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California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

realclearinvestigations.com

1–10 of 163 posts

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#3
No doubt California has many problems but describing these as if they're isolated to California or merely the result of local political actions is disingenuous (but is what you expect from this right wing site shopping right wing talking points). The US overall has a problem with rising poverty and wages not keeping up with the cost of living.

The US overall has a problem home-as-investment standing in the way of actually providing people housing. These manifest differently in different places. Texas doesn't have California's outrageous housing costs but Texas has people in jail for not being able to pay medical bills when they get sick - both are manifestations of distorted costs of various items (coming ultimately from the Fed inflating the dollar and related factors).

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#4
Unfortunately, these pieces could almost always be reduced to "housing costs". They address it a bit in this most recent one, but homelessness / school enrollment / natural population growth / middle class jobs / energy costs can all be traced back to the huge housing deficit that's accumulated over the past 30 or 40 years.

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#5
post #2

How is this possible? "more than 80 percent of California jobs paid under the median income" I can see under the mean or average, but median? How can 80% be below the median when the definition of median is 50% are below this value?

Not to make this a political issue, but the number of uneducated immigrants in southern california is staggering. Add those to the regular number of workers below the median income, and this number is very easy to arrive at.

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#6
post #2

How is this possible? "more than 80 percent of California jobs paid under the median income" I can see under the mean or average, but median? How can 80% be below the median when the definition of median is 50% are below this value?

Maybe "median income" here does not mean "median income from jobs"?

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#7
post #2

How is this possible? "more than 80 percent of California jobs paid under the median income" I can see under the mean or average, but median? How can 80% be below the median when the definition of median is 50% are below this value?

It means a significant portion income isn't coming from wages (e.g. from benefits, investments, living off of wealth, parents, etc).

EDIT: nvm, mikeymouse's comment explains it.

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#8
Why even bother mentioning electricity prices except to score cheap points about "green" policies? Energy costs are insignificant compared to housing. Everything is insignificant compared to housing.

California could double electricity prices if they could cut real estate costs and everyone would come out ahead... except all the old homeowners who are grandfathered in under prop 13 and show up to oppose every new development at the local town hall.

Re: California's Vanished Dream, by the Numbers

#10
post #2

How is this possible? "more than 80 percent of California jobs paid under the median income" I can see under the mean or average, but median? How can 80% be below the median when the definition of median is 50% are below this value?

Not to make this a political issue, but the number of uneducated immigrants in southern california is staggering. Add those to the regular number of workers below the median income, and this number is very easy to arrive at.

How can you arrive at a median that is not the median?
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