Califronians Need to Stand up

I have been vocal about my opposition to the shutdowns since last April.  As previously stated, two weeks of closure to flatten the curve was acceptable, but nothing after that. Now, nearly seven months later, California is still closed. Schools have not reopened. Small businesses are closed and will never come back. Life has stalled and one would think that the public would have reached the breaking point. Unfortunately, I see no sign of that in the San Francisco Bay area. The mantra remains, We are saving lives. Should I dare breathe a contrary notion, the scorn is palpable.  

The death of small businesses in this area, and all over the State, is profoundly depressing. Drive anywhere and all that can be seen is boarded up store fronts. Proprietors have lost their entire life’s work. How could any enterprise ever come back from seven months with a Temporarily Closed sign in the window?

Equally as sad, and an aspect I find extremely distressing, is what it has done to the old folks. I know of several mid-90-year-old’s who are spending their last days in isolation and in a state of deep depression. Actually, two of them have died, and it wasn’t from the virus. They were old, it was super-hot, and most people in this area do not have air conditioning, so I cannot say for certain that the lockdowns killed them. However, I do know that they spent their last months on this earth in a mental state that no one should have to endure. 

Anyone who has lived to the age of 95, still has their marbles, and is in decent shape, is a life to be celebrated. I am not sad when they go, but reflect on what an amazing life they led. Nonetheless, knowing how depressed all of these people are, because of the mandated rules, is heartbreaking. In conversations, both in person and on the phone, they constantly talk of how sad they feel. Cognitive decline, not noticeable six months ago, is clearly evident. Yet their friends and families are allowing this to happen. I know that my old friends are not concerned about catching Corvid and packing it in.  Afterall, not one of them had ever expected to live to nearly a century. So why should they be left to suffer in the isolation of their homes, or confined to their room in a senior center? I fail to understand how people happily comply with the State mandated rules to keep them locked up and alone. What sort of society does that?

There are countless other negative ramifications of these mandated rulings that have now done irreparable damage to the lives of all Californians, financially, physically, and emotionally.  And all without one good reason. Who, with even a modicum of intelligence, can actually believe that human beings can run away and hide from a pathogen? The virus needs to run its course as viruses have done down through the ages.

California, wake up. Our State is dying.

 

California State Propositions Nov 2020

One needs to have a modicum of intelligence, and a fair amount of time, to sort through all of the State of California’s propositions that come up every election cycle. This being a presidential election year, there are thirteen initiatives on the ballot.

The State sent out its Official Voter Information Guide a few weeks ago. The quick reference guide in the front of the pamphlet is somewhat informative, but often quite unclear. To be properly informed, one must read the arguments, for and against, see who is endorsing what, read the State’s fiscal analysis, and often do further research. It takes time. Most people I know do not bother. Rather, they rely on the Voting Guides they receive in the mail.

Possibly, if I lived in another area, I might receive voter information from both sides of any given argument. But I don’t. I live in a socialist, brain-dead zip code, where the intelligentsia, and more than a few very wealthy tech folks, reside. It still surprises me that they do not accept diversity of thought.

My counter is filled with voting guides from Teachers’ unions, the AFL-CIO, local politicians, and no doubt I’ll receive more from similar-minded organizations. I realize that any groups with differing opinions feel it is not cost-effective to mail out voting information to my area, but couldn’t they at least try to present an opposing view?  Maybe a few voters would take a look.

I suppose these brochures are helpful if I am not quite sure what a given initiative entails. If the Teacher’s Union is for it, I am against it. (Side note: I am still a State of CA credentialed teacher and have been so for decades. I know whereof I speak.)

For anyone who does not live in The Golden State, and wants a bit of insight on why we have been descending deeper into the Nine Circles of Hell for several decades, peruse what is on the menu for the State this year. Lots of government control and millions and millions of dollars which the State does not have.

 

14 – Authorizes Bonds Continuing Stem Cell Research – Total estimated Cost: $7.8 Billion ($260 million a year for roughly the next 30 years.)

15 – Funding for Public Schools, Community Colleges, Local Government Services by Changing Tax Assessment on Commercial and Industrial Property – Cost to Property Owners $6.5 - $11.5 Billion

16 – Permits government decision-making policies to consider race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin to address diversity by repealing constitutional provision prohibiting such policies.  (i.e., racism in its finest form.)

17 – Restores Right to Vote after Completion of Prison Term, (but before completing Parole, which is part of a sentence.)

18 – Gives 17-year-olds the right to vote in a primary if they will turn 18 by next general election.   Cost up to $1 million

19 – Changes Certain Property Tax Rules.  Removes two voter-approved taxpayer protections form the State Constitution.   (Takes away Prop 13-related protections which states that: Property transferred from parents to children/grandparents to grandchildren are excluded from reassessment.)

20 – Restricts Parole for Certain Offenses/Authorizes Felony Sentences for Current Misdemeanors. (This is one of those crazy initiatives that leaves one’s head spinning). Bottom line: Cost Estimate: $10’s of millions annually.

21 – Expands Local Governments’ Authority to Enact Rent Control on Residential Property.    Cost: (it’s time to sell up and get out if you own rental property.)

22 – Exempts App-Based Transportation and Delivery Companies from Providing Employee Benefits to Certain Drivers.   (Keeps Uber and Lyft Drivers, etc., independent contractors.)

23 – Establishes State Requirements for Kidney Dialysis Clinics.   (Big Brother CA takes over Dialysis Clinics) Estimated Health Care Costs: $10’s - $100’s of millions annually

24 – Amends Consumer Privacy Laws.  (sounds good but the text is very concerning.  Be warned: Big Tech had a huge part in developing this initiative.)

25 – Referendum on Law That Replaced Money Bail with System Based on Public Safety.  (Get out of jail free card – no bail requirements.)

 

I find this all so depressing. I drive through town and see the homeless camps, the filth, the intolerance. I see the money wasted on schools, projects that never come to fruition, and politicians' salaries who only care about power. I cannot forsee a time when California will come back from the brink.

Yes, It is time to leave.