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This is the latest underwhelming tourism campaign. It's from the RI Foundation. Graphics kind of remind me of a RI Red....
One of RI's larger industries is advertising. I think this could be improved- even the motto "It's all in our backyard" is pretty ho hum.
Granted, this is not state sponsored- do we even have one at this point?
Socialist ideals. Think small; think people, those who don't look toward government for their basic needs; those that EXPECT and DEMAND accountability. RI doesn't appear to have leaders but an engrained system that is allowed to role on.
Socialist ideals. Think small; think people, those who don't look toward government for their basic needs; those that EXPECT and DEMAND accountability. RI doesn't appear to have leaders but an engrained system that is allowed to role on.
For the most part I agree. However, the state and local governments in VT do provide a definite social net for the basic needs of the poor and handicapped..
One thing that makes it tough to fix RI from within is that its size makes it easy to leave -- why fight it when you can just move?
As an example, my wife has had some involvement in helping parents of RI schoolkids with disabilities -- kids who need "IEP"s or 'individual education plans'. RI has a pretty lousy record in educating such kids, much worse than other New England states, but there's not that much pressure on school boards to do better. What my wife saw was that parents with any resources and gumption would almost always decide it was easier to move a few miles to Mass. or CT, while still keeping the same job, friends, church, activities, etc., than it was to bang their head against the wall trying to get what they needed out of their RI town school system. If they faced the same situation in suburban LA or Austin TX, where moving states would mean going 500 miles or more, that would have been a much tougher choice.
It's true there is much cross traffic between neighboring states. However, I have to admit that I can't see how local public school budgets can accommodate the recent trend of so many students getting IEPs. So many seem to be demanding individual treatment that it has become a huge issue for the schools that already absorb so much budget. A well intended federal mandate to protect the physically handicapped has become very broad. Perhaps larger states can absorb such trends better.
But cross traffic goes both ways since many live here and commute to Boston and Connecticut (especially Groton/NL) for work. Sales taxes are higher here and it's really easy to cross the border to buy larger items- thus the recent proposals to lower the sales tax to be more competitive.
With a state with all the absolutely premium assets (some of the best beaches in New England, one of the top Mid-sized cities in Providence in the country, some of the best summer locations in the country in Newport, arguably on of the top 3-5 food cities in Providence in America, a wealth of history, some of the best architecture/historic homes, etc...) a lot of people take it for granted.
I've been to a lot of states and when i see some places that are consistently touted as great places to live (ones that i have visited and have family living there) i just shake my head. A perfect example is a place like Arizona. No offense to my family who lives there but living in a place that has a cheaper cost of living in terms of taxes, property values, etc... is not worth the compromise of a non-existent culture (quality museums, arts scene, high quality place to see plays/musicals, top-notch food, etc...). I also don't want to live in a place where every house is the same. We joke with my family not to get drunk before you go home because you won't be able to pick out your house). Oh, not to mention that it's an endless array of strip malls and all the same corporate stores everywhere. Now my family who lives there does not care much about culture/art/architecture or an thriving livable downtown and eating at Chipotle/Panera all the time so Phoenix is a great fit BUT when arguments are made for places to live some of those key things that make RI so rich in those terms are too often overlooked.
Sure, RI has some higher taxes, old industrial economy still in the process of re-defining itself, corrupt officials, and an old infrastructure that dates back hundreds of years but if that's the only thing some people focus and dwell on then i feel as if they're either completely missing out on some huge Quality of Life assets or they simply don't value so much of what RI has to offer.
Having said that RI is clearly not for everyone (as we can see on the boards all the time) but this state has so much to offer that even MA or surrounding states cannot match and residents should recognize that more often.
With a state with all the absolutely premium assets (some of the best beaches in New England, one of the top Mid-sized cities in Providence in the country, some of the best summer locations in the country in Newport, arguably on of the top 3-5 food cities in Providence in America, a wealth of history, some of the best architecture/historic homes, etc...) a lot of people take it for granted.
I've been to a lot of states and when i see some places that are consistently touted as great places to live (ones that i have visited and have family living there) i just shake my head. A perfect example is a place like Arizona. No offense to my family who lives there but living in a place that has a cheaper cost of living in terms of taxes, property values, etc... is not worth the compromise of a non-existent culture (quality museums, arts scene, high quality place to see plays/musicals, top-notch food, etc...). I also don't want to live in a place where every house is the same. We joke with my family not to get drunk before you go home because you won't be able to pick out your house). Oh, not to mention that it's an endless array of strip malls and all the same corporate stores everywhere. Now my family who lives there does not care much about culture/art/architecture or an thriving livable downtown and eating at Chipotle/Panera all the time so Phoenix is a great fit BUT when arguments are made for places to live some of those key things that make RI so rich in those terms are too often overlooked.
Sure, RI has some higher taxes, old industrial economy still in the process of re-defining itself, corrupt officials, and an old infrastructure that dates back hundreds of years but if that's the only thing some people focus and dwell on then i feel as if they're either completely missing out on some huge Quality of Life assets or they simply don't value so much of what RI has to offer.
Having said that RI is clearly not for everyone (as we can see on the boards all the time) but this state has so much to offer that even MA or surrounding states cannot match and residents should recognize that more often.
The entire east coast has incredible beaches and awesome retirement towns. Have you ever been to Cape Cod? Ogunquit Maine? southeast MA beaches? Horseneck, Round Hill? Padanaram? ; further down the coast: Virginia Beach? NC's Outer Banks? FL beaches? Key West? Comparing AZ to RI is apples to green beans.
With a state with all the absolutely premium assets (some of the best beaches in New England, one of the top Mid-sized cities in Providence in the country, some of the best summer locations in the country in Newport, arguably on of the top 3-5 food cities in Providence in America, a wealth of history, some of the best architecture/historic homes, etc...) a lot of people take it for granted.
I've been to a lot of states and when i see some places that are consistently touted as great places to live (ones that i have visited and have family living there) i just shake my head. A perfect example is a place like Arizona. No offense to my family who lives there but living in a place that has a cheaper cost of living in terms of taxes, property values, etc... is not worth the compromise of a non-existent culture (quality museums, arts scene, high quality place to see plays/musicals, top-notch food, etc...). I also don't want to live in a place where every house is the same. We joke with my family not to get drunk before you go home because you won't be able to pick out your house). Oh, not to mention that it's an endless array of strip malls and all the same corporate stores everywhere. Now my family who lives there does not care much about culture/art/architecture or an thriving livable downtown and eating at Chipotle/Panera all the time so Phoenix is a great fit BUT when arguments are made for places to live some of those key things that make RI so rich in those terms are too often overlooked.
Sure, RI has some higher taxes, old industrial economy still in the process of re-defining itself, corrupt officials, and an old infrastructure that dates back hundreds of years but if that's the only thing some people focus and dwell on then i feel as if they're either completely missing out on some huge Quality of Life assets or they simply don't value so much of what RI has to offer.
Having said that RI is clearly not for everyone (as we can see on the boards all the time) but this state has so much to offer that even MA or surrounding states cannot match and residents should recognize that more often.
Great Post! RI is too often under appreciated for what it offers. It truly is the biggest little state in the union.
....I can't see how local public school budgets can accommodate the recent trend of so many students getting IEPs. ...Perhaps larger states can absorb such trends better.
You may be right about larger states. The bottom line is that school spending per capita isn't any less in Rhode Island than in MA or CT, but those states manage to get significantly better outcomes. That isn't an artifact of RI having more poor students, MA and CT schools easily beat RI even when you compare like with like: RI poor students with MA poor students, rich with rich , IEP or ESL students with IEP/ESL, etc.
Whether it is better economies of scale, better institutional arrangements (more consolidation?), culture, or what have you, the neighboring states simply get more bang for the buck out of their schools and that's something that matters greatly in family and company location decisions -- especially with the states so close and small that they are basically in an overlapping labor market.
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