As I wrote last month, the world is a laboratory that teaches us about the relative merits of free enterprise and statism. I usually apply this insight to national governments.

• Countries with total statism (North Korea, Cuba, Zimbabwe, Venezuela) are basket cases.
• Countries with some statism (Italy, Mexico, Greece) suffer from economic anemia.
• Countries with the most economic liberty (Singapore, Switzerland) deliver broadly shared prosperity.

The same principle applies to subnational governments, such as American states.

That’s the reason Texas outperforms California and Florida outperforms New York.

And let’s not forget local governments. Unfortunately, most large cities seem to have terrible governance. If asked to identify the worst of the worst, there are some obvious answers.

• Chicago?
• New York City?
• San Francisco?
• Minneapolis?
• Seattle?
• Detroit?

But those answers would be wrong, at least according to the accompanying table. Oakland wound up in last place when grading cities on the basis of economic policy.

I’m re-sharing those results because they provide useful background information when looking at an indepth profile of Oakland, written for the U.K.-based Telegraph by Toby Harnden and Julian Simmonds.

Here are some excerpts.

Oakland, birthplace of Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and the city where she launched her ill-fated presidential campaign in 2019, now resembles a post-apocalyptic nightmare, its streets piled high with trash, burned-out vehicles and homeless encampments. …Many businesses have closed down and are boarded up. Those still operating are covered in graffiti, even on their windows, and many refuse to allow customers inside for fear of being robbed. …Oakland criminals are becoming more brazen by the day, emboldened by the knowledge that the average police response time after a 911 emergency call is 48 minutes. …All three of Oakland’s major professional sports teams — football’s Raiders, basketball’s Golden State Warriors and baseball’s A’s — have deserted the city. This year, In-N-Out closed its Oakland location, the first time the burger chain had shuttered a store in three-quarters of a century. Denny’s restaurant closed after 54 years and the Hilton hotel after 56. …Last year, one car was stolen for every 30 Oakland residents. …Oakland’s 2023 crime rate was higher than at any time in the past two decades, up 65 per cent since 2020.

My two cents is that this information needs to be considered from a cost-benefit perspective.

People and businesses want to live where they get decent governance (schools, parks, public safety, etc) for a decent price (moderate taxes).

What’s happening in Oakland (and other left-governed cities) is that schools are crummy, crime is rampant, and taxes are high.

Not exactly the approach we want for the entire nation.

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Image credit: Basil D Soufi | Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported.