The US auto industry, in cooperation with the petroleum companies, bought the US government in order to ensure that US life was twisted around the automobile. In LA the light railway was torn up; west of the Rockies all new towns were zoned so as to ensure one needed a car in order to survive. Jaywalking was made a crime because the auto companies wanted to remove the liability of the driver. Today, most US citizens are so accustomed to this upside-down way of life that it actually seems normal to them - and clearly normal to Newsom and people like him.

Not only is jaywalking an absurd law, but it discriminates against everyone who doesn't think that driving is the solution for every mobility requirement. But as the USA is essentially an absurd culture it's difficult to imagine the jaywalking laws going away any time soon.