Farewell, California. I’m leaving.

I arrived in July 1993 and fell in love with the state, the weather, the beaches, the skiing, and San Francisco. I’d just completed Air Force Command and Staff College (a year of professional military education for rising commanders in the services), and I was selected to be the Operations Officer for a C-141 squadron based at Travis AFB, California.

The afternoon that I drove through the gates, I was hooked. The weather was perfect. Sunny days that stretched forever without the brutal humidity of the East Coast or the crushing winters of the Midwest. I could ski the fresh powder at Lake Tahoe in the morning and water ski in the afternoon on the Sacramento River. The diversity of this state blew me away: rugged coastlines, towering redwoods, golden hills, and the vibrant energy of San Francisco.

For decades, California was my home. I built a life here, raised a family, flew commercial routes out of its airports, and soaked in everything that made it special. The beaches from Malibu to Big Sur, the skiing at Mammoth and Heavenly, the hiking in Yosemite and the Sierra Nevadas, and yes, even the quirky, electric vibe of San Francisco in its better days. This was the Golden State. I loved it deeply.

But something went terribly wrong. Over the years, especially under decades of one-party Democrat rule, the politicians in Sacramento turned this paradise into something unrecognizable. They didn’t just mismanage; they actively created policies that prioritized ideology, virtue-signaling, and political power over the basic needs of working families. 

The result? A state that has become unlivable for far too many.

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Start with crime. Progressive district attorneys and laws like Proposition 47 turned theft under $950 into a misdemeanor with little consequence. Smash-and-grab robberies exploded in our cities. Retailers fled. San Francisco’s once-thriving downtown became a shell of its former self, with stores boarded up and residents afraid to walk the streets. “Cashless bail” and reduced prosecutions sent a clear message: criminals had more rights than their victims. Families I know no longer feel safe in neighborhoods that used to be havens.

Then there’s homelessness—the visible scar on every major city. California has spent over $20 billion in recent years on the problem, yet it still leads the nation in unsheltered homeless population. Tents line sidewalks in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Open drug use, especially fentanyl, ravages communities, while “harm reduction” policies hand out needles and safe-use sites instead of enforcing laws and getting people into real treatment or jail when needed. Democrat leaders talk compassion but deliver chaos. The streets are much dirtier, more dangerous, and more hopeless than they were in 1993. Dramatically different. 

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Housing and the cost of living? Skyrocketing. Decades of Democrat-backed environmental regulations, CEQA lawsuits that block development, and restrictive zoning have strangled supply while demand exploded. The median home price is absurdly high. Young families and middle-class workers are priced out. High state income taxes (the highest in the nation) combined with crushing gas prices and utility bills make everyday life a struggle. People aren’t leaving because they hate the weather; they’re leaving because they can’t afford to stay.

Energy policy is another self-inflicted wound. Aggressive green mandates pushed unreliable renewables while demonizing reliable sources. We’ve seen rolling blackouts, sky-high electricity rates, and a grid that struggles on hot days. It’s become routine.

Meanwhile, forest management has been crippled by environmental rules that prevent clearing dead wood and underbrush, fueling the devastating wildfires that have destroyed communities and blackened our skies. See the Palisades Fire.

Businesses are voting with their feet. Companies and high-earners have fled to states like Texas, Florida, and Nevada with lower taxes and friendlier regulations. Tech exodus from the Bay Area, a manufacturing flight, and a general sense that Sacramento views success as something to tax and regulate rather than celebrate. One-party rule breeds arrogance and incompetence. Leaders like Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) seem more focused on national ambitions and photo ops than fixing the basics for citizens — safe streets, affordable housing, reliable power, and strong schools.

Our education system pushes divisive ideologies over reading, writing, and arithmetic. Test scores lag. Parents feel sidelined. And sanctuary state policies have strained resources, adding pressure to already overwhelmed systems without proper enforcement at the border.

It breaks my heart to say goodbye. The natural beauty is still there—the beaches, the mountains, the skiing, the redwoods, and that special something about San Francisco on a clear day. The people are wonderful. But beauty and nice people alone don’t pay the bills, keep families safe, or give kids a future worth fighting for. 

The Democrat politicians who have controlled this state for generations have turned California into a cautionary tale of what happens when ideology trumps common sense.

I arrived in 1993 full of hope and love for this place. Today, I’m leaving with gratitude for the memories but clarity about why it no longer works.

Farewell, California. You deserved better leadership. The Golden State I fell in love with is still in there somewhere, buried under bad policy. Maybe one day it will rise again. Until then, it’s time for those of us who can to find a place where sanity still governs.