What do you mean by "subsidize"? Are you referring to the general progressiveness of the US Federal tax code, or are you insinuating that Oklahoma's state budget is X% funded by California in addition to Oklahoman tax receipts?
>That would be great, considering California subsidizes most of the rest of the country.
You and subiculumcode are wrong.
First, the state of California does not pay a cent to another state or to the federal government. It is residents of California that pay federal taxes, which in turn provide funding and services to states and individuals.
Second, the Rockefeller Institute (<https://rockinst.org/issue-areas/fiscal-analysis/balance-of-...>) shows that, as of 2018 (the last time I checked this data; I see that 2019 is now available), the 10 states at the bottom of the per capita list—that is, the states that benefit from the most federal spending per person compared to how much each person pays in federal taxes—are
2016/2020 Hillary/Biden-voting states: VA, NM, MD, HI, 1/2 of ME
2016/2020 Trump-voting states: KY, AK, AL, WV, MS, 1/2 of ME
It's not so much "blue states" as frequently claimed, but taxpayers of four very wealthy Northeast states (the Tri-State area plus Massachusetts) that account for the vast bulk of citizens paying more than they receive from the federal government. After them come CO, NE, UT, and MN, of which half voted for Hillary/Biden and half for Trump. All other states, including CA, are net beneficiaries of the taxpayers in the top eight (and, again, really, it's the top four).
100% this. All across the country, California is subject to ridicule, inane accusations and misconceptions, the devil and scapegoat and example of every red-state citizen eating on food stamps from California tax dollars and on Californian grown fruits and vegetables. Yes, there are things wrong with 'ol Cali, and its not the sunshine, but if California kept to itself, it would be just fine, but what would happen to California's detractors? Starve?
About 10 years ago I would have agreed with this comment but now… not so sure. Seems everyday there’s a new law or initiative to push productive professionals/companies away, not a fan of the trajectory… but who knows, maybe I’ll be surprised in another 10 years ;)
I think most of the country gets a bad rep for regulation and initiatives and laws that don't have positive effect. My parents are in the crowd that want to leave California because of supposed "over-regulation". I was telling my father this morning about the Songs-Beverly Act (California's Lemon Law) which essentially protects products you buy for 7 years, giving you the right to repair them. I just sued my employer for not allowing me 2nd meal breaks (every 5 hours), rest breaks, and for not giving me proper/reasonable notice when making schedule changes. These are all things I didn't have when I worked a federal job. Btw, it's hilarious that you're not entitled to (just 1!) meal break at the federal level. California has excess regulation, but I wish people weighed it against the positives instead of assuming it's all red tape.
I think California deserves more praise for how it protects people. Net Neutrality is effectively upheld by state-by-state regulation, because the federal gov couldn't secure this for us.
I honestly agree with you on all of those points. Those are very good things to have.
At the end of the day though, people _are_ weighing the pros and cons and deciding to leave. Perhaps it’s not the right conclusion but it’s not like people are leaving due to mere “rumors” or “bad press” - Texas/Florida have been punching bags for the past two years and people keep moving there.
My personal opinion is just to live where you want to live. If the cost of regulation is too high for you, move to a less regulated place. You’ll lose culture and entertainment but you’ll gain freedom.
If you prefer the regulations, stay, at the cost of some freedom.
But honestly, if everyone is happy in their own state I consider that a win… now rn I’m “stuck” in the “actual” worst state, hands down, which is Virginia ;)
This excellent comeback currently being downvoted is quite a testament to this weird turn against California in the tech community. It seems too sudden and drastic to be just the result of the general ascend of the alt-right in the sector so I am wondering if there any other reasons? Elon Musk? (No it’s not the weird crime fantasies. Also, by the way, Sweden still has excellent quality of life and phrenology is probably wrong and definitely useless)
Maybe housing? But that’s almost literally the Woody Allen joke, “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded”.
It’s probably lots of little reasons, the main one being though, why stay?
Why start a business there vs another state? Lots of empty office space rn and I can only assume remote won’t help with that.
When the value of the location goes down, could easily start an exponential exit. Cities aren’t forever, just look at Detroit. Not saying that will happen to California but I really do think it peaked for tech last decade.