The Definition of Insanity: California Edition

The gap between what was promised and what was built is the defining political fact of modern California I moved to California in 1990. The economy was on an upswing. Teachers, firefighters, and nurses could still afford to buy a house. Thirty-five years later, after uninterrupted progressive governance, the median home sale price in Los Angeles County sits at roughly $910,000. Gas averages over $6.15 a gallon statewide—not because of some distant conflict, but because California’s regulatory apparatus drove its own refineries out of business. Net domestic out-migration hit 288,600 in 2025; the sixth consecutive year California led the nation...