad, vote to build public transit. Germany and Japan are almost identical to California in size and both have preserved most of their natural beauty and have comparatively few problems with congestion. They do this by investing in rail, because it takes cars off the road and increases physical and economic mobility.

>i've been cheering trump deporting all 3 million illegal immigrants

I see no reason to kick people out who want a shot at the American Dream, and whom Americans like you and I have invited into this country with our insatiable desire for cheap labor, food, and construction. Instead we could let them legalize (not even necessarily become citizens, though I'd like to see that) and build housing and other infrastructure to accommodate them while growing our economy and tax base. That has been a proven success in this country for the last several hundred years.

>i dont want immigrants, rich and poor, coming here and forcing out people who were born here.

And yet, by continuing to support Prop 13 and other policies that reduce the housing supply and place an undue burden on those who wish to purchase housing, you are forcing people like me — who were born in this state — to leave.

>i believe there are too many people here

There aren't too many people here. There's too little housing at too low a density with too little public infrastructure. All of those problems are solvable — we just need to gather the political will to make investments for the continued prosperity of our state. We need to act like grown-ups living in a society: we must pay our taxes, elect responsible leaders, help those less fortunate than us, and fight for our collective interest.

Or are we just going to scapegoat the most vulnerable, dodge paying our fair share of taxes on our ever-appreciating assets, kick the ladder out beneath us, and cower behind walls? Most in my generation seem sick of this free-for-all past generations have created. I want a society where we do our share, help those less fortunate, restore civil society, embrace community support structures, and give everyone a shot at a happy existence. That's what I'll be fighting for. What about you?

[nontechdude1]

There are cities in the US with housing at $20/square foot. There is plenty of space for people who can't afford to live here.

That is literally 100 times cheaper than the most expensive real estate in CA.

Why won't Google put some satellite offices in York, PA? York, PA isn't 100 times worse than Atherton.

Most people in CA feel the same way I do and our voices matter. There are big forces at play: third-world illegal immigration, third-world legal immigration, tech's reluctance to spread out across America, driving up costs for all of us natives. Rather than lower the value of housing here by overbuilding, I'd rather stand up for myself and eliminate those negative forces. In case you didn't know, being nativist is in vogue these days. I'm not the only one! And I'm happy and unashamed to vote this way.

Vancouver did something like this, rather than overbuild. It's not racist and it's not immoral. It's just making your voice heard.

[wjnqx]

The technology-based economy extracts value from the rapid information exchange that takes place in cities full of highly-educated people. That doesn't exist in York, PA. Google et al. know that if they moved, their rate of innovation would falter, along with their revenue.

>Most people in CA feel the same way

What? Citation?

>being nativist is in vogue these days

You're not a nativist. If you were, you'd want a place for people like me who were born here. Instead, you're more than willing to kick us out for the sake of your own financial well-being. You're just a selfish beneficiary of the pyramid scheme that is the American housing market.

[nontechdude1]

Give me your stock options. You're just a selfish beneficiary of the pyramid scheme that is the US technology industry.

[wjnqx]

I'm a UC student on Pell grants. My parents were priced out of owning a home in their metro area.

What is wrong with you? What destroyed your empathy, compassion, and hope?

[nontechdude1]

I was trying to be provocative. I'm just saying, politics is a sensitive subject, and to you, "equalizing property taxes" might seem righteous, but in reality it could mean someone else losing their home. I think prop 13 is grounded in sound principles.

There are ways to dramatically increase the housing supply that I think we should be working on and it seems like the state is doing that.

[fricat1ve]

Then allow prop 13 to stay but only for a primary residence. Maybe even limit it to native born citizens if you want. The benefit should definitely not be available to landlords or foreign buyers.

The current situation is bad enough that it's actually driving away people who were born here and have regular jobs, and causing a lot of the traffic problems you mention by increasing commuting.