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SAN ANGELO, Texas Liberals advocate many wonderful things. In fact, I suspect that most conservatives would prefer to live in the kind of world envisioned by liberals, rather than in the kind of world envisioned by conservatives.

Unfortunately, the only kind of world that any of us can live in is the world that actually exists. Trying to live in the kind of world that liberals envision has costs that will not go away just because these costs are often ignored by liberals.

One of those costs appeared in an announcement of a house for sale in Palo Alto, the community adjacent to Stanford University, an institution that is as politically correct as they come.

The house is for sale at $1,498,000. It is a 1,010-square-foot bungalow with two bedrooms, one bath and a garage. Although the announcement does not mention it, this bungalow is located near a commuter railroad line, with trains passing regularly throughout the day.

Lest you think this house must be some kind of designers dream, loaded with high-tech stuff, it was built in 1942 and, even if it was larger, no one would mistake it for the Taj Mahal or San Simeon.

This house is not an aberration, and its price is not out of line with other housing prices in Palo Alto.

One couple who had lived in their 1,200-square-foot home in Palo Alto for 20 years decided to sell it, and posted an asking price just under $1.3 million.

Competition for that house forced the selling price up to $1.7 million.

Another Palo Alto house, this one with 1,292 square feet of space, is on the market for $2,285,000. It was built in 1895.

Even a vacant lot in Palo Alto costs more than a spacious middle-class home costs in most of the rest of the country.

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THOMAS SOWELL: Liberalism makes our lives more expensive

Some think New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo might run for president in 2016. This poll should give them pause. (Tim Roske/AP)

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is seen among the more likely (and more formidable) potential 2016 Democratic presidential candidates.But a new poll suggests Cuomo has big problems with his left flank -- and that New York liberals are actually prepared to abandon him en masse.

The Fix's Sean Sullivan wrote a while back that Cuomo was gradually alienating liberals for a variety of reasons, and the newSiena College poll suggests that opposition is more than just a token.The poll -- as most every Cuomo poll does -- shows that the governor is likely to cruise to reelection, thanks to his still-strong approval ratings. Cuomo leads Republican Rob Astorino by 30 points, 58-28.

Where things get interesting is when you toss in a liberal third-party candidate, running under the banner of one of New York's well-established minor parties, the Working Families Party. (The WFP generally backs Democrats but will occasionally oppose Democrats who aren't with it on key issues. It hasn't been happy with Cuomo, particularly for his recent support of charter schools.)

When Cuomo and Astorino are in a three-way race with a hypothetical liberal Working Families Party candidate, Cuomo's share of the vote drops off a cliff, to 39 percent, with this hypothetical candidate taking a shocking 24 percent of the vote.

Now, this is highly hypothetical, and the Working Families Party hasn't said whether it will run an alternative to Cuomo. The poll result also doesn't suggest Cuomo would even lose such a three-way race.

But it does show that liberals aren't particularly enchanted with Cuomo -- to put it lightly -- and that if he ran in 2016, his appeal to the party base would likely be quite limited.Cuomo maintains a relatively strong favorable rating among Democrats (69 percent) and liberals (70 percent), but it's also clear that these groups wish he were more liberal.

Liberal voters say 54-28 that Cuomo is more of a moderate than a liberal, and 80 percent of them say he should govern more as a liberal. They also say by a 2-to-1 margin that he's friendlier with business groups than with organized labor.

None of these are the marks of a favorite of the Democratic Party base -- or someone who can credibly claim to be a liberal alternative to Hillary Clinton in a presidential primary.

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Andrew Cuomo has big problems with liberals

Antonella Artuso, Queen's Park Bureau Chief Apr 21, 2014

, Last Updated: 6:22 PM ET

TORONTO A "progress report" issued by the Liberals says middle and lower income Ontarians are better off after 11 years of their government.

"The purpose is really to highlight and bring together everything the government is doing to help people as they try to balance their household budget and save for their future," Consumer Services Minister Tracy MacCharles said Monday. "We know families are facing pressure."

The 2014 Pocketbook Initiatives Progress Report lists government initiatives such as a made-in-Ontario plan to improve retirement security, an increase in the minimum wage to $11, new consumer protection legislation for wireless consumers, an almost 6% decline in average auto insurance rates, and a 30% break on tuition fees for families with an annual income before taxes of $160,000 or less.

Progressive Conservative MPP Vic Fedeli said the Ontario Liberals' report ignores a lot of initiatives that left people with less money in their pocketbooks.

"What's really missing is the high hydro rates, the health tax, the eco tax, the HST those are the things that are missing off the list and those are the hurtful things that have had most impact on families in Ontario," Fedeli said.

The progress report comes just 10 days before Premier Kathleen Wynne is to release her second budget, and a countdown to a crucial confidence vote that could trigger a provincial election.

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Liberals boast of better living in Ontario; critics not sold

By Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press Published Monday, April 21, 2014 3:05PM CST Last Updated Monday, April 21, 2014 3:45PM CST

WINNIPEG -- This should be a celebratory time for the Manitoba Liberals -- they're riding at a near record-high level in opinion polls under new leader Rana Bokhari heading into next month's annual general meeting.

But the party is dealing with another public eruption of internal criticism accusing Bokhari and her leadership team of stomping on the rights of grassroots members and, despite the improved popularity, of hurting the party.

"If this leadership group were trying to destroy the party, it could not be doing a better job," Shane Nestruck, president of the party's constituency association in Fort Garry-Riverview, told The Canadian Press on Monday.

"The only reason I am not resigning is that I hope for a complete change of leadership at the coming annual general meeting."

Nestruck's criticism echoes comments in February from Bob Axworthy, who ran against Bokhari for the leadership last October and who accused her and Liberal executives of "purging" some longtime members in an attempt to control the party.

Nestruck came forward after an anonymous blog surfaced online last week that was severely critical of Bokhari. The blog has since been taken down.

Nestruck points to recent moves by new members of the party brass.

The party issued letters in February to a half-dozen members, including Nestruck, telling them their membership was under review and offering no explanation. More recently, party president Robert Young decided not to call any more board of directors gatherings until after the annual general meeting.

The party brass has put forward several constitutional amendments for the upcoming meeting, including a plan to shrink the board of directors and reduce the minimum number of board meetings each year to six from eight. Another proposed amendment would formalize the party's code of conduct and make it an offence to do anything to bring the party, its candidates or its leader "into disrepute."

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Manitoba Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari faces more internal turmoil

The Canadian Press Published Tuesday, April 22, 2014 10:49AM EDT Last Updated Tuesday, April 22, 2014 10:50AM EDT

TORONTO -- The governing Liberals are making another budget promise: to tie future increases to the Ontario Child Benefit to inflation.

They say it would start July 2015 if their crucial May 1 budget passes in the legislature.

The annual maximum payment per child under the age of 18 -- which is available to families making $20,000 or less a year -- will rise to $1,310 this July.

The minority Liberals are also proposing to increase wages for early childhood educators and other child care workers.

They say it would raise wages by an average of two dollars an hour, with the first increase starting in January 2015.

The Liberals need at least one opposition party to support their budget to avoid an election.

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Ontario Liberals promise to tie future increases to Child Benefit to inflation