The comments on almond farming are spot on. You can’t throw a baseball here without hitting an almond tree because prices have been so high, though I think they’ve taken a hit recently. For years people have been ripping out other more traditional crops like grapes and peaches and apricots and replacing them with almonds. Got an acre in the country? Throw up a mini orchard. They are everywhere and our water system, as currently designed, can’t handle it and the other uses with so much being wasted down stream.

A few more damn dams and we could retain a lot of water from those wet years like winter 2016/17.

Recently read an article that U-Haul trailer companys are having a problem with people and the trailers leaving California but almost none returning by people going into California.

quote:

Originally posted by satch:
Recently read an article that U-Haul trailer companys are having a problem with people and the trailers leaving California but almost none returning by people going into California.

I've noticed that too.... my daughter is in the process of moving from California. It's much cheaper to rent a U-Haul going into California than out.

quote:

Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I drive about 40,000 miles a year in California....

The real problem is that the social programs are so generous that it supports impoverished people staying in these places after the industry and farming no longer needs them. Being in a trailer park in the central valley with a 1988 pickup, cell phone, free healthcare, and EBT card is far superior to living in the chaos of rural Mexico with no services and unrestricted drug cartels. Therefore, these dying towns are still a draw for Mexico's impoverished, and create ever more demand for government services.....

Curious, what do you do to drive 40K miles a year in CA when you live in Utah?

I agree compeltely that central valley is a mecca for illegals, enabled by the CA taxpayer. I do think some of the agricultrual water issues in CA are caused by liberal environmental nonsense. (Victor Davis Hanson is a born and raised farmer from central valley, has a lot of years there).

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:

quote:

In two supermarkets 50 miles apart, I was the only one in line who did not pay with a social-service plastic card (gone are the days when "food stamps" were embarrassing bulky coupons). But I did not see any relationship between the use of the card and poverty as we once knew it: The electrical appurtenances [cell phones] owned by the user and the car into which the groceries were loaded were indistinguishable from those of the upper middle class.

It's disgusting....
We have to turn off ALL of the EBT cards and let the chips fall where they may. There will be private charity for the truly needy.

Gov't welfare is a time bomb set on our economy and culture by long passed generations. It was short sighted; a delayed phyrric victory against poverty. It established the poison pill principle that one citizen may lay legitimate claim to what another produces/accumulates without a free and equitable exxhange of value. Once we accepted that, no one is free nor are the citizens equal and no one can be secure in person nor property. The most basic element of liberty is lost in this republic forever.

quote:

Originally posted by Ironmike57:
I thought you rolled your own!

quote:

What, put Walmart out of andbusiness? I really need them to stay open in case I have to grab a box of ammunition on my way to the range.

9mm, yes. I have not started loading .45 ACP, nor .38 SPL / .357 magnum yet, nor .223

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:

quote:

In two supermarkets 50 miles apart, I was the only one in line who did not pay with a social-service plastic card (gone are the days when "food stamps" were embarrassing bulky coupons). But I did not see any relationship between the use of the card and poverty as we once knew it: The electrical appurtenances [cell phones] owned by the user and the car into which the groceries were loaded were indistinguishable from those of the upper middle class.

It's disgusting....
We have to turn off ALL of the EBT cards and let the chips fall where they may. There will be private charity for the truly needy.

Gov't welfare is a time bomb set on our economy and culture by long passed generations. It was short sighted; a delayed phyrric victory against poverty. It established the poison pill principle that one citizen may lay legitimate claim to what another produces/accumulates without a free and equitable exxhange of value. Once we accepted that, no one is free nor are the citizens equal and no one can be secure in person nor property. The most basic element of liberty is lost in this republic forever.

Pessimism, or realism? (I happen to believe the latter). Thre are two problems with socialism, people come to expect/demand their right to eat from their neighbors garden and not from their own work. And those in charge succumb to the dishonest lust for power.

quote:

Originally posted by Scoutmaster:

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:

quote:

In two supermarkets 50 miles apart, I was the only one in line who did not pay with a social-service plastic card (gone are the days when "food stamps" were embarrassing bulky coupons). But I did not see any relationship between the use of the card and poverty as we once knew it: The electrical appurtenances [cell phones] owned by the user and the car into which the groceries were loaded were indistinguishable from those of the upper middle class.

It's disgusting....
We have to turn off ALL of the EBT cards and let the chips fall where they may. There will be private charity for the truly needy.

Gov't welfare is a time bomb set on our economy and culture by long passed generations. It was short sighted; a delayed phyrric victory against poverty. It established the poison pill principle that one citizen may lay legitimate claim to what another produces/accumulates without a free and equitable exxhange of value. Once we accepted that, no one is free nor are the citizens equal and no one can be secure in person nor property. The most basic element of liberty is lost in this republic forever.

Pessimism, or realism? (I happen to believe the latter). Thre are two problems with socialism, people come to expect/demand their right to eat from their neighbors garden and not from their own work. And those in charge succumb to the dishonest lust for power.

...not to mention the resentment and contempt it breeds among all involved. Also, I misspelled pyrrhic.....lol

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:

quote:

In two supermarkets 50 miles apart, I was the only one in line who did not pay with a social-service plastic card (gone are the days when "food stamps" were embarrassing bulky coupons). But I did not see any relationship between the use of the card and poverty as we once knew it: The electrical appurtenances [cell phones] owned by the user and the car into which the groceries were loaded were indistinguishable from those of the upper middle class.

It's disgusting....
We have to turn off ALL of the EBT cards and let the chips fall where they may. There will be private charity for the truly needy.

Gov't welfare is a time bomb set on our economy and culture by long passed generations. It was short sighted; a delayed phyrric victory against poverty. It established the poison pill principle that one citizen may lay legitimate claim to what another produces/accumulates without a free and equitable exxhange of value. Once we accepted that, no one is free nor are the citizens equal and no one can be secure in person nor property. The most basic element of liberty is lost in this republic forever.

Though they may have been billed as such by their cynical creators, the government welfare programs of which you speak were never intended to secure "victory against poverty".

History shows conclusively that ALL government welfare programs, no matter how well intended at their outset, eventually devolve into vote-buying schemes, nothing more, nothing less.

Those who institute such programs are selling "the most basic element of [somebody eles's] liberty" to buy themselves votes. Period. End of story.

quote:

Originally posted by Scoutmaster:

quote:

Originally posted by sigcrazy7:
I drive about 40,000 miles a year in California....

The real problem is that the social programs are so generous that it supports impoverished people staying in these places after the industry and farming no longer needs them. Being in a trailer park in the central valley with a 1988 pickup, cell phone, free healthcare, and EBT card is far superior to living in the chaos of rural Mexico with no services and unrestricted drug cartels. Therefore, these dying towns are still a draw for Mexico's impoverished, and create ever more demand for government services.....

Curious, what do you do to drive 40K miles a year in CA when you live in Utah?

I agree compeltely that central valley is a mecca for illegals, enabled by the CA taxpayer. I do think some of the agricultrual water issues in CA are caused by liberal environmental nonsense. (Victor Davis Hanson is a born and raised farmer from central valley, has a lot of years there).

I have DOT authority and drive OTR truck. Many of my customers are in Portland and Seattle, and many of their customers are in the Bay, LA, LV, or Phoenix. I drive up and down I5/99 a lot until I can't take it anymore. I also have customers up and down the valley, and get to see much of what is happening to rural California first hand. Sierra Pacific probably makes up 20% of my revenue.

quote:

Originally posted by satch:
Recently read an article that U-Haul trailer companys are having a problem with people and the trailers leaving California but almost none returning by people going into California.

I recently took a truckload of furniture (that we no longer needed) over to my daughter, who lives in SoCal. I pulled up the U-Haul website to check prices… for a 12’ truck to go from AZ to SoCal it cost me $79. When I reserved it, I told my wife that, instead of her following me in her car to drive back, we could rent the same truck and come back home. Heck, for $79, why add the wear and tear on our car? Well, to rent the same truck from SoCal to AZ, was $729!! In fact, I could have rented their biggest truck (26’) and it would have only been $99 to go from here to SoCal. BUT, to drive it back to AZ would have been $1,529!! They’ll pay you to drive the trucks to California!

Seems we will likely move all of our stuff to storage in Utah this summer. My brother has a big rig drivers license. Maybe he could drive a Penzke from UT to CA, load up, drive back for less money than to fly him out here, rent a truck here and go back to UT. I will have to look at that.

It sounds as if someone(s) could make a good living by hiring to drive rental vehicles back to California and then fly back on Southwest each time.

flashguy

That person would probably make some decent money, for sure!

As for my family and I, we have finally had enough. I have lived in the SF Bay Area my entire life, and it has gotten to the point that we don't want to raise our daughters in this filth. So we're planning on being out of here at the end of this summer. Going up to Washington state. Fell in love with the place many years ago, and the wife has family up there as well. Adios Commiefornia!

ronnied316, are you sure that's far enough away?

flashguy

Apparently there will be a referendum in November to split California in three: California, Northern California and Southern California.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/ne...-closer-billionaire/

I paid $209 yesterday to title and register a 15 year old Subaru at the DMV.

California hasn’t found a tax or fee increase that they don’t like.

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
ronnied316, are you sure that's far enough away?

flashguy

It is. We went and looked at some other places we had in mind, Texas being one of them; but when we added everything up, that was the best fit for our family. I am beyond done with California.

I want to add to Russ59's vehicle registration rant as well. It cost over $1000 to register our two vehicles last year. It's beyond expensive to own/operate cars around here.

I sit in 12+ hours of traffic each week. I only live 20 miles from home, and work a 4/10 schedule. So I'm always pissed about that, then you can factor in the roads, which are basically dirt filled holes, with patches of asphalt throughout. Plus, the new gas tax, along with astronomical registration fees; and the roads still suck.

At least the criminals are well taken care of though.

Fuck the golden state.

quote:

Originally posted by ronnied316:

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
ronnied316, are you sure that's far enough away?

flashguy

It is. We went and looked at some other places we had in mind, Texas being one of them; but when we added everything up, that was the best fit for our family. I am beyond done with California.

I want to add to Russ59's vehicle registration rant as well. It cost over $1000 to register our two vehicles last year. It's beyond expensive to own/operate cars around here.

I sit in 12+ hours of traffic each week. I only live 20 miles from home, and work a 4/10 schedule. So I'm always pissed about that, then you can factor in the roads, which are basically dirt filled holes, with patches of asphalt throughout. Plus, the new gas tax, along with astronomical registration fees; and the roads still suck.

At least the criminals are well taken care of though.

Fuck the golden state.

I sure hope you're not thinking of moving to the Seattle area. You won't be escaping much if you do. We had to drive through the city to catch a ferry on our way to Port Angeles this past week. What an absolute shithole and nightmarish traffic!! I have promised myself that it was the last time I will ever go there again for any reason.

Jim

quote:

a split into 2 or 3 states is very possible once a majority wants it. Yes, it would have to clear both the CA legislature and the US Congress,...

April 16, 2018

Three Californias may be coming soon

Tim Draper is a rich man, but he understands he doesn't know it all. His first attempt to divide California into six states made very little sense. So he went out and got some people who are experts on the subject. The result, Cal 3, is a political masterpiece. This could work.

When California was admitted to the union in 1850 it had only 92,000 people, most of them scrambling for gold in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. That's why California's county lines are so screwy. Los Angeles County now has 10,000,000 people. Alpine County has 1,000.

Cal 3 divides the state along lines that make geographic, cultural, and political sense. The population is divided roughly into thirds. North and South are still very large states, and what's left of California would be a medium size state.

In order for this to work, it will need to get a majority not just of the total vote. Majorities will be needed in all three prospective states. Looking at this map makes me think that could happen, for one very important reason -- partisan politics.

The Democrats in Washington D. C. are going to love this idea. Now California has two Democratic senators. Under Cal 3, it will have four Democratic senators from ultra-blue North California and California. The two senators from South California will be up for grabs. Democrats could pick off one of them, or even two. The Democrats will not lose Senate seats, but they might gain one or two. For a D, what's not to like? Plus, somebody gets to fill these new Senate seats. People's eyes will light up.

If the Democrats win control of both House and Senate this year, they would have an incentive to support Cal 3. The backing of President Trump can be negotiated. He's always open to a deal, as long as there's something in it for him.

The Congressional grant of statehood has always been a purely political question. Everything depends on which party is in power in Washington, and who's ox is being gored. West Virginia's separation from Virginia in 1863 was political, because of the Civil War. Nevada was admitted on October 31, 1864, a week before the presidential election. The Republicans wanted to give Lincoln a three electoral-vote cushion. Nevada filled the bill, even though it only had less than 7,000 people in the 1860 census. Alaska and Hawaii came into the union in 1959 as a result of a political deal between Republicans and Democrats. Solidly Democratic Alaska was offset by reliably Republican Hawaii. How times change.

Every Congressional candidate in California will be asked if they'd support Cal 3 in Congress, if the voters want it. How can they say no? Likewise, with candidates for the state legislature and governor. Everyone will want to abide with the wishes of a majority of new California, North California and South California.

Though I am a spiritual Alaskan, I was born, raised, educated, married, and retired in northern California. Since I was a kid in the 1950s everybody has been complaining about LA. In the Bay Area, people look down on Angelenos, and they steal our water. I'm sure the Bay Area isn't all that popular down south either.

When differences are irreconcilable, it's time to break up.

https://www.americanthinker.co...be_coming_soon_.html