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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Road Walker who wrote (485891)	6/5/2009 11:40:22 AM
From: Tenchusatsu	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1573891

RW, > Here is Florida, state, county and local governments are cutting drastically. Here in California, we have yet to lay off a single public employee, though I don't see how we're going to get through this latest crisis without doing so. Ah-nuld has finally turned back into the conservative Governator we elected back in 2003, for better or for worse. At least now he has the mandate to "blow up the boxes" like he once promised, but the legislature will continue to act as if they're in la-la land. Tenchusatsu

To: Road Walker who wrote (485891)	6/5/2009 12:01:07 PM
From: bentway	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1573891

"California seems to be a case of a true dysfunctional democracy... what they probably need is a 10 year dictatorship by a tyrannical financial expert that would raise taxes and cut spending." Maybe when they go bankrupt Obama will appoint Paul Volker as the special master in charge..

To: Road Walker who wrote (485891)	6/5/2009 1:56:30 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 1573891

But its near the bottom in terms of percentage of house prices, because CA's house prices are high. Prop 13 was about freezing property taxes, right? Seems to me that would be at the center of the discussion. If the municipality is starved for cash, then the state most likely picks up those services. Its not just property taxes. To raise any taxes you must get a 2/3 vote of the legislature or the population. That has made it very difficult to raise taxes and make up the shortfall from property taxes. And the state did pick up some of the services from the cities but then periodically they have to raid the coffers of the cities to make up for shortfalls. Its a mess. But prop 13 is probably impossible to undo. California seems to be a case of a true dysfunctional democracy... what they probably need is a 10 year dictatorship by a tyrannical financial expert that would raise taxes and cut spending. Amen to that. Here is Florida, state, county and local governments are cutting drastically. People working in the public sector are freaked out. Positions eliminated, layoffs, pay cuts and furloughs are happening and more are planned, everywhere. No talk at all of raising taxes. And if we get a major hurricane or two it's belly up for the state, which is now mostly self insured, especially along the coasts. CA went through that in the early 1980s. By the time I got there, doing anything with the state was a huge hassle.....long lines.

To: Road Walker who wrote (485891)	6/5/2009 4:19:09 PM
From: TimF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1573891

If Prop 13 is impossible to undo that implies the people want a restriction on these taxes. The restriction is not an unreasonable one. Both the state government, and many CA local governments, have above average levels of income per resident (even after you adjust for CA's higher prices). They have enough money to provide a decent level over services in the state. The problem is of course that the politicians and to a great extent the voters (and in a few specific cases the courts which have mandated a small part of the spending, at least part of the prison expenses according to the article's Ted's quoted) don't really want to reign in spending either.