Texas a better California than California

[muckefuck]

http://www.city-journal.org/2009/19_4_california.html

I find the analysis in the article particularly interesting because I see Chicago heading toward the same "big-spending, high-taxing, lousy-services" model as California. For the past year and a half, we've had the highest sales tax in the nation, yet they still can't fix the potholes or make the the trains run on time. At least Left Coast progressives can console themselves with the fact that the major beneficiaries are those on the dole and public sector employees (and, by extension, their unions, which should warm the heart of the pro-labour contingent). By contrast, here the money seems to end up in the pockets of private developers, which is not an outcome favoured by any principled political philosophy.

Comments

[pklexton.livejournal.com]

Ooops. Texas is not largely poor. I meant to say by most accounts there is more poverty in Texas than California.

[mlr.livejournal.com]

That is probably correct (I would not be one who could verify.)

It probably is largely cheaper to run a business in TX than in CA -- one of the reasons TX, despite many deficiencies, can sometimes compete with CA. If that business (publishing, the most elite of high tech, etc.) is dependent on a base of extraordinary talent and smarts, then it might be better off remaining in the Bay area or New York, because of course many of those people require more than Texas can offer (not to mention the drawbacks).

The poor man's dollar will buy more in TX than CA, and that goes for the rich man's dollar too. As long as that is the case, TX will continue to attract citizenry and business. For us that live here, that usually is a good thing.

I should point out that TX does have some things that perhaps could hold their own with the wonders of CA: the music scene in Austin, the museums in Fort Worth, the Big Bend country, etc.

[pklexton.livejournal.com]

I'm usually not someone who goes out of his way to bash other parts of the country. I'm just reacting a little on an emotional level against the article quoted here, which I thought was a bit unfair to my adopted home state. I've actually had some good times in Texas and can see that it has quite a few good attributes, as does most anywhere if you look for it.