Whenever anybody from another part of the country asks me what it's like to live in California – and if you've lived here for any length of time you know that happens a lot – I always say the same thing.
The defining aspect of life in California is that people here have an enduring belief that money is bound to fall from the sky any minute now.
And the thing is, that happens often enough that Californians keep believing it.
In fact, it's impossible to separate the state's history from the phenomenon of instant wealth. The notion was enshrined in the early myths about the place. It was made real by the Gold Rush. And ever since, the reality has recurred, in boom time after boom time.
Most recently, the belief has been reinforced by the real estate market. When I prepared to move to Calif- ornia almost seven years ago, a colleague who had lived in the state told me how envious she was. A friend of hers, she said, was getting rich without really having a job. She was just buying and selling houses in the Sierra foothills.
My wife and I were, it seemed, moving to a place where money was falling from the sky.
I've been thinking about this lately because this widely held idea seems to be having some very practical consequences these days.
The most obvious is the real estate market. But there are less- obvious consequences, too. One of them is the bad news that befell state employees last week, when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced layoffs and pay cuts because the Legislature has not yet passed a budget.
There are plenty of fingers being pointed – among Democrats and Republicans, the governor and legislators – about who's to blame for the lack of a budget. And there's plenty of blame to go around.
But increasingly it seems to me that the core problem isn't politics and politicians. It's Californians' stubborn belief in the miracle of impending riches.
That belief explains why voters expect the governor and legislators to balance the budget without either raising taxes or cutting spending. Surely there's enough money, and if there's not now there will be soon. This is California.
It explains why voters approve ballot initiatives that cut taxes or that tie the hands of public officials by tying state revenues to particular programs. Surely we can do everything we want to without causing a problem. The skies are about to rain gold any minute. This is California.
It explains why Democrats in the Legislature think there won't be consequences to expanding spending and why Republicans are equally sure there are no consequences to restraining taxes. Hey, it'll all work out. This is California.
And it explains why Schwarzenegger has gotten away with running up the state's debt after campaigning on a promise to get the budget under control. Debt's no big deal. This is California. The state will be rich again soon, and everything will work out OK.
And maybe it will. Who am I to argue against the accepted wisdom?
In fact, I have embraced that wisdom. Which is why on my way home on Friday, I stopped and bought a lottery ticket. Sure, the odds are long, but I'm bound to win. Hey, this is California.
Unless Bee editorial page editor David Holwerk won the lottery, you can reach him at (916) 321-1851.
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