Californians are sinking themselves
Oblivious, except for that fact they voted themselves into this.There is an unreal, almost dreamlike quality about this moment. Dreadful things are about to happen: Hundreds of thousands of children will lose their healthcare. Five thousand state workers will be laid off. Massive cuts will decimate education at every level. Social services will be slashed. Two hundred and twenty-nine parks, out of a total of 280, will be shut down. Even some of the state’s landmarks may go on the auction block to raise money.
Yet as their state prepares to go over the cliff, California’s citizens seem weirdly oblivious, or resigned, or numb. Like inhabitants of a corrupt third-world country who have utterly lost faith in their government and in politics itself, or ostriches sticking their heads in the sand, Californians are behaving as if the whole thing is out of their control. Or even that it isn’t happening at all.
Wow.
It sucks, but it’s true. Most people my age that I know really have no idea that all of this is going on. I mostly feel sorry for my younger siblings who have yet to look for a job, go to college, etc. I’m traveling all the way to Europe to get away from my shitty state school. It is a goddamn mess right now, and since I technically work for the state too, I might not be getting paid this summer. So…fuck. We’re all screwed.
