Out of a job? If you live in the Great State of California, you're in good company: two out of five working-age Californians do not have a job!
“The current recession stands apart from prior downturns for both the depth and breadth of destruction in the job market,” the report says. “California has lost more jobs at a faster rate in the past two years than during any prior recession for which data are available, and employment has fallen in nearly every major sector of the economy.”
Because of the decline in the number of jobs coupled with growth in the labor force, the report finds that the percentage of working-age Californians who hold jobs has fallen to its lowest level in 32 years. Citing U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, the report says just 57.5 percent of California adults are working.
The last time the percentage was that low was in 1977, a time when many women voluntarily chose not to work outside their homes. The percentage of employed adults peaked in 1989 at 64.9 percent.
Timm Herdt of Ventura County Star has the grim news: http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2009/sep/06/jobless-rate-4th-highest-in-us/ | California Budget Project Press Release [PDF]
Y'all aware that it's because Californians put in place a no tax hike on real estate that that is the primary reason we have such difficulty raising revenue right now, right?
Yes, it's true that California's tax base is almost ridiculously burdened upon the richest californians. It's also one of the tax-heavier states with regards to business. But at the root of the state revenue problem is not ye incredible liberal hippy government spending too much. It's because Californians of ALL stripes simply REFUSE to reinstate a major funding mechanism of state governance, which is the real estate and housing tax. It's been fixed at a ridiculously low rate for several several years now which is why the state tax funding model is so wonked. It's largely part of the reason why we're in the crapper. Yes, you're right, California does tax rich people more than any other state in the union. But seeing as how even they are not immune to the recession, we're even worse off as a state.
California's got an incredibly multitude of problems, least of all that many suspect its entirely ungovernable due to district gerrymandering and a 60% vote requirement to get anything done at all. But don't make it out to be as though it's ye horrible leftist liberal communist socialist pig dogs in Sacramento that are causing all the problems. The root of all problems spread the blame around pretty sufficiently.