CommentsLEANING RIGHT--There's a reason or three why so many Californians, be they Republican, Democratic, or Independent, are leaving our big cities and even our Once-Golden State:
1) Those following the rules are getting punished, and those breaking the rules are being rewarded.
Anyone reading the news or following us here at CityWatch knows that the state, county, and city governments throughout California have elected officials who have so many conflicts of interests, and are so used to thwarting the law, that the concept of being "law-abiding" is considered "old-fashioned" and "closed-minded".
2) Small businesses who are fighting so very hard have been smashed and crushed for decades, and particularly so with THIS governor and legislature, with the results of their throwing up their hands and fleeing for their financial survival.
Only the uber-rich can survive, and the higher-paying professionals once-deemed "rich" are now actually middle-class. Hence, we see households with annual incomes over $200,000 being eligible for affordable housing, and the rich-poor divide is worsening under the watch and guidance of those who claim to represent Joe/Jane Californian.
3) Lawlessness is now considered a step forward for civil rights, and law and order is now considered racism.
As police who protect us, including police officers of all colors, are now being thrown on the defensive, disrespected, and now fearing for their own safety and security each day, it's not hard to conclude that lawlessness is increasingly the new normal. And if the results are that brown/black minorities suffer the most at "woke" white hooligans in masks, then...okey-dokey!
So here we go into next month's elections, and let's see if we can't pull ourselves from the brink of wokeness-driven anarchy...or if we'll all hold hands and throw ourselves into the Pit of Fire, hand in hand, as we doom ourselves and our children to unforetold suffering:
1) State Proposition 15--Raising Property Taxes on Commercial Properties. NO!!!
How many times do we need to see misspent funds to K-12 schools and community colleges, and how many times in recent history have we voluntarily spent more to do what we're being asked to do...again...and again...and again...
Want to smack down businesses who pay PLENTY in NEW taxes after Proposition 13 was passed? Want to get yourself FIRED as these businesses lay off workers and/or just leave? I doubt it...so the time to keep smashing the elements holding our economy together probably needs to be reconsidered with a kinder understanding that most "rich" employers are fighting for their lives.
2) State Proposition 16: Creating Affirmative Action. NO!!!
Do you embrace racism? Do you see bands of marching KKK white supremacists marching up and down your street, burning crosses in front of minority homeowners? Do you see Asian-American gangs and overlords chasing down and assaulting Americans of color? And ARE Asian-Americans individuals of color, too?
If you really hate white people, and really hate Asian people, and presume that meritocracy and grades and performance mean nothing, then this is the measure for you. Because getting a 4.0 or higher and being told you're the "wrong color" to get accepted to a medical school or college is pretty rough.
I know. I heard it first-hand, despite graduating summa cum laude in three years of undergraduate studies, and not being eligible for acceptance to a California medical school. Anti-Semitic and Anti-Asian prejudice is just as horrible from the Left as it is from the Right. And YES, I've fought like hell to get more underrepresented minorities qualified to get into higher education.
We need people of all colors, to work with and work for. That whole "judging a person by his/her character and not skin color" means something. Don't be a racist. Vote NO!
3) State Proposition 17: Parolee Vote. NO!!!
I love the idea of police reform and alternatives to incarceration and love the idea of parolees moving on with their lives. But serving time is serving time. There's a reason why committing crimes should be avoided. Crimes are bad. Crimes hurt people.
And until you've served your prison sentence, even if you've been granted the grace and kindness to serve your sentence on the outside of prison walls, YOU'RE STILL SERVING TIME! Laws mean something. Prison terms mean something. Parolees are not free for a reason--they hurt someone. Let them vote after their terms are up, and after they've earned back their rights for voting.
4) State Proposition 18: 17-Year-Old Voters. NO!!!
When I was 17, I was a freshman in college. Straight A's. Valedictorian. Yet I still had no clue as to what an educated vote meant, and neither did any of my friends in a similar situation. Children are children, and not that long ago the voting age was still 21.
17-year-old children can't drink alcohol at all and can't get either tattoos or get medical procedures without the approval of their parents. And plenty of those over 18 know damned well to run to the advice of their parents, and rely on their parents for food, rent, college, and medical advice.
Having children vote in primaries because they will be 18 at the final vote is just the first step towards ignoring the reality of making informed, mature decisions like voting. Fascist countries throughout history used children as ways to impose an iron will by using their naivete against us all. Let children learn and let us adults not BEHAVE like children.
Time and space prevent me from going over more propositions. But I guess that's the reason I have such a hard time coming up with new ideas for CityWatch articles.
Voting is tough--and that's the way it should be. Life in the adult, real world is complicated and needs education in civics, history, and science. There are plenty of reasons why the middle class has fled California. Some of them are due to past propositions passed that gave the law-abiding lots of buyer's remorse.
Let's not create a few more reasons to flee California come November 3rd.
(CityWatch Columnist, Kenneth S. Alpern, M.D, is a dermatologist who has served in clinics in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties, and is a proud husband and father to two cherished children and a wonderful wife. He was termed out of the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC) twice after two stints as a Board member for 8-9 years and is also a Board member of the Westside Village Homeowners Association. He previously co-chaired the MVCC Outreach and Planning Committees, and currently is Co-Chair of the MVCC Transportation/Infrastructure Committee. He was previously co-chair of the CD11 Transportation Advisory Committee, the grassroots Friends of the Green Line (which focused on a Green Line/LAX connection), and the nonprofit Transit Coalition, and can be reached at [email protected]. The views expressed in this article are solely those of Dr. Alpern.)
-cw
