Do Bond Measures Really Benefit California?

Was Hurricane Katrina a wake-up call for California? Proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger, Proposition 1E was put on the ballot by the Democrat-controlled legislature. The $4.1 billion bond issue to protect the state from devastation by water is the last of a four-measure bond package that would increase state debt by $37 billion. Prop 1B would raise $20 billion for transportation; Prop 1C would mean $2.9 billion for housing; Prop 1D raises another $10.4 billion for education.  Can California afford to pass the latest bond package in state history, adding $40 billion in new debt, plus roughly that much in interest over the years? Can it afford not to?