Things that made you Facepalm today (Political Version)

[Methais]

.. I hope you're trolling with that second paragraph, because that is legitimately a truly zany conspiracy theory. Meanwhile, wealth redistribution did occur, but it migrated to the top 10%.

https://www.federalreserve.gov/relea...l;units:shares

Wealth redistribution is where your welfare checks are coming from.

You should consider getting a job.

[Suppressed Poet]

30% of all homeless people in the US live in California and that number continues to increase:
https://www.ppic.org/blog/homeless-populations-are-rising-around-california/#:~:text=As%20of%202022%2C%2030%25%20of,of%20the%2 0nation's%20homeless%20population.

California is the biggest welfare state BY A HUGE AMMOUNT:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/no...ing-2017-11-28

Population in California continues to decline, and the reasons are not because of birth rates but rather a mass exodus:
https://calmatters.org/newsletters/w...xodus-housing/

I encourage you Seran to really ask yourself why that is happening. The next question to ask is if these economic policies are not working for the state of California, why in the world would we want that for the United States as a whole?

[Seran]

30% of all homeless people in the US live in California and that number continues to increase:
https://www.ppic.org/blog/homeless-populations-are-rising-around-california/#:~:text=As%20of%202022%2C%2030%25%20of,of%20the%2 0nation's%20homeless%20population.

California is the biggest welfare state BY A HUGE AMMOUNT:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/no...ing-2017-11-28

Population in California continues to decline, and the reasons are not because of birth rates but rather a mass exodus:
https://calmatters.org/newsletters/w...xodus-housing/

I encourage you Seran to really ask yourself why that is happening. The next question to ask is if these economic policies are not working for the state of California, why in the world would we want that for the United States as a whole?

Great weather.

[Seran]

Though really, weather conducive to street life is a component, it's largely due to the abundance of space, lax policing in the major metropolitan areas, massive outreach programs that bring food and medicine to your tent, not to mention fairly generous Cal Works and CalFresh programs that make finding food even easier which is often sold for drugs and alcohol.

[Suppressed Poet]

Though really, weather conducive to street life is a component, it's largely due to the abundance of space, lax policing in the major metropolitan areas, massive outreach programs that bring food and medicine to your tent, not to mention fairly generous Cal Works and CalFresh programs that make finding food even easier which is often sold for drugs and alcohol.

Great weather is certainly part of the equation as well as the other things you mentioned & more. You think those Silicon Valley folks pay for all that? Perhaps they fund a small portion of it. The real tax burden rests on those just over the poverty line to the living comfortably category. Middle class are the backbone of America and an absolute necessity for stability. Those people, and most especially small business owners in this group who get further taxed / regulated to death / shut down by Covid lockdowns / victims of theft & lawlessness / etc., have been raped & pillaged to the point it’s no longer sustainable to continue living there. Thus I say California is starting to resemble a society of feudalism with a few nobles & a lot of serfs.

It’s a shame too, because California is such a beautiful place with a vast amount of industry & natural resources. There is no reason for it to be that way.

[Solkern]

Great weather is certainly part of the equation as well as the other things you mentioned & more. You think those Silicon Valley folks pay for all that? Perhaps they fund a small portion of it. The real tax burden rests on those just over the poverty line to the living comfortably category. Middle class are the backbone of America and an absolute necessity for stability. Those people, and most especially small business owners in this group who get further taxed / regulated to death / shut down by Covid lockdowns / victims of theft & lawlessness / etc., have been raped & pillaged to the point it’s no longer sustainable to continue living there. Thus I say California is starting to resemble a society of feudalism with a few nobles & a lot of serfs.

It’s a shame too, because California is such a beautiful place with a vast amount of industry & natural resources. There is no reason for it to be that way.

I think, it’s the main part, if you put New York weather there, there would be a mass exodus of homeless to a warmer place.

[Seran]

Great weather is certainly part of the equation as well as the other things you mentioned & more. You think those Silicon Valley folks pay for all that? Perhaps they fund a small portion of it. The real tax burden rests on those just over the poverty line to the living comfortably category. Middle class are the backbone of America and an absolute necessity for stability. Those people, and most especially small business owners in this group who get further taxed / regulated to death / shut down by Covid lockdowns / victims of theft & lawlessness / etc., have been raped & pillaged to the point it’s no longer sustainable to continue living there. Thus I say California is starting to resemble a society of feudalism with a few nobles & a lot of serfs.

It’s a shame too, because California is such a beautiful place with a vast amount of industry & natural resources. There is no reason for it to be that way.

Whoooa there, I think you're pretty damn off base with who you think pays the majority of taxes in California. The state has a largely progressive tax system, as a result more than 50% of the income taxes in the state of California comes from those earning more than 500k, 40% alone is from personal income taxes on earnings over $1M. People making over 500k a year being described as just 'living comfortably' naww. Only 8-9% of the state income taxes come from people making between 50-100k and less than 50k earnings contribute just 2%.

The concentration of wealth in the United States is top heavy due to massively regressive tax changes in this country. California has a progressive tax structure and is one of the largest economies in the world solely as a result of it's policies, resources, beauty and governance.

[Suppressed Poet]

Whoooa there, I think you're pretty damn off base with who you think pays the majority of taxes in California. The state has a largely progressive tax system, as a result more than 50% of the income taxes in the state of California comes from those earning more than 500k, 40% alone is from personal income taxes on earnings over $1M. People making over 500k a year being described as just 'living comfortably' naww. Only 8-9% of the state income taxes come from people making between 50-100k and less than 50k earnings contribute just 2%.

The concentration of wealth in the United States is top heavy due to massively regressive tax changes in this country. California has a progressive tax structure and is one of the largest economies in the world solely as a result of it's policies, resources, beauty and governance.

You are not factoring in exemptions. The higher up in income you go, the more that income earner will pay and lobby for creative accounting exemptions. Progressive taxation is a lie.

The concentration of wealth will always gravitate to be top heavy. The poor and lower middle class receive more in government welfare / aide than they pay in taxes. That’s the way of the world, and it’s been that way since the dawn of civilization. What matters are policies and tax rates that encourage a good standard of living for the middle class.

You don’t have to believe me and I’m sure you won’t, but that part doesn’t matter... If high progressive taxation works so well, why is the state of California on the verge of bankruptcy & they have all the problems that we agreed they have? The elites are manipulating the poor to vote for their agenda, and they are not subjected to that progressive taxation & consequences of those policies like you think they are. You are being played.

[Suppressed Poet]

I think, it’s the main part, if you put New York weather there, there would be a mass exodus of homeless to a warmer place.

Ehh…I’ll agree that if I was homeless (my absolute worst nightmare by the way) I’d much rather live in LA for the weather than NY. It’s tough to say how much of a factor that is, but it’s got to be a big one. Where it doesn’t hold water though is that NYC is having similar problems with huge spikes in homelessness & a mass exodus of the middle class too.

[Realk]

not that there is ever a good place to be homeless, but 10 years ago DFW wouldn't have been a bad place.. but since nobody can afford to live anywhere else, ya'll came here and nobody affording houses. You can still find some good deals on homes, but it does require a 2 hour commute to where your job is in most cases.