You got it! You managed to summarize why California's all "f'd" up!

unfortunately, the time has come for California to pay the piper. We as individuals have been living beyond our means for a long time (as indicated by our consumer debt and lack of savings). Similarly, most state governments and the Federal Government are living beyond their means.

The Federal Government, conveniently can print money and take on massive amounts of debt, in order to create the "illusion" of prosperity. State governments can't do that any longer.

So Californians need to look at their much-reduced state revenues and figure out what to use them for. Schools? Roads? Emergency services? Services for illegal aliens? Entitlement programs?

Whatever, but considering that the deficit is something like a whopping 20% of the budget, that means the citizens of California flat-out can't afford a lot of the stuff they've been buying. And so, wherever the cuts are made, there will be people suffering and screaming, and it's not going to be pretty.

thanks walter!

fins, we might consider who usually suffers versus who is usually screaming when they ain't suffering yet.

I agree with walter. politics has lost its sense of priority. rAted!

agreed. I don't condone corporate welfare and it frustrates me to no end that corporations can simply pay lobbyists and then survive off our tax dollars.

but, I think we've all lost sight of what the job of government is. Or at least we need to rethink the role of government in our lives. If we want big government than we have to expect big taxes - and not just on the other guy.

i think we should either jack taxes WAY up for everyone - say 30% of gross income - and then have the government take care of us cradle to grave. Or else, we should cut taxes and spending WAY back and turn our country into a place where people take care of themselves, and neighbors and charities pitch in to help those who need it. The middle ground is killing us with inefficiency, corruption, and bureaucracy.

fins, i would pay big taxes, to alleviate that person's suffering. in fact we do pay higher taxes than average, and i would choose to pay more to support services. but that option is not before me: i can't choose it. i give money frequently and enthusiastically, and i know it isn't enough. and i don't want 30% of someone's income when they live in a wheelchair. do you really believe that would improve things?

you say, "we have to expect bigger taxes - and not just on the other guy"

as if i haven't been trying to pay everyone's share that i could afford. your either or proposition makes no sense to someone who wants to solve these problems. why shouldn't reality matter in politics?

This is heartbreaking. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

It's "we the people" right?

Thanks for putting a face to this story. Too often it's numbers and talking heads on TV; nobody bothers looking at the people affected.

thank you for stopping by, julie! no one gets out of here alive, and i don't know why more people don't see that. i'd like to meet the people who can so easily write off the poor, sick and aged. i guess they plan on dying young, rich and healthy?

i was so moved watching the videos, nana. you could tell that the police don't want this job. even though i am afraid of the cops pretty often, i could still see that they took no joy in going after these perps.

bstrangely,
Great post.

I know this one. George Carlin said it best. If there is no money in it for big corporations, it is not going to get done. This is also the reason why they still do not want to legalize pot. There is no money in it.

Rated.

Something that continues to bother me - how is this an "unlawful assembly"?

julie, i think they were arrested for blocking traffic.

the unlawful assembly arrests bother me too. we do have a right to free assembly as guaranteed by the first amendment, but i see signs here that indicate "free speech areas" and that is really creepy. if i can only exercise my rights in a parking lot where no one can see me then we've effectively been silenced. if the police simply start arresting us for exercising our rights, how long will we have people willing to risk that?
http://www.cpj.org/blog/2009/01/police-at-fault-over-rnc-journalist-arrests-report.php

thanks thoth. i am trying to find out more about these people. the coverage is so light but i've never seen a more affecting demonstration.

Heartbreaking videos. Unfathomable response by the government. What's next? We just take these poor souls out to sea and dump them on a dark night?

There are thousands of Veterans from Vietnam on who are in a similar situation...I wonder if there is the same compassion for them?

Nice Post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you for compiling this and providing a voice for those who always seem to be muted.

michael, sadly, i think they're already doing that in la. there have been a few episodes of patient dumping.

ts, why do you assume none of these people are veterans?

ts, while a veteran might be deserving of our gratitude, I don't think a non-veteran is any less deserving of fundamental basic care.

thank you for reading and commenting, real news cafe and manchu wok!

Nice job bstrangely. The handwriting is on the wall. This is the U.S. and Nazi eugenics programs argument all over again. "Well, they are just too old or it is just too much of a burden on taxpayers to care for these folks so, off to the Soylent Green factory."

Sickening, but we are going to see a lot more of this.

Oh you said it! CA is so lost in the hole, we may not be able to climb out. It sucks. Sadly, its only going to get worse. I see more budget cuts coming.

it's so depressing, rwnutjob. i lived in the city for almost a year, and it has taken a real hit as the cities around the peninsula criminalized homelessness and poverty. this is just the tip of a very big iceberg, i fear.

ladymiko, i'm wondering when we'll bite the bullet and look at our weirdo property tax rates. we still can't afford to buy a home here. when i sold fine jewelry, there were people who would speak wistfully about moving to texas where the property was more affordable, but they were too worried about the capital gains tax to take that kind of action.

which meant they owned multiple homes/properties. you don't pay capital gains on your home, not since 1997's tax relief act. this state is swimming in money. when will we start asking why this is so screwed up?

i agree, geebee. our veterans need better care, but what kind of country discards it's weakest members? that's the way animals live.

Here's the fucking sad thing about all this. If you do the simple math, all we are lacking to close the deficit gap is $12.80 per person per week, assuming we raise the same amount from everyone. Yet the anti-tax stalwarts of the GOP and their ludicrous apology for a Governor will not do this. It's not as if spending suddenly surged by $24 billion. The revenue stream shrunk! Because the economy is in a slump!

I saw San Francisco assessor Phil Ting speak and he said how we need to reform prop 13 and make commercial properties exempt from it. It's a gutsy move for him to go after this issue but it's about time that somebody did it. I wish that Ting could be running for governor. So far, he's the only Calif. pol willing to say this stuff. Thanks for the post.

I can't bear our governor... remember when we were only 8 billion in the whole and he led the march to get our previous governor out of office so he could solve all of our problems? He's done a bang up job! Now, if we just stop paying for all the services our citizens actually require and desire - like education - we'll be in the money! Odd that we dress so well and drive such nice cars for a state that owes more money than most 4th world nations.

:) Rated

that's interesting, bob. did he share some reasons for why commercial properties should be exempt? that still leaves a really weird market imbalance. i know the usual rationale is to encourage investment, but there's so much property just sitting empty in the bay. meanwhile, the housing problem isn't going to go away, and all the affordable real estate is way the hell out in the boonies. there's a lot to be mad about here!

i moved to california right when the recall was underway, iamsurly! it was crazy. we bought a souvenir deck of cards with all the wannabe governors on it.

don't blame me, i voted for gary coleman!