SLO County’s ‘Good Trouble’ protests ignore a state in crisis | Opinion

On July 17, across SLO County and the state, troupes of well-meaning activists staged “Good Trouble” protests. Inspired by the late civil rights icon John Lewis, they declared that “people everywhere need to stand up for the oppressed,” demanded “justice for humanity,” and reminded us that “democracy is not a state, it is an act.”

I understand the urge to feel like you’re part of something noble. Who doesn’t want to play freedom fighter for the weekend? But if you’re going to invoke John Lewis, a man who took an actual police baton to the skull for the right to vote, maybe skip the pantomime politics. This isn’t Selma, it’s San Luis Obispo, and no one’s hosing you down on your way to Whole Foods.

Turns out if you’re really looking for “Good Trouble,” try looking look closer to home. We are all living in it!

This isn’t Alabama in 1965. It’s California in 2025. A self-proclaimed capital of compassion and equity. It is also the state with the highest poverty rate, the least affordable housing, failing schools, rising overdoses and levels of health and wealth inequality that would make a Kardashian feel guilty. Almost!

Yet somehow, half of SLO County seems to think we’re one parking ticket away from fascism. Godwin’s Law — originally an internet adage warning that all online arguments inevitably end in comparisons to Hitler — used to be a cautionary tale. In California, it’s become a playbook.

At this point it would be churlish not to recognize that California remains one of the most remarkable places on Earth. It’s now the fifth-largest economy in the world and Silicon Valley anchors global innovation and soft power. It also exudes a natural beauty and cultural depth so effortless, it makes migration to Florida feel less like a renaissance and more like a sunburned midlife crisis.

However, the sheen fades quickly. Beneath its gleam lies a chronic dysfunction that has taken root over two decades of one-party rule that has promised much but delivered little.

Housing and healthcare

Let’s start with housing. In San Luis Obispo County, the median home sales price is now $897,504, according to Realtor.com. That might buy you an ADU, otherwise known as a converted shipping container with a composting toilet. Even people earning six figures are being priced out. Teachers, nurses, first responders or someone who works with their hands? Forget it. You’re either commuting from Salinas or couch-surfing in a converted garage with a space heater and a mildew problem.

Healthcare? California insists it’s a “healthcare leader” by handing out Medi-Cal like it’s Halloween candy, including to “undocumented” immigrants. Sacramento held press conferences hailing another win for “equity”, then oops, noticed the price tag. With less fanfare enrollment was restricted, monthly premiums introduced, dental coverage removed.

And while we chant about “equity,” your ZIP code still does more to determine your life expectancy than your DNA. According to the California Health Care Foundation, people in poor neighborhoods are up to three times more likely to be hospitalized for something that should’ve been prevented. That’s not equity — that’s triage by income bracket.

Now all we need is a doctor who hasn’t escaped to Idaho and a dentist who doesn’t laugh when you mention Medi-Cal. This isn’t healthcare reform. It’s healthcare kabuki. Sacramento moralizes like Scandinavia, budgets like Venezuela, and delivers like PG&E.

Wealth inequality, infrastructure and education

Wealth and income inequality? California boasts the highest state income tax in the nation at 13.3%, and among the highest corporate and sales tax rates. Despite its reputation for redistributive policies to combat inequality, California has the highest poverty rate in the country when adjusted for cost of living. Nearly one in five Californians lives in “deep poverty” and only two states have wider income gaps between rich and poor, according to the :Public Policy Institute of California.

Infrastructure? California boasts some of the highest utility rates in the nation. Residential electricity prices have soared over 80% since 2010, yet we still get weekly blackouts, wildfires and grid chaos as part of the “green leadership” package. Our roads rank near the bottom nationally, earning a solid “C-” from the American Society of Civil Engineers, while the high-speed rail to nowhere has burned through $128 billion without connecting a single major city.

We don’t lack it; we just won’t build reservoirs or desalination plants. But rest assured, the endangered smelt in the Delta are enjoying spa-like conditions while Central Valley farmers go dry.

Education? Once the pride of the nation, California’s public K-12 education system now ranks in the bottom third nationally. Black and Latino students lag far behind their white and Asian peers, a chasm that no amount “equity” language in school board meetings seems to close. Only 23% of eighth graders in California are proficient in math. Barely 30% can read at grade level. All of this despite record high per-pupil spending. $23,723 in 2023, up from $11,743 in 2013.

Homelessness

Then there’s the mother of all failures, homelessness. In 2007, California accounted for 22% of the nation’s homeless population. By 2023, that figure had risen to over 30%. Despite over $20 billion allocated to combat homelessness since 2018, over 181,000 Californians were homeless in 2023, a 53% increase from 2013. Los Angeles alone now has more people living on the streets than the entire state of Texas.

Yet they call our state a model for the nation. If delusion were a renewable energy source, California would be exporting “smug” by the megawatt.

Twenty plus years of one-party rule gave us big promises and bigger bills. California still shines with diversity and innovation. It’s also a masterclass in bureaucratic bloat, overreach, and the smug certainty of groupthink.

This is where the “Good Trouble” crowd should matter. It doesn’t because none of this gets protested. John Lewis said, “Get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” He didn’t mean hashtag and virtue-signaling charades staged for a news bulletin and an algorithm

If Californians really want a state that’s safe, fair and affordable, they might consider breaking the habit of voting like it’s muscle memory. Reinvention doesn’t come from recycling the same politicians. Real change takes courage, not another yard sign promising equity for all while the wheels fall off the bus.

No, this isn’t a call to vote MAGA. It’s a call to remember that doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result isn’t progress. It’s insanity.

Clive is an equal opportunity offender who looks forward to seeing which entrenched incumbent The SLO Tribune will dutifully endorse next, presumably in the name of progress. Read more at https://clivepinder.substack.com