The Party's Over
by Christopher G. Adamo
Two primal political forces are about to confront each other on a scale resembling the geological plate movements that produced the San Andreas Fault. And since the situation can be expected to cause an earthquake of sorts, it is altogether appropriate that the event should occur in the State of California. At work in the Golden State are the irreconcilable philosophies of liberalism which at once seek to empower government as the sole benefactor of humanity but which are often oblivious to its ability (or inability) to do so. The other item normally associated with this subject, that of personal liberties and their inevitable disappearance in the wake of expanding government, was decided by Californians some time ago. And the verdict was clearly in favor of sacrificing liberty for the sake of presumed security. Since that time, the scope of government has only been limited by the ability of taxpayers to shoulder the burden. And as is now becoming apparent, even that factor was not given any serious consideration.
Rather than diligently defining the worthiness of government programs based on their necessity to a free and open society in which citizens are able to partake of opportunity, California lawmakers opted instead for the standard liberal approach of expending all available funds in an effort to purchase the loyalty of voters. Thus government could be expected to enlarge to a point only limited by the size of its revenue pool. Unfortunately for liberal politicians, that pool is neither limitless nor stable, but inflates and contracts with economic up and down cycles. It's called reality.
During the "dot com" boom of the 1990's, revenues to the California treasury blossomed. But rather than saving for a rainy day, planning responsibly for future downturns, or offering the fiscally burdened citizens a worthwhile break in their taxes, legislators funneled virtually every available penny (with the sole exception being a reduction in licensing fees for cars) into their favorite pork barrel projects. Though some recipients, in areas such as education and infrastructure, might understandably be deemed worthy, a "universal truth" rapidly (and predictably) emerged. Every organization and individual on the dole of state funds deserved budgetary increases commensurate with the availability of those funds.
Upon the dissipation of the "dot com" boom, California Governor Gray Davis finds himself on the cusps of a disaster, with budget deficits projected to be as high as $25 billion over the next year and a half. And though the bloat came easily, any cuts will no doubt be excruciating.
So, in typical liberal fashion, rather than scaling back expenditures to levels reflective of government spending prior to the boom of the '90's (How did people survive back then?), Democrat leaders in the state are reverting to their standard ploy of advocating tax increases. Always anxious to condemn capitalism and corporate America, they are no less anxious to get their paws on the wealth it produces. And that's where things may really go awry.
In a climate where businesses are already reshuffling and reorganizing, even the mere threat of higher taxes is sufficient to scare prospective newcomers to the California economy back across the state line. The byproduct of this scenario is, of course, that instead of the state receiving present levels of corporate revenue, further declines are all but inevitable.
As is to be expected, all agencies and individuals cry loudly that, in the face of even a one-dollar budget cut, their particular department simply cannot survive (and thus, all humanity is doomed). Yet they are the first to assert that tax-paying citizens ought simply to do with less and ante up on behalf of the state. Somehow, advocates of big government never seem to grasp the irony of this.
Another factor is likely to portend a grim future for California's big spending liberals. Unlike America's national debt, which will ultimately be shouldered by its citizens (most of whom will remain in this country indefinitely), California's fiscal burden need not be borne by those whose voting practices caused it. They can simply move away to neighboring states, leaving the remaining Californians to pick up the pieces of the debacle they helped to create.
Time is short for California. And there is no substitute for doing the right thing. Fiscal irresponsibility got them into the present mess. And only a return to fiscal responsibility (which means abandoning liberal notions of creating a socialist utopia) will get them out of it.
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