Bay-area tech types have been getting a lot of flak lately for the totally out-of-touch, isolationist ideas espoused by a few very vocal members of their ilk, like the plan proposed by prominent, hubristic venture capitalist Tim Draper to split California along arbitrary lines to form six new states (LA, along with Long Beach and Santa Barbara, would be in West California). Hellbent on ruining us all, Draper commissioned an analysis of the plan and the resulting report, via Valleywag, reads like the backstory to the damn Hunger Games. Turns out that Silicon Valley is so wealthy, if it splintered off on its own, it would become the richest state in the country, with a per capita personal income of $63,288. Meanwhile, Central California, where all the food comes from, would be the new poorest state, with $33,510 per capita personal income (perspective: less than the PCPI of poor Misssissippi). West California's PCPI would be $44,900—close to current California's figure.
Creating Six Californias would also seriously mess with the water infrastructure—Silicon Valley and West California are currently the largest importers of water, but the three poorest states in the deal (Central California, Jefferson,and South California) would have most of the supply. Another thing Central California will have? Most of the prisons: the three poorest states currently house 60 percent of the prisoners in the whole state. LA and its West California cities create 37 percent of the prisoners (good job!) but house only 7 percent of them, so if we thought our prisons were overcrowded, wait until our resources are one-sixth of what they are now. So, food shortages, water shortages, wealth inequality, prisoners either roaming the streets or rioting in overcrowded jails: seriously, is this plan guerrilla marketing for Mockingjay Part 1?
· Rich state, poor state: VC's 'Six Californias' divides Silicon Valley from have-nots [SVBJ]
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