Reason Magazine’s editor-in-chief Matt Welch as a great piece in the September/August issue of the magazine about the recent citizens’ revolt in California. In May, California voters were asked to vote on six tax and gimmick propositions and rejected five of them, even though these were outspent by 7 to 1. Most newspapers’ editorial boards were furious and insulting to voters after the vote. One even told Californians that they were childish and that their vote was nothing more than a ridiculous temper tantrum.

Welch is a shrewd observer of California’s politics and media so the whole piece is worth reading. Here is an excerpt.

Rarely has the chasm between elite political discourse and grubby popular opinion been displayed in such sharp relief. The implications of this citizen revolt—and the hostile reactions to it—stretch far beyond Nevada’s western border. California is the Ghost of Federal Government Future.
During the last two decades, the Golden State has been transformed from what was once known as the nation’s most anti-labor outpost to a state essentially run by public-sector unions. Nearly three in five public sector workers are unionized, compared to less than two in five public employees in other states. The Democratic Party, which is fully in hock to unions, has controlled the legislature and most statewide posts, with the notable exception of the governor’s mansion, for more than a decade. That means more government workers, higher salaries, and drastically higher pension costs.