There's No Better Place To Be From Than Dayton, Ohio (Cleveland: unemployed, top schools)

[hensleya1]

After five years of being here... Dayton's all right. It could be better but it could be worse. 95% of a town is what you make of it.

[Wild Flower]

Originally Posted by CarpathianPeasant

Now, lets get real, people.

Some time ago a man from upstate set foot on the earth's moon and thereby became the first human to set foot on another blob of planetary matter in the cosmos.

With enormous backing, Neil Armstrong opened the door onto the universe. That action began -- was set into motion -- above Huffman Prairie with stuff hauled from West Dayton when the Wright Brothers managed to turn their aircraft.

So-and-so is from New York ... or maybe the mysterious China ... or maybe even Mount Sinai where God spoke?

That's nice. God speaks many places to many people. Apparently somewhere in there he said do it the other way to a couple of guys from Dayton without thunder and lightening, specifics about who the chapel should honor or what animals should be housed on the thing.

I can think of no place that I would rather be from than Dayton, Ohio, and the way this board overlooks the above is pathetic.

This post/ thread makes me happy. 8)

I was born in Springfield and we lived in Dayton. All my life I've had a wonderlust for Dayton/ Springfield AND Ohio since we moved away before I was two.

I moved around at a kid and as adult and Ohio represents what staying in one place might of been... even though my my mom and dad were from California and Montana, repectively. I wish I had been a Ohio girl!

Thank you!

[ohio_peasant]

Originally Posted by robertbrianbush

What, in your estimation, does Dayton need to do to modernize relative to other regions in the country it's size (I am sincerely asking)? What would your suggestions for improvement be?

This is a fair question, and I'll try my best at rendering a sincere response. Ineluctably, Dayton is saddled with some disadvantages. It can't be moved to the coast. It can't grow 10,000' mountains. We can't make the Miami River 200' deep and capable of hosting ocean-liners. We won't bring Wall Street or Hollywood to Dayton. So what can, in fact, we do? Let me offer three long-shot, pie-in-the-sky (but without violating the laws of physics) suggestions.

First on my list would be abolishing the Dayton City income tax; not merely reducing it, but outright abolishing it. In fact, I advocate for getting rid of Ohio's patchwork of local income taxes and local school district taxes. Make the state income tax uniform. Make it more progressive, if need be – or flat; this thread isn't the place to debate that. But Dayton City can't thrive and can't attract high-paying jobs until and unless it overcomes its tax-disadvantage.

Second would be trying to make the Dayton Airport a no-kidding national hub. Yes, this has been tried before; but why has it failed? We have better weather than in O'Hare, and closer proximity to the East Coast. We have lots of open land and minimal noise-restrictions. The airport is grossly underutilized, and has plenty of room for potential expansion. Imagine if – with the right tax-incentives (here we go again!) – Dayton could lure United or American (Delta already has CVG) to making Dayton a hub?

Third would be redefining Wright State, greatly expanding it and making it a true public flagship university, instead of a second-rate commuter-school. Make it comparable to the University of Michigan, UIUC, UC Berkeley or GA Tech. Redefine the Col Glenn corridor as a college-town, aspiring to the level of Urbana-Champaign or Ann Arbor.

Are these endeavors likely to happen? No. But they're not impossible.

[RememberMee]

I would concur with Ohio being a great place, my corner at least, if not for the cities and some mighty strange people and customs Ohioland spawns. Indians had it best back in the days.

[Natural510]

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

This is a fair question, and I'll try my best at rendering a sincere response. Ineluctably, Dayton is saddled with some disadvantages. It can't be moved to the coast. It can't grow 10,000' mountains. We can't make the Miami River 200' deep and capable of hosting ocean-liners. We won't bring Wall Street or Hollywood to Dayton. So what can, in fact, we do? Let me offer three long-shot, pie-in-the-sky (but without violating the laws of physics) suggestions.

First on my list would be abolishing the Dayton City income tax; not merely reducing it, but outright abolishing it. In fact, I advocate for getting rid of Ohio's patchwork of local income taxes and local school district taxes. Make the state income tax uniform. Make it more progressive, if need be – or flat; this thread isn't the place to debate that. But Dayton City can't thrive and can't attract high-paying jobs until and unless it overcomes its tax-disadvantage.

Second would be trying to make the Dayton Airport a no-kidding national hub. Yes, this has been tried before; but why has it failed? We have better weather than in O'Hare, and closer proximity to the East Coast. We have lots of open land and minimal noise-restrictions. The airport is grossly underutilized, and has plenty of room for potential expansion. Imagine if – with the right tax-incentives (here we go again!) – Dayton could lure United or American (Delta already has CVG) to making Dayton a hub?

Third would be redefining Wright State, greatly expanding it and making it a true public flagship university, instead of a second-rate commuter-school. Make it comparable to the University of Michigan, UIUC, UC Berkeley or GA Tech. Redefine the Col Glenn corridor as a college-town, aspiring to the level of Urbana-Champaign or Ann Arbor.

Are these endeavors likely to happen? No. But they're not impossible.

The others aren't likely to happen, but #1 really does need to for Ohio to thrive (if not merely survive). We didn't have city taxes in California, and the state is currently in the black, massive as it is. City taxes create a snowball effect where a depopulated city is forced to overtax its remaining residents in order to maintain basic services, only to cause more residents to leave.

[CarpathianPeasant]

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

This is a fair question, and I'll try my best at rendering a sincere response. Ineluctably, Dayton is saddled with some disadvantages. It can't be moved to the coast. It can't grow 10,000' mountains. We can't make the Miami River 200' deep and capable of hosting ocean-liners. We won't bring Wall Street or Hollywood to Dayton. So what can, in fact, we do? Let me offer three long-shot, pie-in-the-sky (but without violating the laws of physics) suggestions.

First on my list would be abolishing the Dayton City income tax; not merely reducing it, but outright abolishing it. In fact, I advocate for getting rid of Ohio's patchwork of local income taxes and local school district taxes. Make the state income tax uniform. Make it more progressive, if need be – or flat; this thread isn't the place to debate that. But Dayton City can't thrive and can't attract high-paying jobs until and unless it overcomes its tax-disadvantage.

Second would be trying to make the Dayton Airport a no-kidding national hub. Yes, this has been tried before; but why has it failed? We have better weather than in O'Hare, and closer proximity to the East Coast. We have lots of open land and minimal noise-restrictions. The airport is grossly underutilized, and has plenty of room for potential expansion. Imagine if – with the right tax-incentives (here we go again!) – Dayton could lure United or American (Delta already has CVG) to making Dayton a hub?

Third would be redefining Wright State, greatly expanding it and making it a true public flagship university, instead of a second-rate commuter-school. Make it comparable to the University of Michigan, UIUC, UC Berkeley or GA Tech. Redefine the Col Glenn corridor as a college-town, aspiring to the level of Urbana-Champaign or Ann Arbor.

Are these endeavors likely to happen? No. But they're not impossible.

Number 2 would probably be the easiest to achieve. Good salesman needed and some physical, material stuff.

[Jame22]

Originally Posted by Ron61

Well,as a lifelong Ohioan until a month ago,I could not disagree more. Dayton Ohio ranks right up there with every other drug and crime infested city. When was the last time you watched the local news and drugs,murder,or job loss wasn't the leading story? Sorry,but I don't buy it.

*Centerville, Kettering, Bellbrook, Beavercreek, Oakwood

The E & SE suburbs are amazing. Dayton, not so much.

[IDtheftV]

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

Third would be redefining Wright State, greatly expanding it and making it a true public flagship university, instead of a second-rate commuter-school.

What is it that makes it second-rate? and how does one identify a first-rate school?

I got an accounting degree from there.

Standing in line to register for the CPA exam in Columbus, a guy behind me recognized the guy behind him and mentioned that he remembered him from another attempt at the exam. "How many times have you taken it?" he asked. The other guy replied "This is my seventh time." The first guy: "This is my eighth." I didn't think to axe them where they got their degrees from.

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

Make it comparable to the University of Michigan, UIUC, UC Berkeley or GA Tech.

I guess that neither Miami nor Ohio State make the "grade" (heh) either.

[ohio_peasant]

Originally Posted by IDtheftV

What is it that makes it second-rate? and how does one identify a first-rate school?

...I guess that neither Miami nor Ohio State make the "grade" (heh) either.

It means, being part of the global elite.

When I was a teenager, I had zero interest in living in central Illinois. But I would have come there, to go to UIUC. I had zero interest in living in central NY State. But I would have come there, to go to Cornell. Where would Urbana-Champaign or Ithaca be without their universities? I'd recommend striving for the same transformation for Dayton.

[IDtheftV]

Originally Posted by ohio_peasant

It means, being part of the global elite.

How do you know a university is "part of the global elite?"

Earlier, you said that Wright State needs to be more like ...

University of Michigan, UIUC, UC Berkeley or GA Tech

I'm really not trying to be snarky here, but I just don't know about that stuff.

When I graduated from Dayton's leading high school, I was the only, the single, the one graduate that wasn't going to some ( expensive ) out-of-town school. ( It's ironic that being a graduate of OHS, I would have had the 'cred' to get in to lots of nice schools. )

Going to college and having a great experience wasn't an option. I kept my job and went to WSU. I went four four years and spent $10,000 almost to the penny on tuition and books and the calculated cost of driving my car and riding the bus. The Educational Industrial Complex has seen to it that Millennials will need to pay a lot more.

Since I never considered "fun" schools, or "good" ( I guess ) schools, I never compared and just am too provincial to know about stuff like that. I'm a dork.

When I went back to school in Albuquerque, I also went to the local school for an engineering degree. The school wants to be a great research university, but just can't seem to get there. I don't know if UNM is a part of the "global elite" either, so I can't compare that either.

Would I know it if I saw it? If I went to the campus of one of those universities that WSU needs to be more like, would I know it?

I just assumed that universities got their 'cred' over generations and it wasn't something that anyone could "drive" the university toward.

Cleveland has Case Western. I always assumed that was a great place. I know about MIT. Mostly, I don't know much due to being a dork.