There is no question that CA has challenges. Part of that is really beyond it's control with some of the weather-related issues. Part of it is probably mismanagement. Part of it comes part and parcel with being the biggest state in the union.
I see the lists of all the things that are wrong with CA, but there are still many things about CA that are very good. If it truly was terrible, the median value of a home would not have hit $868,000 there. Some of the folks who are complaining and kicking CA in the butt on the way out the door became millionaires due to the incredible appreciation of their home and are set for life.
If CA was its own country, it would be the 5th largest economy in the world. Half of the fruits, nuts, vegetable and dairy in this country come from CA. It still has magnificent beauty, good weather, outstanding healthcare, and it remains the largest state in the union. Once again, that's not to deny it has its problems. It does. And some of them should be able to be fixed. For example, there is no good reason for gasoline to cost $1.50 more per gallon than it does everywhere else.
I am going to end with this. My entire life's experience has taught me this. CA's challenges did not materialize overnight, they were years in the making and exacerbated by huge growth. If anyone doesn't think that FL is going to have similar challenges if the population keeps increasing, I think you are very naive. Some of those challenges are already here....the state legislature seems to be able to act fast on some legislation, while a state-wide homeowner's insurance crisis eludes fixing. If FL wants to avoid problems similar to CA, the time for action to solve problems is now. The growth in the population of FL has outpaced the growth in infrastructure to support it. Medical care being able to keep up with the population growth is another real problem. Maybe many of us won't have to worry about this in our lifetimes, but I do not think FL can continue to grow at this rate without problems here, too.
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