All Right Boys And Girls, What Do These Cities Share In Common? Forbes List :

[FaninAma]

Of the 20 most miserable cities:
http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mli45lmhg/20-youngstown-oh/#

And no, I am not looking for a demographic characteristic.

BTW, 19 of the 20 are located in or partially in blue states. That may have been too much of a hint.

[cleller]

They're all crap-holes full of people letting the government run the show.

[FaninAma]

They're all crap-holes full of people letting the government run the show.
I would call them progressive utopias.

[XingTheRubicon]

I wonder what percentage of local elected officials in those cities are donks...



they're getting exactly what they deserve

[FaninAma]

I wonder what percentage of local elected officials in those cities are donks...



they're getting exactly what they deserve
I am guessing 95% or more.

[Soonerjeepman]

they have gun control?

[FaninAma]

they have gun control?

i don't know. I was really asking a rhetorical question. Basically the city governments of these cities were elected by the same voters who overwhelmingly supported Obama in the last election.

[Soonerjeepman]

lol...yeah I know...just tryin to stir up $hit~

ya mean the dems are really stinkin up cities as well? go figure.

Honestly, I describe this to my kids...dems want to give fish, pubs (in general) want you to learn to fish on your own.

[BigTip]

Honestly, I describe this to my kids...dems want to give fish, pubs (in general) want you to learn to fish on your own.

And there's getting to be less and less fisherman to give away all that fish.

A great thing to tell people, "Government cannot give anything to anybody that it doesn't first take from somebody else."

[badger]

A lot of those place either currently have, or recently had republican governors.

That to me suggests that its a bi-partisan problem. Michigan and republican gov. Rick snyder will soon assist in getting detroit out of its financial misery... it'll likely involve bankruptcy.

Sure, the cities themselves may be democratic, largely, but as you city dwellers know, they're surrounded by suburbs that tend to be more conservative.

This isnt a liberal problem. Its an everyone problem.

[FaninAma]

A lot of those place either currently have, or recently had republican governors.

That to me suggests that its a bi-partisan problem. Michigan and republican gov. Rick snyder will soon assist in getting detroit out of its financial misery... it'll likely involve bankruptcy.

Sure, the cities themselves may be democratic, largely, but as you city dwellers know, they're surrounded by suburbs that tend to be more conservative.

This isnt a liberal problem. Its an everyone problem.

i would agree if in those states with recent or current GOP governors the rest of the state was in similiar condition but that is not the case. The rest of Ohio seems to be doing ok. The rest of Georgia seems to be doing ok. The rest of Michigan seems to be doing ok. The rest of Indiana seems to be doing ok. Conversley, those states with long standing state Democrat leadership seem to not be faring so well.....California, New York and Illinois.

Refusal to assign blame is a big part of the problem. The GOP certainly have their shortcomings but instituting the policies and managerial decisions that led to the decay of these cities is not one of them. The worst of the worst have been under the yoke of Democrat leadership for a long, long time.

[Soonerjeepman]

Its an everyone problem.

nope

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Of the 20 most miserable cities:
http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mli45lmhg/20-youngstown-oh/#

And no, I am not looking for a demographic characteristic.

BTW, 19 of the 20 are located in or partially in blue states. That may have been too much of a hint.

They are all run by Liberals and Progressives and tax people confiscatorily...

[Lott's Bandana]

As I went through the list, all I could think of was,

union fossils.

[BigTip]

This isnt a liberal problem. Its an everyone problem.

I agree it is an everyone problem.





That was caused by liberals

[Lott's Bandana]

When I'm in California and someone gives me an attitude about being from where I'm from I can only look at them incredulously and say,

"Really?"

Last time I was there (December) there were new signs on the window of each restaurant, posted by the Health Department, giving the restaurant's inspection grade for all to see. Mandatory now.
If I cared about that, I would have starved in Asia and most of the best places I eat around this country. Just another way for corruption to wind its way further into California's festering cultural/social wounds. How much do you want to make my "B" an "A", Mr Inspector?

[soonercruiser]

Kinda surprised that Atlanta has degraded enough to be on that list.
Sad.

[SCOUT]

Refusal to assign blame is a big part of the problem.

You know how sometimes you will say something in a specific conversation that can actually be applied to a broader subject? This is the motherload example of that.

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

i would agree if in those states with recent or current GOP governors the rest of the state was in similiar condition but that is not the case. The rest of Ohio seems to be doing ok. The rest of Georgia seems to be doing ok. The rest of Michigan seems to be doing ok. The rest of Indiana seems to be doing ok. Conversley, those states with long standing state Democrat leadership seem to not be faring so well.....California, New York and Illinois.

Refusal to assign blame is a big part of the problem. The GOP certainly have their shortcomings but instituting the policies and managerial decisions that led to the decay of these cities is not one of them. The worst of the worst have been under the yoke of Democrat leadership for a long, long time.D'Oh!!!

[RUSH LIMBAUGH is my clone!]

I agree it is an everyone problem.


That was caused by liberalsSHAME!...(you're not supposed to notice)

[Chuck Bao]

Esewhere in the news, Texas teachers are in Austin protesting the fact that Texas has now fallen to 49th in the nation for spending on education on a per student basis.

[olevetonahill]

As I went through the list, all I could think of was,

union fossils.

As I went thru I was think Dayum Yankees and a few fruits from Cal. But Atlanta and Atalntic City. creeped in there

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Kinda surprised that Atlanta has degraded enough to be on that list.
Sad.


Not really. My hometown, but never plan on going back ever. The place is a cesspool.

[TheHumanAlphabet]

Esewhere in the news, Texas teachers are in Austin protesting the fact that Texas has now fallen to 49th in the nation for spending on education on a per student basis.

Uhmm, a lack of spending does not necessarily equate to bad education...many times the money is going down a rat hole with no hope of enlightening people...Think OKC school district, HISD, and most recently North Forest ISD taken over by the state of Texas...There are plenty of problems with public education, a lack of funding is not one of the major ones...

[cleller]

Uhmm, a lack of spending does not necessarily equate to bad education...many times the money is going down a rat hole with no hope of elightening people...Think OKC school district, HISD, and most recently North Forest ISD taken over by the state of Texas...There are plenty of problems with public education, a lack of funding is not one of the major ones...

Agreed. Throwing money at certain problems is not effective. Plenty of brilliant American students came out of schools with much fewer dollars in the past.
Its more about the attitudes, outlook, discipline, etc of the students and their parents. What is lacking is the old model of two parents that took interest in their kid's education, then followed up by seeing the student gave the effort.

[LittleElmSooner]

Esewhere in the news, Texas teachers are in Austin protesting the fact that Texas has now fallen to 49th in the nation for spending on education on a per student basis.

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/02/21/texas-tops-nation-in-math-science-scores/

Obviously, they're doing something right...

"AUSTIN (AP) - Texas public school students outscored the rest of the country in science and math but fell behind on literacy tests, even though the results excluded an unusually large percentage of students with disabilities and those learning English as a second language, according to a new federal report..."

[StoopTroup]

Rap Music?

[sappstuf]

Good article in the NYTimes about the disaster that is Detroit. The key phrase of the article:


It has all been a strategy of hope.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/12/us/for-detroit-a-financial-crisis-was-long-coming.html?hp&_r=1&

Obvious incompetence mixed with a strategy of hope. I hope there aren't any major politicians with similar attributes.

Oh wait...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/55/Barack_Obama_Hope_poster.jpg/220px-Barack_Obama_Hope_poster.jpg

[cleller]

Luckily, the article also pointed out this:

“Detroit is a microcosm of what’s going on in America, except America can still print money and borrow,”


So, nothing to fear.

[SanJoaquinSooner]

Two of those cities are in San Joaquin County. There were a gazillion homes built in the county back in the years preceding the housing bust, with homes bought for $450,000 losing 40 to 50% of their value -- so the foreclosure rate skyrocketed (one "misery" criterion). If there are lots of foreclosures, then net migration turns negative (another "misery" criterion), and of course lots of foreclosures directly and indirectly lead to unemployment and higher crimes rates.

Weather is super great 85% of the time.

How well the professional sports teams do is a silly criterion.

In the end, how miserable one is likely depends on the job one has and how nice one's trailor park is.