For years now people have said California leads the trends in our nation and what happens in California will soon spread across the country and lead us into the future.  I know that when I moved to L.A. from Kansas my clothes and music taste at the time, though up to date in Kansas, were about five years behind the L.A. style.

From the beginning of our nation it has been the hope of every parent to send their child to college so they will have a better life, receive a better education and be more productive members of our nation than the last generation was.

For the most part both of these statements are true.  California has led our nation in many trends from fashion to leaps in computer technology.  College grads are sought out for better paying jobs or for the technical experience they gained in school.  With this advantage they are more likely to receive better paying jobs, pay more taxes and buy more homes than their less educated counterparts.  Good for everyone, right?

The problem we face today is that the trends being set in California are not only bad for the state, but if they spread could be devastating for the nation.  The financial situation in California is one of the worst in the country.  With the rating for state bonds in the toilet and debt stretching as far as the eye can see, California is facing a serious financial crisis.  Even with the influx of Federal stimulus funds the last budget for the state was still 14 billion dollars short.

The closing of parks, cutting services to public housing and the poor, and paying state workers with I.O.U.’s have been some of the ways state officials have come up with to save a bit here and there.  Now California has come up with a way to make up for some of that lost revenue in the from of a 32% price hike in tuition at state colleges.

By putting this increase into effect the state has effectively closed the door to many who were going into debt to attend college in the first place.  I wonder how much the state will gain by this measure, when you remove those who will now either be forced to quit school or never attend to begin with, into the long term numbers.  Looking way down the road, how will this effort to make some quick cash effect the state in jobs and tax revenue from those who never make it to college now.

This reminds me of the payday loan companies.  You may get a little cash in hand now but that 400% interest rate will kill you in the end.