Only in California Could They Do This …
California, once known as the Golden State was hailed as an example of “if you build it they will come.” Those days are slipping away as the State’s liberal leaders focus more on enacting feel-good policies than addressing the real and growing needs of California families. One only needs to examine the latest “bold and progressive” ideas that have been allowed to become law in our former Golden State.
Only in California would policy makers believe imposing a flawed Cap and Trade program to reduce carbon emissions on their state’s economy is sound economic strategy. This is on top of the new gas tax and increased vehicle registration fees imposed earlier that will take about billions of hard earned dollars out of the pockets of California families thereby creating further economic chaos.
According to the California Air Resources Board (CARB), their Cap and Trade program will result in a potential loss to California’s GDP of between $13-$23 billion, a loss of between 68,000-104,000 jobs, and a loss of personal income of Californians by $4 – $6 billion!! Aside from the potential costs associated with job loss, some back-of-the-envelope calculations found a family of four in California could lose more than $750 of income every year (on top of all the other taxes they pay) from just these two earth-saving “ideas.”
But, if you thought liberal politicians are only out to pick the pocket of you and your family to finance their giveaway programs or line the pockets of their friends, you’d be terribly wrong.
Only in California do Democrats seem to be more concerned with the feelings of criminals, than the victims of their terrible acts. This is reflected in the bills signed into law by the Governor asking society to have a greater sense of compassion for violent criminals.
For example, liberals feel “juveniles” who commit murder and other heinous offenses must be given the opportunity to have a parole hearing after serving 25 years of their “Life Without the Possibility of Parole” sentence. The primary reason given as the need for this bill was the fact that the U.S. is the only country to impose such sentences on “children” (a criminal younger than 18 years of age) and that these sentences fail to consider the “constitutional differences between children and adults at sentencing.”
Only in California do liberals promote the concept that violent, criminal youths lack the requisite capacity to understand the true “right from wrong” of their actions, while at the same time ask us believe “youths” are mature enough to register to vote in elections.
The seemingly sensitive, but moonstruck approach to criminal justice wasn’t restricted to California’s “youthful offenders” during the recent legislative session. For example, the number of “What Were You Thinking” measures multiplied as liberal Democrats cast their progressive eyes across the spectrum of punishment for anti-social behavior in our state.
Only in California do Democrats remove mandatory enhanced sentences for using a gun in the commission of a crime, while at the same time make using a cell phone to record committing a felony, a mandatory sentencing enhancement.
Only in California do liberals require more jail time (up to one year) for calling a senior citizen “he” instead of “she,” while reducing jail time (now a six-month misdemeanor) for purposely infecting someone with AIDS. The “logic” behind making purposely exposing a partner to AIDS a misdemeanor is the claim that people infected with AIDS live longer today than when the law was first enacted.
Only in California is exposing a county or state correctional officer to hepatitis or tuberculosis considered “Assault & Battery” (look up “gassing”) punishable by imprisonment for two, three, or four years in prison, but giving someone to a life-threatening disease that will cost the victim more than $380,000 for medical treatment in their abbreviated lifetime (not including the life-time emotional cost to the victim) not a serious felony.
By now, you get a glimpse into the mind of California’s liberal lawmakers and you’ve likely concluded that the phrase “common sense” has lost its place in formulating public policy. Lest you think this small sample was the extent of the corrosive approach to California’s problems by progressives allow me to leave you with this final illustration.
Only in California would liberals enact gasoline taxes they expect to raise $5.3 billion a year to pay for annual road repairs that according to CALTRANS are underfunded by more than $6 billion a year. Additionally, the Legislative Analyst Office says the deferred maintenance costs of California’s roadways is currently over $57 billion.
Realizing I attended a public school and my math skills may not be equal to that of the liberal mavens responsible for guiding our Golden State, but it seems the gas tax increase will not address the yearly nor the deferred needs of our states roads.
By the way, only in California would a liberal legislator from San Francisco vote to increase the gas tax, vote to fund California’s Cap and Trade program with a fuel fee to address fixing roads, then promise to introduce legislation next year that bans the sale of vehicles powered by internal combustion engine that run on the fuel you just voted to tax!
Only in California!
