Follow your newsfeeds, and daily there is a story of doom and gloom from California concerning big business closing facilities and putting hundreds out of work. Today I read another, and in the article they pointed back to this is the worst situation since the recession of 2020. Couldn't get through without pointing to 2020, pointing out the recession, but not saying a word about COVID.
The nice thing about being in the final third, maybe fourth (depending on life expectancy charts) of my life is that I was taught to not listen to half-truths or doctored spins. I was taught to absorb, search for more facts, and reason out the truth. Further research points to every one of these is a matter of old and obsolete facilities being closed due to efficiency, code changes, and/or moving out of high-tax and restrictive cities.
San Francisco and Los Angeles are bleeding businesses like a burst aortic aneurism. Not mentioned is these operations being moved inland to either more modern or new facilities, and to facilities that utilize new technology that is not supported in the old urban facilities and urban infrastructure.
This also brings up the loss of jobs within the support industries surrounding these closed facilities. Job loss leading to more job loss meaning loss of tax revenue and inability to pay for public services. Of course, the comment threads under these reports are heavy with increasing the taxes on "the rich." I even read of a plan to tax the companies for closing.
How long will it take for these community leaders, politicians, and do-good organizations to realize that they need to become neutral to supportive toward businesses if they want them to stay, improve, and expand in their cities. Penalizing a job creator only leads them to making future plans that involve abandoning the city.
Another great ploy Sacramento is batting around involves an "Import Tax." Sounds a lot like the tariffs that they hate so much. This tax will be applied to all goods entering the state from a business that does not have a brick-and-mortar footprint in the state. By the way, none of these large international companies are leaving California. They are simply moving out of the old metropolitan sited facilities that need to be replaced.