onwards
Pattern Altitude
To all you CA bashers: I have an idea. Let us secede. We'll be the country of California, and you can keep the rest of the union. OK?
Just don't come begging later. Considering that our entire state budget shortfall is more than twice-over covered by the amount (or gap) of extra taxes we pay the federal government as opposed to the amount we receive back, meaning that we subsidize most of you, since for most states the case is the reverse... I would expect a little more respect of us CA tax-payers. WE pay for YOUR government programs. From OUR perspective, eliminating all of them would be a boon to our state: we'd have all the money in the world to pay for them here, where we actually want them, while you'll have to go figure out how to scratch together billions of dollars we won't be giving you for the things you hate anyway, like medical coverage (medicare anyone? we pay for yours, you know).
CA, if allowed to stand by itself, would be the world's eighth largest economy, and as big as France. NY might want to do the same - it's a sizable economy (although only about half of CA's) and contributes way more to the nation than it gets back, again more than covering their budget shortfalls. TX is big (~60% of CA) but about breaks even, so who cares. Any other state is not even worth mentioning size-wise, and there are very few left that are not beggars that get donations from us crazy Californians. We're mostly crazy for agreeing to this equation.
Just don't come begging later. Considering that our entire state budget shortfall is more than twice-over covered by the amount (or gap) of extra taxes we pay the federal government as opposed to the amount we receive back, meaning that we subsidize most of you, since for most states the case is the reverse... I would expect a little more respect of us CA tax-payers. WE pay for YOUR government programs. From OUR perspective, eliminating all of them would be a boon to our state: we'd have all the money in the world to pay for them here, where we actually want them, while you'll have to go figure out how to scratch together billions of dollars we won't be giving you for the things you hate anyway, like medical coverage (medicare anyone? we pay for yours, you know).
CA, if allowed to stand by itself, would be the world's eighth largest economy, and as big as France. NY might want to do the same - it's a sizable economy (although only about half of CA's) and contributes way more to the nation than it gets back, again more than covering their budget shortfalls. TX is big (~60% of CA) but about breaks even, so who cares. Any other state is not even worth mentioning size-wise, and there are very few left that are not beggars that get donations from us crazy Californians. We're mostly crazy for agreeing to this equation.
