The Death of California

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The Death of California

<https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2021/12/15/the_death_of_californ
ia_146887.html>
.

By Ben Shapiro 
December 15, 2021

(In "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," Victor Hugo told the tale of Esmerelda, a
gypsy dancer falsely accused of attempted murder, set to be hanged by an
unjust state. Quasimodo, the titular hunchback, swings down from the
cathedral of Notre Dame and saves her, carrying her off while crying
"Sanctuary!" In fact, throughout European history, churches provided places
of safe haven for accused criminals; the claim of "sanctuary" is made to
this day by people seeking refuge from the law.
It is strange, however, to see the language of sanctuary adopted to protect
precisely the sort of activity abhorred by anyone of religious bent:
abortion. The secular sacrament of abortion has become so sacred, however,
that the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, recently announced his intent
to make his state the first abortion sanctuary in the nation. "We'll be a
sanctuary," Newsom announced. "We are looking at ways to support that
inevitability and looking at ways to expand our protections."

The state of California, according to Newsom's Democratic legislative
allies, could provide travel expenses including gas, lodging, transportation
and child care for those seeking to kill their unborn children. Already,
some 15% of America's abortions occur in California, according to the
Guttmacher Institute. That number would skyrocket if the state began
subsidizing abortions across the land.

None of this is particularly surprising. It is telling, however, that as
California sinks into the mire, it embraces ever more radical social policy.
This is a state that currently houses -- no pun intended -- some 162,000
homeless people, a number that increased approximately 24% from 2018 to
2020. About a quarter of all homeless people in the United States currently
reside in California.

Meanwhile, crime in California has become endemic, with smash-and-grabs
roiling major cities and even wealthy residents murdered in their homes.

This week, the head of the Los Angeles police union, Jamie McBride, warned
people to stay out of the city, explaining, "We can't guarantee your safety.
It is really, really out of control." Even former LA Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa laments, "Rome is burning."

And California's economy trails the nation's, too. According to the Bureau
of Labor Statistics, California is tied for the worst unemployment rate in
the nation, at 7.3%. And while California is currently experiencing a
seven-day rolling average of just 67 COVID-19 deaths -- compared with 550 at
the height of the pandemic -- Newsom recently reimpose another monthlong
statewide indoor mask mandate.

So why does California keep embracing ever-more-radical policy? Because the
radicalism is itself the moral justification for policy failure. 

Sure, Democrats can argue, crime and homelessness are out of control, the economy is stagnating, and businesses are leaving. But that's morally excusable,
because California seeks a higher purpose: the purpose of Leftist
utopianism. Thus, Newsom has little to say about California's stagnation,
but much to say about how California will push new laws targeting gun
ownership. For years, Democrats have claimed that California leads the nation. We can only hope they're wrong.