As basic problems get solved, my journals will move away from my physical
situation (ie, my whinning and dinning) and towards my observations and
contemplations. In other words, I'll bore you even
more than ever.
PARADISE
People here in Santa Barbata often refer to it as "paradise".If you
ask me, I think that's a well-deserved nickname. You all already
know, the weather is perfect. We're experiencing a heat-wave.
Just 100 miles south-west in LA, it has been unbearably hot, hotter even
than what we were used to in Singapore. But paradise, being along
the coast, is a lot cooler. The scenary is lovely. People here
are generally friendly (with exception of people in DMV, of course).
Traffic is sparse, it's safe to drive and bike, traffic rules are strictly
enforced (people here come to a complete stop at stop signs!), and nobody
seems to be in a hurry. Crime is hardly heard of, there is little
crowding, every place here has its own charm, and even the Internet access
here is rated among the best in California!
I would think that if you put one or two Buddhas here and teach the birds to sing the Dharma, that'll pretty much be what the Buddhist Pure Land would look like. (Buddhist joke, guys. Don't flame me, I'm Buddhist).
Even paradise has its downsides, of course. It's far away from anywhere else, there isn't much employment, things are every expensive, and the county is broke.
But still, this is one of the nicest places I've ever been to! Some
of my friends are right, I'll have a lot of trouble adjusting when I return.
WHERE DO ALL THAT MONEY GO TO?
Coming from Singapore, one of the downsides of paradise is immediately obvious: that many places seem to be in various stages of disrepair. Roads are badly maintained, pot-holes abound, lines on many streets have worn off, streets are badly lit, graffiti is common, brown patches abound in many areas, and many buildings (especially here I live) look as if they're falling apart.
Paradise is so pleasant that, after a few days, such things don't get to you anymore. But still, one wonders why infrastructure is so badly maintained.
The answer, it seems, is that the county of Santa Barbara is broke.
The next obvious question then, why isn't there enough tax dollars to
fix things? While it's true that taxes in Singapore is very high
for some people (eg, car owners, property buyers, NS men) and that the
S'pore govt gets HUGE amounts of money from its ownership of many monopolies
and oligopolies, the taxes here in the US is very high as well. If
the Singapore regime has enough money to maintain a
first-class infrastructure, where is the money for roads and street
lighting etc in the richest economy in the world? Where did all that
money go to? Furthermore, Santa Barbara is supposed to be booming
at this time!
I don't have the answer. My personal theory so far is that Singapore
yields a lot more tax dollars per unit area than most places in the US.
But I don't think that's the full answer. If any of you know the
answer, let me know.
COMPARING PARADISE TO ....
This week, we took a short tour in the city of Irvine. Irvine is a city within Orange County, part of the LA area. It's about 20 minutes away from Disneyland.
The reason I went there was its reputation. Irvine is reputed to be one of the most well-planned and well-run cities in the USA. The Economist describes Irvine as "so well planned it makes Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew look sloppy".
Yeah, right. Coming from Singapore, it's hard to believe that there can be a city government better than the one in Singapore. (I don't think the PAP regime makes a good national government, but I think it's undoubtly one of the best municipal governments the world has ever seen).
Well, I saw Irvine for myself. The Economist was right.
Irvine was absolutely absolutely perfect perfect! (Double emphasis deliberate). Roads are very very well maintained, road signs are clear, there is no visible graffiti, the city is green everywhere, trees, grass, no brown patches, houses are well built and well maintained, and the town is immaculately clean. There is a well-planned industrial park and good employment. The weather is pleasant. LA and its facilities are nearby. And Irvine is one of the safest cities in the US. To top it all off, Disneyland is 20 minutes away. WHOA!!
For those in Singapore, imagine the nicer parts of the over-priced high-class Holland area, except bigger, nicer, cleaner, greener, less crowded and less expensive. And imagine that half of Singapore looks like that. And the weather is a lot nicer.
If Santa Barbara is paradise, Irvine is perfection.
I love the city so so much I am half-tempted to drop out of school today to go find work and live in Irvine. There's no now doubt where I want to live if I have the choice. ;)
Is there a downside? Of course. Irvine is very very expensive. A 4-bedroom house we saw (with a pool) goes for half a million bucks. And Irvine doesn't have an ocean view like paradise. I don't know of any other downsides. Maybe you do. Or maybe my excitment is due purely to my lack of exposure. Let me know.