I don’t regret living in California, because it is truly a beautiful place and the weather truly is beautiful. In southern California near the ocean, anyway. It was nice to experience and I’m glad I was here to see the truth about what is really happening. However, after experiencing California, and after much thought and research, it would be regretful and foolish to stay here. It is simply not sustainable anymore and the quality is quickly degrading.

Honestly, if I could be free from extremely high taxes, massive immigration problems, extreme housing costs, increasing crime, and out of control legislative oppression, I would stay in California. I could deal with the flaky people. Without all those other issues, there would be no better place to be.

But realistically, that simply isn’t going to happen. Not anytime soon, anyway. The fantasy ideal of California has become but a fantasy, a distant memory, an emotional feeling that you can feel when you think about it or step outside ignorantly, but quickly forget when the first of the month comes around, or tax season comes around, or you look at your neighborhood, or you look at your paycheck, or you look at the fact you have no paycheck, or you realize you can’t buy a house unless you’re really stupid and think you can, or when your children become degraded both morally and psychologically from the political and cultural climate.

In fact, it’s quite amusing to hear people talk about how they love California, all their reasons will be because the weather is good, or because it’s good because of the nice weather, or because the sun is shining and the weather is nice, or because it’s warm outside because the weather is nice, or some other derivative of “the weather is nice”. This is because the only real benefit of living in California is because of the weather. That and the emotional ideal itself of “living in California”. There really isn’t any other reason.

California is on one of the steepest declines in quality of living in the nation. Taxes, housing, and immigration are some of the primary factors contributing to this decline. Whereas California has historically been a coveted and highly desired place to be, from both native Californians and other-staters alike for the past many decades, this is no longer the case.

However, it is true that there are still some happy Californians, but I believe that this is because they are either not aware of what has been happening in this formerly glorious state during the past decade and how it is affecting them and is going to affect them in the coming years; or because they are young and not yet directly impacted by the terrible changes in this state; or because they are older, probably a homeowner from the good days, and not directly impacted by the changes (yet) for a variety of reasons, or refuse to admit it even to themselves because they do not want to uproot their lives.

This is not just my own opinion. People are fleeing the state in droves, and the exodus is so great that few native Californians are left, and the massive influx of foreign immigrants masks the utter severity of the issue. Over 600,000 people are leaving California each year.

Articles about people fleeing California are a dime a dozen, every news agency is regularly talking about it. It has become so accepted and well known that the news are now talking about which states are best to move to, taking it as a given that people are fleeing and looking for an alternative.

Here are the top ten reasons why this is happening, why you should leave California if you are here, and why you should not come to California if you are thinking about it. You missed the boat, it sailed 8 years ago. California is no longer the place to be, and here are the top ten reasons why.

10 California People Are Notorious Flakes

Why it made the list Ok so this one probably isn't new, so it's last on the list but still worth mentioning. Flaky flaky flaky. It isn't just your friends, it's the businesses, even people trying to sell you something are going to flake out on you. People are utter flakes. They say they will do something, but they never follow through.



This of course puts a huge strain on running a small business, because buyers and sellers alike will flake out on you. You want to buy something? Be prepared for the seller to flake on you. You want to sell something? Be prepared for 19/20 buyers to flake on you. My theory is that it's because the weather is so nice and the culture tries to tell people to do whatever they feel like, so people feel free from obligations.



As a result, people say things that mean commitments, but really they never made a commitment at all. Sure, they totally meant to follow through when they said it. But then something else comes up and they change their mind. This holds true for the poor and the rich alike in California. Sure, there are flaky people everywhere, but I have lived in several parts of the country, and Californians take it to an entirely new level of flakiness.



However, I could totally deal with this, if it wasn't for the next things.

9 California Legislation Is a Joke and It's Not Funny

Why it made the list 725 new laws (most of them either completely pointless or completely stupid) went into effect in the state of California on January 1st, 2011. Recent years have only gotten worse.



In 2011, California Governor Jerry Brown unveiled a "draconian" budget plan that included 12 billion dollars more in spending cuts and that maintains 12 billion dollars in recent tax increases.



A couple days ago, on October 7, 2015, California Governor Edmund Brown unveiled the worst "climate change" legislation in years, skyrocketing electricity costs and doubling legislative energy efficiency requirements, despite the fact that 725 new laws (most of them either completely pointless or completely stupid) went into effect in the state of California on January 1st, 2011. Recent years have only gotten worse.In 2011, California Governor Jerry Brown unveiled a "draconian" budget plan that included 12 billion dollars more in spending cuts and that maintains 12 billion dollars in recent tax increases.A couple days ago, on October 7, 2015, California Governor Edmund Brown unveiled the worst "climate change" legislation in years, skyrocketing electricity costs and doubling legislative energy efficiency requirements, despite the fact that the idea of CO2 as the driver of climate change was debunked as a hoax more than 10 years ago. Just goes to show that California legislators and lawmakers are either stupid or unethical, using whatever reason possible, even lies, myths, and hoaxes, to increase legislation and destroy this once great state.

8 California's Education System Is Awful and Only Getting Worse

Why it made the list California’s state funding to K-12 schools fell 19% from 2008 to 2012. Prior to 2007, California's per-pupil spending was $10,687 (inflation-adjusted), which ranked 25th in the nation. After cuts incurred during the recession, California’s per-pupil spending dropped to $9,892, 39th in the nation. This amount is amount is $2,000 lower than the U.S. average. Other studies have shown that after adjusting for varied costs of living among states, California’s per-pupil spending levels are even lower.



While California’s per-pupil spending lags behind the national average, the state contributes a large share of its budget to K-12. Approximately 28% of state-only funds are spent towards K-12 education, which is the 12th highest budget share in the nation. However, these funds must be spread across a relatively high number of students. Approximately 16.5% of the state’s population are K-12 students, the 8th highest portion in the nation.



The funding shortfall of the California State Teacher’s Retirement Benefit System (CalSTRS) presents a looming threat to future school district budgets.



California’s low per-pupil spending is reflected in its low number of teachers. In 2012-13, California had a student-to-teacher ratio of 25-to-1, the highest in the nation and much higher than the 15-to-1 national average. This means that California students experience much larger class sizes (10 students higher), must share resources with more students, and teachers have less time with each student.



Compared to other states, California students rank poorly on performance measures. Over the last decade, California students have lagged significantly behind national standards. For example, California’s 4th and 8th grade students are in the bottom ten nationwide in both math and reading.

7 California Forces Liberal Ideologies Down People's Throats. Literally.

Why it made the list In one school district in California, children as young as five years old are being forced to watch liberal propaganda films that tout the benefits of "alternative lifestyles", and parents are being told that no "opting out" will be permitted.



Vaccines, which are proven to cause neurological issues, are being forced on the population. Children, including newborns are being given vaccines behind their parents' backs and without, even against, their parents' consent. Don't let your newborn out of your sight! Many infants have been killed by vaccines administered by deluded physicians against their parents' explicit instructions to never give a vaccine. Surviving infants are raised with permanent disabilities including OCD, Tourette's, ADHD, and other psychological disorders.



Children at schools in California are even required to get forced STD vaccines, even if they are not having sex. In other words, good children have to be infected with an STD because California legislation determined they want to cut down on STDs. There is a good way to really get rid of STDs - stop promoting feminism, forcing children to watch sex videos and homosexual propaganda in school, and allowing sexual advertising. Stop saying it's okay to "do whatever makes you happy" which is contributing to the issue. If people did not sleep around, there would be no way to catch STDs.

6 California Crime Rates Are Continuing To Increase

Why it made the list Not all cities are unsafe, but many are. Los Angeles, San Francisco, and many others are bad and continuing to get worse. Formerly nice areas are degrading, and crime is spreading.



Things have gotten so bad in Stockton, California that the police union put up a billboard with the following message: "Welcome to the 2nd most dangerous city in California. Stop laying off cops."



Anthony Batts, the Police Chief for Oakland, California, announced last year that due to severe budget cuts there are a number of crimes that his department will simply not be able to respond to any longer. The crimes that the Oakland police will no longer be responding to include grand theft, burglary, car wrecks, identity theft and vandalism.



The crime rate in the San Diego school system is escalating out of control. The following is what San Diego School Police Chief Don Braun recently told the press about the current situation: "Violent crime in schools has risen 31 percent. Property crime has risen 12 percent. Weapons violations (have gone up) almost 8 percent."



During one recent 23 year period, the state of California built 23 prisons but just one university.

5 California Is Terrible for Small Business

Why it made the list It isn't just the people who are trying to get out; the businesses are moving too. California is the 48th worst state in the nation for business, following only New York and Hawaii. Excessive taxes are destroying small businesses and the middle class, leading to a mass exodus of small businesses to other states like Texas and Washington.



At one point last year it was reported that in the area around Sacramento, California there was one closed business for every six that were still open.

4 California Unemployment Is One Of The Worst In The Nation

Why it made the list In some areas of California, the level of unemployment is absolutely nightmarish. For example, 24.3 percent of the residents of El Centro, California are now unemployed. Worse, this does not represent the real and unpublished unemployment rate, which is as high as 50% in some areas.

3 California Taxes Are Outrageously and Ridiculously High

Why it made the list With some of the highest taxes in the nation, California taxes everything, from some of the highest state income taxes, to taxes on gasoline, food, water, tags, smog, luxury taxes, hidden taxes, and anything else you can think of. Tax tax tax. Can it be taxed? Let's increase the tax. To top it off there is the 8 - 9% sales tax rate depending on the county. California has the highest state sales tax rate in the nation by far at 8.25%. Some counties have a 10% tax rate. Indiana has the next highest tax rate at 7%.



More than 60% of a Californian's income goes to some form of taxes. Homeowners have an even higher tax rate due to the property taxes on absurdly priced houses. Fortunately the illegal immigrants don't have to pay taxes because they are illegal. Well, technically they have to, they just don't. Instead, the legal taxpayers subsidize their welfare food stamps, section 8 housing, and even spending money so the illegal immigrant population of 10 million illegals can all live for free which the legal citizens slave away and give more than half their income to the state and federal government.

2 California Immigration Problem is Out Of Control

Why it made the list Continuing on that note, the illegal immigration population is exploding with a massive influx of 500,000 illegal immigrants per year and 1.1 million foreign children born in the US to these illegal aliens.



This is costing U.S. taxpayers over $25 billion dollars per year, and of course only the law abiding citizens will be footing this bill since the illegal immigrants do not pay taxes. In some cities, 95% of the population is Mexican, such as Santa Ana; and in other cities, over 85% of the population is Asian, such as Irvine (another 10% are from other countries such as Pakistan or India). Don't believe Wikipedia! I could take a video today and show you not a single American for 5 minutes oh, there's one, okay Mexican, Asian, Mexican, Indian, Pakistani, Asian, Mexican. etc. I'm not even kidding, sometimes I don't even feel like I am in America anymore.



Nothing against Mexican-Americans or Asian-Americans, mind you. This isn't a hate against any kind of people. This is simply a disdain for out of control immigration. Most of these immigrants are visiting, on a work or school visa, from a foreign country such as China, or illegal from Mexico, are not citizens and have no plans to be, refuse to assimilate, speak limited English, and most importantly and worse, they send all their high-income earnings back to their home country, siphoning it away from the local economy. No wonder the state is suffering so badly.



Immigration alone is not the problem. Excessive immigration, combined with excessive illegal immigration and free welfare given to illegal immigrants, is the problem. Take away welfare and suddenly 90% of the illegal population will no longer have any reason to be here. The problem would be solved. Sadly, this isn't a total solution because the illegal population would just emigrate to other states and continue to steal welfare and live for free. The total solution is to take away all welfare for all illegal immigrants in all states. That would take care of the bulk of the problem.

1 California Housing Prices Are Out Of Control

Why it made the list With a small 2 bedroom house starting at $650,000, and a sub $500,000 house entirely nonexistent, housing is ridiculously out of control. People are taking out million dollar mortgages for houses that will inevitably fall in price, because what goes up must come down. They naively believe that the prices will continue to climb, and ignore the massive debt burden they are taking on, in a market that could make them lose their job any day and be stuck with a million dollar foreclosure and a total loss of an amount of money that could have fully paid off a house in another area.



California had more foreclosure filings that any other U.S. state in 2010. The 546,669 total foreclosure filings during the year means that over 4 percent of all the housing units in the state of California received a foreclosure filing at some point during 2010.



Renting is no better, with apartments in nice areas starting at $2,500 per month for a small 2 bedroom apartment (a large one starts at $2800), and $1,800 as the lowest for less nice areas, the renting prices are just silly absurd. And let's not forget that every single year the rent goes up $100 to $200. In a few years a 2 bedroom apartment will cost over $3,000 per month. That's just stupidly ridiculous! Add to that some of the highest electricity costs in the country, and even renting is unaffordable for most people who have below an upper-class income.



Image Sources: Historical Home Prices · census.gov | Historical Rents · census.gov

With a small 2 bedroom house starting at $650,000, and a sub $500,000 house entirely nonexistent, housing is ridiculously out of control. People are taking out million dollar mortgages for houses that will inevitably fall in price, because what goes up must come down. They naively believe that the prices will continue to climb, and ignore the massive debt burden they are taking on, in a market that could make them lose their job any day and be stuck with a million dollar foreclosure and a total loss of an amount of money that could have fully paid off a house in another area.California had more foreclosure filings that any other U.S. state in 2010. The 546,669 total foreclosure filings during the year means that over 4 percent of all the housing units in the state of California received a foreclosure filing at some point during 2010.Renting is no better, with apartments in nice areas starting at $2,500 per month for a small 2 bedroom apartment (a large one starts at $2800), and $1,800 as the lowest for less nice areas, the renting prices are just silly absurd. And let's not forget that every single year the rent goes up $100 to $200. In a few years a 2 bedroom apartment will cost over $3,000 per month. That's just stupidly ridiculous! Add to that some of the highest electricity costs in the country, and even renting is unaffordable for most people who have below an upper-class income.

Independently, each one of the items I might be willing to sacrifice for the sake of living in a beautiful and gorgeous place like southern California by the beach. However, it isn’t just one or two items. It is many items combined seeping into every area of your life. The top three combined make California a wholly undesirable place to live. Every time I step outside and enjoy the perfect, beautiful weather, I try to find reasons to stay, but when I am honest with myself, it would be very foolish to do so.

Sure, this summer has been exceptionally humid in California, and this last week has been very hot, up to 100 degrees! Which is totally unheard of here. However, still, this is the exception rather than the rule. Moreover, the humidity is nothing compared to the east coast, even at its worst here. However, let’s reiterate that the sole and primary reason to stay is for the weather. That and the good Mexican food and fresh fruits. However, there are other places with good Mexican food and fresh fruits. Hence, the weather is the only real reason to stay, and that alone is not a smart reason to live in a place.

Even if you are extremely wealthy, California is no longer a place to live, but a place to get away and vacation. Unless of course you like throwing away your wealth. I certainly don’t. Worse, if you are poor or middle class, you absolutely should not come to California! At least if you are wealthy, you can survive, although California will try to bleed you for all you have. Even if you are wealthy, California is not sustainable. But if you are not wealthy, California is totally and utterly unsustainable.

Do you live in California? Were you thinking of moving to California? Want to share your experiences? Concur or disagree? Share your thoughts below.

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