'Go West, Young Man,' Has Had Drastic Consequences for California. Can It Happen in Your State?

Back in the '50s and 60s, when the rest of the country thought of California, they thought of magnificent scenery, stunning beaches, movie stars, and opportunity. After all, it's the Golden State, the place where anyone could come to do a little "California Dreamin.'" Fast forward a few decades, and that California dream is very different. 

California is losing more residents than any other state.

CA is #1 in migrations (55k) looking to exit in 2026, that’s over 1,400 per week this year alone

New York is #2 with 30k planning to leave https://t.co/9UYYRKYH4S pic.twitter.com/1R2IDVFRL0

— 𝒟ℯ𝓇ℯ𝓀 (@Conceptcowboy) September 22, 2026

Numbers USA is an organization that advocates for lower levels of both legal and illegal immigration. They recently conducted a research analysis study called "Paving Paradise." It examined the loss of agricultural and natural land due to development caused by rapid population growth over the past 50 years. Current California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is a disaster for his state, but the study shows things had been deteriorating before he came along.

It also measured city growth data starting from 1970 to the present day and found that 91 percent of land development was due to continual population increases from immigration. In those 50 years, the population of California has doubled, making development of land to accommodate a growing population necessary. The study revealed that the ever-increasing population contributed to water shortages, loss of wildlife, an increase in wildfires, excess traffic, and increased housing costs.

In just one example, from 1982 to 2022, 3,740 miles of natural land in California — that's 2.4 million acres — were chipped away at and eventually eliminated to build housing and infrastructure. Another factor the study looked at was increasing commute times. A separate survey from August of this year showed that 78 percent of those surveyed were concerned about those growing commute times. This survey also showed that 80 percent of those Californians surveyed were worried about future water supply, and 93 percent were concerned with safeguarding the remaining farmland, forest, wetlands, and other open spaces.

The Mass Immigration problem that California, New York, Florida and Texas allowed for DECADES has infected the whole nation. They destroyed their states with Foreigners & now the Foreigners have invaded the rest of the South. It’s terrible. https://t.co/yFzpeOBKbQ

— Nas (@nasescobar316) May 30, 2026

Not surprising: During the Biden administration, California threw out the welcome mat for the largest concentration of illegal immigrants, at 400,000. The other part of that equation is the fact that, due in part to rampant illegal immigration, from 2010 to 2024, 10 million Californians have fled the state. 

But the environmentalist wackos (borrowed Rushism) who claim to be worried about things like water shortages, wildlife, and wildfires are the same pro-illegal-immigrant protesters throwing out the aforementioned welcome mat. As usual, it's one giant case of the left shooting itself in the foot. The problem is that innocent California residents pay the price. 

Even though California has the advantage of being a beautiful place, it is sadly a lesson to the rest of the country about what can happen in a relatively short amount of time with an increasing number of leftists in charge.

This was California before mass immigration. Was the cheap labour and rise in GDP worth it? pic.twitter.com/PxTwBJHgFC

— Canadian Patriot (@PPC4Liberty) June 8, 2025

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