Gov Brown: Fix California Roads & Infrastructure

Thought process in Sacramento - let's keep everyone busy and occupied with super-liberal outrage against POTUS - and may be, just may be, they won't notice that California's infrastructure has become so dilapidated, it needs a concerted and dedicated overhaul. After all, fixing this mess is hard and requires an honest man's job. Nah, it is much easier to just keep talking about women's rights, LGBTQ rights, Islamophobia, conflate legal and illegal, sorry, undocumented immigrants, protest and burn property protesting a speech at UC Berkeley and so on.

I've just one request Gov. Brown - can you please pay some attention to the infrastructure of a state of which you have been the longest serving governor (~15 years across two stints). You, Sir, have left the state's infrastructure in such a mess, it only takes one rainfall to bare all the potholes.

Have you visited the roads in the Bay Area lately. Hwy 101 in the area is just dangerous to drive on. And this was before the downpour. I've no idea how it is today, thankfully, I don't have to take it any more during my commute. The conditions of 880 and 680 aren't much better either, with my Waze constantly saying "Pothole on road ahead". Recently I happened to go to Oakland for some work, and there were roads where you had to find road in the midst of potholes.

Then there is the Oroville dam. Of course, we can't blame you for the dam failure. After all how could you have predicted the downpour. You were happily reminding us of the drought, caused by climate change, and all the time siphoning money off infrastructure maintenance to your pet ultra-left causes.

I pay state taxes to you - so we can live in a society where at least infrastructure is decent. You have a special gas tax here in CA. If you need more money, go lobby in Washington DC on our behalf to get federal funding, instead of fighting and alienating POTUS on every single issue.

Before you spend billions of dollars on your pet high-speed rail project, can you please turn your kind attention to things that matter to us today, you know, like roads and schools? The rich, with their private helicopters/jets and private schools, could not care less about these things. We, the working class (of every color, gender, orientation, nationality), pay a non-trivial amount in taxes so you can take care of these. Please do.

Best,
An Unknown CA Resident

Immigrating to the US: Top Five Things to Get Started

When you come here, most likely you have a passport, a visa and an I-94. Here are the top five things you will want to take care of, to get settled and go about your business:

1) SSN - Based on your passport, visa and I-94, you should be able to get your SSN. This is one of the first things you need to get done - a lot of things go easy (or become possible) when you have an SSN (and the SS Card). Generally, wait for about two weeks after your arrival. Then go to your local SS office with your docs. You can download the application up front, fill it up and go to the office. After verifying the originals, your application will be accepted. They will also issue you a letter stating the date on which you applied. Your card should come by mail usually in 2-3 weeks - important that you have an address where you can receive mail for the next few months at least.

By the way, when arriving to the US, you will need to provide an address where you will be staying. This can be a hotel address if that's where you'd be staying immediately upon arrival. Then when you move, you MUST notify USCIS of your new address - this can be done online.

2) DL - Once your SSN comes, you'd be able to apply for driver's license. Depending on where you are coming from, and which state you are living in, you might have to take a written test, a behind the wheel driving test or both. Important that you show your current DL - if you are lucky, they will issue you a temp license (mostly after the written test) that allows you to drive your vehicle alone. If you don't show your current license (or are unlucky due to a rule change etc), your temporary license will state that you must be accompanied by another driver while driving - needless to say, this can be a huge inconvenience.

3) Bank Account and Credit Card - Hopefully you already have a US bank account set up before you come via your company. If not, start the process almost immediately after your arrival - some banks might issue a Checking account even without SSN - check with multiple banks.
For credit card, usually banks might not issue a credit card up front. But you can go for what they call a "secured credit card" - basically you deposit some money with them, and they give you a credit card to use with that money as collateral (equal amount). This is quite important, so you can start building your credit score immediately. Needless to say, without a CC, life can be painful here. Get one soon.

4) Car - Assuming that you have your house figured out, the importance of having a car cannot be over-emphasized here in the US. This is a big country, with very sporadic public transportation. Initially your finances might be tight - if possible, bring some cash (or cash card) with you when arriving here. Car buying is one of the most stressful things you will encounter here. It is a total scam. Everyone is out to simply "get you". Worst case, you can be even sold a lemon, with little recourse. Spend some time researching your options - there is a lot of information on the web. If you are going for a new car (I'd advise against it), you can pay a lot of money extra if you are not careful. If you are going for a used car, make sure you are not buying a lemon. KBB, CarFax, local mechanics - these can be your friends.

5) Whatever you are doing for yourself (DL, bank a/c, SSN, credit card etc), do it for your better half as well. If not right with your processes, at least keep all of the above for her in mind, to be done at the earliest possible. Why?  It'd be far easier for your spouse to get on with life if they can have all the paper work done, without just relying on your paper work all the time. If they can't get an SSN due to VISA type, get an ITIN. Definitely get a DL at the earliest and the rest as well. Set them up for success, not dependence on you.

Once you have done the above five, your stay here should be largely set. The US is an amazing country, unlike most - found largely by immigrants, with a very work oriented culture (despite what you might see on TV reporting on deluded marchers every day these days).

Enjoy!