Isn't it weird how unsubsidized consumer goods like TVs, appliances, clothes, all get cheaper and cheaper...while anything government puts its hands on, healthcare, housing, food, tuition, cars, utilities...just gets more and more unaffordable?
Oh well... Probably nothing to see here. These are not the droids you're looking for....move along...🤷♂️🙄
Mr. Caldwell has written another excellent and accurate column. It's another good time to review two of the many wise statements of Ronald Reagan:
His most famous quote about government: "Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem," from his First Inaugural Address on January 20, 1981, and "Man is not free unless government is limited."
Thomas Jefferson believed that the federal government should be "strictly limited in power, frugal in its spending, and focused primarily on protecting individual liberties."
The exact opposite is happening now in California.
Vote using common sense and for candidates who think as Jefferson and Reagan did.
Type of essay that should be discussed in civics class at the high school level daily! Unfortunately it won’t be and that is not a mistake. The politicians and teachers do not want this discussed openly. Keeping the populous “dumbed down“ is exactly what they want in order to more easily control them
Does taking over the "means of production" mean they will start delivering health care services themselves for free, after offering universal health care? Do they take over diagnosis, surgical procedures, or prescribing as the means of producing "health care"?
Or by fiat, will they turn trained medical personnel into indentured servants of the state. More details, please.
Affordability? The median cost of a house in the town of Santa Barbara increasing from $1.28 million in 2020 to between $1.8 and 2.2 million in 2026 raises the question: was the open border the cause? For those who believe all the new faces are working: have you noticed a decline in food prices? taxes? Insurance? utilities? services? If that is the problem: what is the solution?
So the dump of a house down the street was listed for $2M and it sold in a couple of weeks. On the Mesa near my home the average days on market for real estate in August was 20 days. There are plenty of buyers at these prices so it would be hard to argue that there is an affordability crisis.
The woman (she her) who cuts my hair is a go-getter. She was born in Mexico so English is her second language. She immigrated legally, learned English, got a cosmetologist license and also a nursing degree at city college. She just bought a house in lompoc. I never once heard her complain about capitalism or argue that she should be handed anything for free. She participates in capitalism and is building a better life for herself and her children in America. We dont have an affordability crisis we have a character crisis affecting our youth who have not learned the value of hard work or of patience. Socialism is the lazy man's answer to the reality that achieving anything of value takes time and effort and it is for those reasons that a thing has value. Or we can all be like Homer Simpson. https://youtu.be/1G8XQA9QFS0?si=hlmS1mAYs6vvfJna
Thank you for sharing this success pathway. These are exactly the stories than need far more publicity; not the endless complaints from those who expect or demand to get something for nothing.
Time to check out all the vocational skills programs at SBCC, Ventura College or Alan Hancock - the opportunities are right under people's noses ...with no huge college loans to pay off later.
I recall on this forum a dialog with the Carlist I called Theodoric of York who no longer posts here. He was complaining about affordability and I opined that learning a trade, learning Spanish and taking a few classes at city college on how to run a small business would open unlimited opportunities to earn money. He argued that that was not possible because he would need a truck and that costs money and tools are expensive.
Great piece, Andy. The bloated state and local governments are crowding out the people that pay the bills. Many of our friends have made the logical decision that they are weary and not willing to continue bailing water to support unfunded pension liabilities, DEI, incompetent energy policies etc., and have left the state. By and large, they are delighted to have escaped the stranglehold of California and SB County governments. The affordability crisis has been manufactured by the very same incompetents who continue to double down on bad policies. The tipping point has been reached for a growing population and I doubt the number of conservatives left will be able to avoid being swamped in the November election.
But for commitments to care for my wife's elderly parents, I would have left California three years ago. When I see how the exhorbinant taxes I pay are wasted it makes me sick. You are right, there will be no salvation at the ballot box. California Democrats are entrenched in Democrat ideology and will never change.
We are closer in this election than we have been in a long time.
Plus there is now actually daily print media with a growing readership that publishes in-depth and critical exposure of the past 20 years Democrat super-majority corruption.
Warts and all, the new California Post is a huge game changer brining this message to an entirely new voter demographic.
Demanding rent control to solve one's own personal "affordability crisis", is the epitome of selfish greed.
I demand they instead take a second job, improve their own skill sets and develop a strict budget plan so they .......can afford to live in Santa Barbara.
"The truth remains, however, that unhindered capitalism, due to competition, ultimately serves to drive prices down, as competing businesses compete for consumer dollars while creating abundance."
Unhindered capitalism is leading to price hikes, stagnant wages, "shrinkflation", a frozen job market and the housing costs explode as Private Equity gobbles it up.
The "Golden age of American capitalism" in the post war era occurred when corporations and the rich were taxed more than they are now, union protections were strong, and from government spending into welfare programs and education.
Why? Not everyone thinks like you. Those of us who have lived in California for our entire life's have seen the decline since Brown entered the arena.
Once a prosperous, beautiful, lidyllic state is no more than a crime ridden,fraudulent hot bed.
Visit Downtown LA or Venice and see for your self the one beautiful job area are now just giant homeless encampments.
We have been living under Socialist policies since the one party rule.
Regulations beyond excess. Palisades owners are still not building or they can't afford to rebuild.
Moving to Santa Barbara 30 years ago,there has been significant change in this area. A lot More building yet the housing problems cannot be resolved . I see buyers actually coming in from other cities scooping up the local properties because locals can't afford to buy them.
I do not blame affordability on capitalism. If you scroll back I was responding to jonn doe who was blaming affordability on capitalism. It would appear that you are going off half cocked.
Left wing policies are leading to the high prices. If you compare California to other states,it is clear that the pricing of housing ,food gas etc...Is all due to over taxing and high regulations.
The lower the prices the more buyers you will have . Yet California philosophy is to over tax the consumer and over regulate.
Californias ideal state would be to push out the middle class. This the could funnel all the money to the lower class,give them freebies and to ensure Democratic voting baseand keep the one party rule and policies in place.
As an ernest journalist, I'm sure Mr. Caldwell would like to make these corrections to today's column.
Whereas he cites: "The cost of gasoline, for instance, is now nearly double that in other states because the Newsom government has made it nearly impossible to drill for oil and produce affordable gasoline."
The fact, of course, is that the relatively high cost of gasoline also effects Washington and Oregon; so it's not just a California and/or Newsom thing. Much of this has to do with the voters' overwhelming preference for cleaner-burning gas blends to reduce air pollution (we still believe in democracy, right?) as well as the "Mystery Gasoline Surcharge" (an unexplained price gap first identified by economists and later confirmed by a state watchdog agency) that is not an official government tax or fee. Instead, it is a pure profit markup that occurs between the oil refinery and the pump, costing California drivers an average of $0.30 to $0.41 extra per gallon. This surcharge appeared suddenly in February 2015 following an explosion and fire at an ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance, California. While gas prices always spike after a refinery disruption, California prices never dropped back down to their normal levels relative to national averages once the refinery was fixed. The Financial Impact -- according to reports by the California Division of Petroleum Market Oversight (DPMO) -- is that this hidden margin cost state residents $59 billion between 2015 and 2024.
So, thanks, Big Oil.
Additionally, Mr. Caldwell erroneously states that "... solar and wind, which costs more and delivers less power per dollar spent...."
But the fact here is that energy from solar and wind sources cost LESS than that from fossil fuel sources. Far less. On average, building and producing electricity from new utility-scale solar and onshore wind is roughly 20% to 50% cheaper than building new fossil fuel generation. According to the gold-standard benchmark in energy economics, the Lazard Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) Report, unsubsidized renewable energy remains the lowest-cost option for new electricity generation.
To wit: Unsubsidized Lifetime Cost per MWh☀️ Utility for Solar$40 – $98. For 💨 Onshore Wind$37 – $99. For 🔥 Natural Gas (Combined Cycle)$51 – $129. And for 🪨 Coal$71 – $173.
And, of course, being a staunch supporter of lower fuel prices, I'm sure Mr. Caldwell and S.B. Current readers are as upset as the rest of us that our Grifter-in-Chief recently pulled the plug on the 85% completed, $5b spent, Revolution Wind Project off the coast of Rhode Island, even though this project would have delivered clean renewable energy to the New England grid for $.09/kWh instead of the average for that region of $.18/kWh.
Where are the interviews with those who can afford to live in California. What can we learn from their personal histories, those that did make living California affordable for themselves. Only 17% of wealth today is inherited, so most are self-made financial success stories.
Many are stories about leveraging a very modest first purchase, which was never going to be their "dream home". Some started with in a mobile home community . Others made their first home purchase in a lower price surrounding community that required a long commute. Others turned life into a survival game, getting as close to zero discretionary spending those early home purchase years. Or a combination of all of these.
When people complain about high home prices in California, they forget to deduct the high energy costs in other parts of the country where winter heating and summer A/C devour their paychecks too. If young people here do not make all their discretionary purchases at thrift shops, no they probably cannot afford to live here.
Time to answer the complaint that one cannot afford to live in California, with probably you cannot. So go where you an afford to live, or improve your skill sets to match the financial realities living in this premium area.
Isn't it weird how unsubsidized consumer goods like TVs, appliances, clothes, all get cheaper and cheaper...while anything government puts its hands on, healthcare, housing, food, tuition, cars, utilities...just gets more and more unaffordable?
Oh well... Probably nothing to see here. These are not the droids you're looking for....move along...🤷♂️🙄
Thank you Mr. Caldwell from pointing out the obvious right in our own state.
The socialists ,who drive cars,don't understand that Americans love their cars.
In addition,most states do not have a reliable or efficient transportation system to support that idea.
How will get to work,or Doctors schools etc?
Get out and vote to stop the communists.
Mr. Caldwell has written another excellent and accurate column. It's another good time to review two of the many wise statements of Ronald Reagan:
His most famous quote about government: "Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem," from his First Inaugural Address on January 20, 1981, and "Man is not free unless government is limited."
Thomas Jefferson believed that the federal government should be "strictly limited in power, frugal in its spending, and focused primarily on protecting individual liberties."
The exact opposite is happening now in California.
Vote using common sense and for candidates who think as Jefferson and Reagan did.
Therein lies the rub..."common sense"...
We have an opportunity to push back
On three ucsb dsa grads who control
Buellton City Council. Support Mark
Williams! He is a retired Sheriff's information officer who speaks
Andy's language!
David King fights for a return
Against Backslapping Mayor
Silva-Newsome's protege!
Gavin just appointed Silva to
CARB.!
Frustrated? Work locally!
Nice article Andy. This are the ty
Type of essay that should be discussed in civics class at the high school level daily! Unfortunately it won’t be and that is not a mistake. The politicians and teachers do not want this discussed openly. Keeping the populous “dumbed down“ is exactly what they want in order to more easily control them
Does taking over the "means of production" mean they will start delivering health care services themselves for free, after offering universal health care? Do they take over diagnosis, surgical procedures, or prescribing as the means of producing "health care"?
Or by fiat, will they turn trained medical personnel into indentured servants of the state. More details, please.
Affordability? The median cost of a house in the town of Santa Barbara increasing from $1.28 million in 2020 to between $1.8 and 2.2 million in 2026 raises the question: was the open border the cause? For those who believe all the new faces are working: have you noticed a decline in food prices? taxes? Insurance? utilities? services? If that is the problem: what is the solution?
So the dump of a house down the street was listed for $2M and it sold in a couple of weeks. On the Mesa near my home the average days on market for real estate in August was 20 days. There are plenty of buyers at these prices so it would be hard to argue that there is an affordability crisis.
The woman (she her) who cuts my hair is a go-getter. She was born in Mexico so English is her second language. She immigrated legally, learned English, got a cosmetologist license and also a nursing degree at city college. She just bought a house in lompoc. I never once heard her complain about capitalism or argue that she should be handed anything for free. She participates in capitalism and is building a better life for herself and her children in America. We dont have an affordability crisis we have a character crisis affecting our youth who have not learned the value of hard work or of patience. Socialism is the lazy man's answer to the reality that achieving anything of value takes time and effort and it is for those reasons that a thing has value. Or we can all be like Homer Simpson. https://youtu.be/1G8XQA9QFS0?si=hlmS1mAYs6vvfJna
Thank you for sharing this success pathway. These are exactly the stories than need far more publicity; not the endless complaints from those who expect or demand to get something for nothing.
Time to check out all the vocational skills programs at SBCC, Ventura College or Alan Hancock - the opportunities are right under people's noses ...with no huge college loans to pay off later.
I recall on this forum a dialog with the Carlist I called Theodoric of York who no longer posts here. He was complaining about affordability and I opined that learning a trade, learning Spanish and taking a few classes at city college on how to run a small business would open unlimited opportunities to earn money. He argued that that was not possible because he would need a truck and that costs money and tools are expensive.
Great piece, Andy. The bloated state and local governments are crowding out the people that pay the bills. Many of our friends have made the logical decision that they are weary and not willing to continue bailing water to support unfunded pension liabilities, DEI, incompetent energy policies etc., and have left the state. By and large, they are delighted to have escaped the stranglehold of California and SB County governments. The affordability crisis has been manufactured by the very same incompetents who continue to double down on bad policies. The tipping point has been reached for a growing population and I doubt the number of conservatives left will be able to avoid being swamped in the November election.
But for commitments to care for my wife's elderly parents, I would have left California three years ago. When I see how the exhorbinant taxes I pay are wasted it makes me sick. You are right, there will be no salvation at the ballot box. California Democrats are entrenched in Democrat ideology and will never change.
We are closer in this election than we have been in a long time.
Plus there is now actually daily print media with a growing readership that publishes in-depth and critical exposure of the past 20 years Democrat super-majority corruption.
Warts and all, the new California Post is a huge game changer brining this message to an entirely new voter demographic.
Demanding rent control to solve one's own personal "affordability crisis", is the epitome of selfish greed.
I demand they instead take a second job, improve their own skill sets and develop a strict budget plan so they .......can afford to live in Santa Barbara.
Or move somewhere that they can afford. I would love an ocean view home in hope ranch but I don't have the money. This is not a fault of capitalism.
"The truth remains, however, that unhindered capitalism, due to competition, ultimately serves to drive prices down, as competing businesses compete for consumer dollars while creating abundance."
Unhindered capitalism is leading to price hikes, stagnant wages, "shrinkflation", a frozen job market and the housing costs explode as Private Equity gobbles it up.
The "Golden age of American capitalism" in the post war era occurred when corporations and the rich were taxed more than they are now, union protections were strong, and from government spending into welfare programs and education.
You should join the DSA! You would fit right in. Ask any person who owns a business if they know what unhindered capitalism is, especially in CA.
Don't fear the bullies.
With ideas like that it is best to use a pseudonym.
Why? Not everyone thinks like you. Those of us who have lived in California for our entire life's have seen the decline since Brown entered the arena.
Once a prosperous, beautiful, lidyllic state is no more than a crime ridden,fraudulent hot bed.
Visit Downtown LA or Venice and see for your self the one beautiful job area are now just giant homeless encampments.
We have been living under Socialist policies since the one party rule.
Regulations beyond excess. Palisades owners are still not building or they can't afford to rebuild.
Moving to Santa Barbara 30 years ago,there has been significant change in this area. A lot More building yet the housing problems cannot be resolved . I see buyers actually coming in from other cities scooping up the local properties because locals can't afford to buy them.
Do you blame this on capitalism?
Read the article . Where is it in there that blames Capitalism? It's Socialism/ Communism/ left wing policies.
I do not blame affordability on capitalism. If you scroll back I was responding to jonn doe who was blaming affordability on capitalism. It would appear that you are going off half cocked.
Ok.
Proverbs 17:28 Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.
I would add that if one must speak, do so anonymously.
Read the whole proverb for context.
If a Republican/ Conservative speaks do it anonymously,you mean.
We have Free Speech in this country. It is not the UK.
Left wing policies are leading to the high prices. If you compare California to other states,it is clear that the pricing of housing ,food gas etc...Is all due to over taxing and high regulations.
The lower the prices the more buyers you will have . Yet California philosophy is to over tax the consumer and over regulate.
Californias ideal state would be to push out the middle class. This the could funnel all the money to the lower class,give them freebies and to ensure Democratic voting baseand keep the one party rule and policies in place.
100% agree
As an ernest journalist, I'm sure Mr. Caldwell would like to make these corrections to today's column.
Whereas he cites: "The cost of gasoline, for instance, is now nearly double that in other states because the Newsom government has made it nearly impossible to drill for oil and produce affordable gasoline."
The fact, of course, is that the relatively high cost of gasoline also effects Washington and Oregon; so it's not just a California and/or Newsom thing. Much of this has to do with the voters' overwhelming preference for cleaner-burning gas blends to reduce air pollution (we still believe in democracy, right?) as well as the "Mystery Gasoline Surcharge" (an unexplained price gap first identified by economists and later confirmed by a state watchdog agency) that is not an official government tax or fee. Instead, it is a pure profit markup that occurs between the oil refinery and the pump, costing California drivers an average of $0.30 to $0.41 extra per gallon. This surcharge appeared suddenly in February 2015 following an explosion and fire at an ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance, California. While gas prices always spike after a refinery disruption, California prices never dropped back down to their normal levels relative to national averages once the refinery was fixed. The Financial Impact -- according to reports by the California Division of Petroleum Market Oversight (DPMO) -- is that this hidden margin cost state residents $59 billion between 2015 and 2024.
So, thanks, Big Oil.
Additionally, Mr. Caldwell erroneously states that "... solar and wind, which costs more and delivers less power per dollar spent...."
But the fact here is that energy from solar and wind sources cost LESS than that from fossil fuel sources. Far less. On average, building and producing electricity from new utility-scale solar and onshore wind is roughly 20% to 50% cheaper than building new fossil fuel generation. According to the gold-standard benchmark in energy economics, the Lazard Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) Report, unsubsidized renewable energy remains the lowest-cost option for new electricity generation.
To wit: Unsubsidized Lifetime Cost per MWh☀️ Utility for Solar$40 – $98. For 💨 Onshore Wind$37 – $99. For 🔥 Natural Gas (Combined Cycle)$51 – $129. And for 🪨 Coal$71 – $173.
And, of course, being a staunch supporter of lower fuel prices, I'm sure Mr. Caldwell and S.B. Current readers are as upset as the rest of us that our Grifter-in-Chief recently pulled the plug on the 85% completed, $5b spent, Revolution Wind Project off the coast of Rhode Island, even though this project would have delivered clean renewable energy to the New England grid for $.09/kWh instead of the average for that region of $.18/kWh.
Hope this helps clarify things.
Where are the interviews with those who can afford to live in California. What can we learn from their personal histories, those that did make living California affordable for themselves. Only 17% of wealth today is inherited, so most are self-made financial success stories.
Many are stories about leveraging a very modest first purchase, which was never going to be their "dream home". Some started with in a mobile home community . Others made their first home purchase in a lower price surrounding community that required a long commute. Others turned life into a survival game, getting as close to zero discretionary spending those early home purchase years. Or a combination of all of these.
When people complain about high home prices in California, they forget to deduct the high energy costs in other parts of the country where winter heating and summer A/C devour their paychecks too. If young people here do not make all their discretionary purchases at thrift shops, no they probably cannot afford to live here.
Time to answer the complaint that one cannot afford to live in California, with probably you cannot. So go where you an afford to live, or improve your skill sets to match the financial realities living in this premium area.