CALIFORNIA: Good ol' days were nasty

The recent letters in The Press about California the formerly Golden State now the Goldenly Fleeced state brings back fond memories of my 62 years as a resident there.

It’s so laughable to call Arnold Schwarzenegger a conservative. He has been a member of the Kennedy clan for almost 30 years. What should have written was “reenter” Jerry Brown, “thee” liberal. How ironic is it that Jerry, who in his previous terms used to enjoy riding around in a police-like plainclothes car with Grey Davis at his side, is now back to finish off California.

Keep in mind that Ronald Reagan, the liberals’ favorite punching bag, was the LAST governor to leave California with a budget surplus, which Jerry was only to happy to spend! Jerry’s first deed as governor (in 1975) was to move the entire Caltrans “fund” ($585,000,000) into the general fund so liberals could do what they do best, spend other people’s money! He then put on hold every single major highway construction project in the state, that lasted for his entire two terms.

Just some of the fallout was the delay of Highway 126 “blood alley” construction between Ventura and Santa Clarita. I’m sure subsequent accident victims’ families were delighted with that move. It also increased by approximately eight fold the cost of the 105 freeway project from LAX to Norwalk.

Now the Caltrans “money account” move didn’t stop highway operations as there was still around $8 to 9 million a day coming in from gasoline tax sales so Caltrans could still hobble along doing small jobs like filling potholes and painting lane markings. The Caltrans income deficit became so bad by the end of the ‘80s that taxes had to increase on that dreaded fuel that we all use by a nickel in 1990 and penny a year for subsequent four years. Thanks again, Jerry!

We are actually getting a preview of the California of the future in Detroit, another great city that liberal Democrat mayors have been running since the ‘50s, where they finally ran out of other people’s money! That recurring dream is happening in Cleveland and Buffalo not to mention many other cities around the country.

Ladies and gentlemen do NOT pay attention to what politicians say, but watch what they actually do. It took a socialist government 80 years to drown the USSR. How long for the USA to hit the deck? Just keep your collective heads in the sand long enough and it will arrive all too soon.

PAUL CIRUSO

Athol