Escape from NY — and CA

John Seiler:

Everyone’s waiting for Gov. Jerry Brown’s May Revise to his budget to be released on Monday. No doubt it will include tax increases.

But consider this new report from another high-tax state, New York:

ALBANY – Escape from New York is not just a movie – it’s also a state of mind.

A new Marist College poll shows that 36% of New Yorkers under the age of 30 are planning to leave New York within the next five years – and more than a quarter of all adults are planning to bolt the Empire State.

The New York City suburbs, with their high property values and taxes, are leading the exodus, the poll found.

Of those preparing to leave, 62% cite economic reasons like cost of living, taxes – and a lack of jobs.

“A lot of people are questioning the affordability of the state,” said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion.

The same holds for California. Unless you’re a genius computer geek in Silicon Valley, or a movie star in Hollywood, there’s little to hold young folks in California. Sure, the weather is far better than New York’s. But what good is balmy weather if you’re unemployed?

And even if you have a job, California is so expensive you have to work all the time just to “afford” it. So it damages family life.

But the Democrats who run the show in California don’t care. They care only about three things: unions, unions, unions.

May 13, 2011