The Reverse-Joads of California (Now even Low- and middle-income residents are fleeing the state)

Wall Street Journal ^ | 03/04/2013 | ALLYSIA FINLEY

[SeekAndFind]

During the Great Depression, some 1.3 million Americans—epitomized by the Joad family in John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath"—flocked to California from the heartland. To keep out the so-called Okies, the state enacted a law barring indigent migrants (the law was later declared unconstitutional). Los Angeles even set up a border patrol on the city limits. Soon the state may need to build a fence to keep latter-day Joads from leaving.

Over the past two decades, a net 3.4 million people have moved out of California for other states. But contrary to conservative lore, there has been no millionaires' march to Texas or other states with no income tax. In fact, since 2005 California has experienced a net in-migration of households earning more than $200,000, according to the U.S. Census's American Community Survey.

As it happens, most of California's outward-bound migrants are low- to middle-income, with relatively little education: those typically employed in agriculture, construction, manufacturing, hospitality and to some extent natural-resource extraction. Their median household income is about $40,000—two-thirds of the statewide median—and about 95% earn less than $80,000. Only one in 10 has a college degree, compared with 30% of California's population. Roughly 40% of the people leaving are Hispanic.

Even while California's Hispanic population has grown by more than 1.5 million since 2005, thanks to high birth rates and foreign immigration, two Hispanics have moved out for every one that has moved in from another state. By contrast, four Hispanics from other states have settled in Texas and Arizona for every three that have left.

It's not unusual for immigrants or their descendants to move in pursuit of a better life. That's the history of America.

[SeekAndFind]

Tt is really ironic that many of the intended beneficiaries of California's liberal government are running for the state line—and that progressive policies appear to be what's driving them away.

[Red Badger]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md69zCJKD1c

[Tupelo]

Ironic? No sad.
They will just move to another state and Californicate it with their “Oh so enlightened ideas.” Just as they did to Colorado in the 90s.

[skeeter]

It's not unusual for immigrants or their descendants to move in pursuit of a better life. That's the history of America.

Lol WSJ. You left out one tiny detail, haven't you?

[skeeter]

WSJ will still be cheerleading illegal immigration, even as the descendents of illegals vote away the last of their precious economic liberties.

The fools can't see past next quarter.

[SeekAndFind]

RE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Md69zCJKD1c

Sure, one can visit California, like one can visit Mexico or Greece... but live and work there?

[untenured]

Quelle surprise! California has had a proliferation of land-use planning and other rules that make housing amazingly expensive, along with restrictions on business operation that make creation of new jobs for new entrants into the labor market difficult. And this has had the effect of causing a lot of riff-raff to leave the state because they have no shot at the American dream, all the while increasing the value of the houses of those who already own them, or have enough cash (because they work at the high end in Hollywood or Silicon Valley) to buy them. Whod'a thunk it?

California dreamin', of a state with a beautiful coastal lifetsyle for the rich and serfdom for everyone else.

[stboz]

It is what the ruling California elite want. They want all of us, the unwashed, to kindly vacate and leave all the land and wealth it generates for them.

[353FMG]

>It’s not unusual for immigrants or their descendants to move in pursuit of a better life.<

.
That is the way liberalism spreads from state to state.

[Para-Ord.45]

California is looking more and more like France pre-revolution as a result of their socialist neo-marxist experiment. There is a nobility/elite class compromised of the neo-marxist left who occupy high paying jobs and the government and a like-minded bourgeoisie middle‐class people of wealth. Under them are the peasants – the rural poor – and the city workers who will NEVER be allowed or be able to leap into the bourgeoisie or nobility/elite class.

[Para-Ord.45]

PS: The ruling nobility/elite and middle‐class people of wealth are petrified that the peasants and the urban poor might rediscover the Enlightenment, Natural Law and Inalienable Rights so control the schools and means of information.

[vette6387]

They will just move to another state and Californicate it with their “Oh so enlightened ideas.” Just as they did to Colorado in the 90s.

But I thought, by reason of some of the posters here on FR that “they” (the good Conservatives in California) were the only one’s moving out! This article seems t be saying that the underclass are the ones that are leaving. So are the Conservatives that are leaving the underclass?

[Red Boots]

California will end up as the very rich, and those that serve them. No middle class. This is a very common pattern for liberal cities across the nation- Aspen, Boulder here in Colorado, Santa Fe, Palo Alto, - it’s the natural end result of their policies. I suppose as the progressive agebnda takes over the nation, that it willbecome the norm everywhere.

[2ndDivisionVet]

I hear that Iowa has a lot of job openings. Texas is full.