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As beautiful as this state is, it has the most tainted history of all the United States, and Mississippi is not even the worst at being bad. How did this awful reputation get tagged to just Mississippi?
If I think hard enough, California, New York, Chicago, Miami and even Houston had actual bloody riots since their founding into the United States but not Mississippi. You'd think those places would be avoided before Mississippi.
so HOW did Mississippi sink so low to become the ultimate bottom feeder of the United States?
Dont know and don't care, I am in MS right now and I'm having a great time. Sure it has its problems too but no point in dwelling in the past, you cannot move forward if you dwell.
Dont know and don't care, I am in MS right now and I'm having a great time. Sure it has its problems too but no point in dwelling in the past, you cannot move forward if you dwell.
I'm in New Hope, just outside Columbus.
Understood. but it's not dwelling. it's called
developing an understanding as to why our beloved state is being blackballed and called names by the rest of the country.
Would you say a Paleontogist was wasting his time dwelling on digging up dinosaur bones?
probably not. then why here?
You might not care about the reputation of Mississippi but I do.
I have distant family living in Mississippi. Like everywhere else, MS has both its own good and bad points. However, some places get bashed more than others. For an example, Chicago and several northern cities had bloody racist riots and still has one of the highest crime rates in the country; however, people tend to overlook those because Chicago itself is very well-known, global city with job opportunties, diversifying economy, and top-notch Northwestern University.
I'm not saying that Chicago is better than MS; you have to admit that MS greatly pales in comparsion to Chicago so people do not take MS seriously. For those people who never visit MS, all they know about MS is what happened in history books with Civil Rights, Philadelphia murders of three young men, Freedom Bus Ride to Jackson, and KKK activities along with the landslide victory from 2000 election to keep the racist state flag. I understand why MS is perhaps one of the states with bad reputation even though I don't agree with what people said about MS. They are just stereotypes. However, I still think MS could have move forward more quickly than the slow progress the state is experiencing right now while being more open to new changes. That's my only complaint.
I have to agree with MitchArk87, except for the flag part. The flag is NOT racist. I lived there for two years and coming from the northeast I was taken back at certain things. All in all MS is slow to move ahead and live in the "is" and not the "was." To many, not all though, the civil war is still going on. I've seen the "Free The South" Bumper stickers. If I had a dollar for everytime someone said; "You must be a Yankee," judging by the way I talk, I'd be rich by now. While southerners do have more hospitality, try getting a job or having a business as "Yankee" and it's a whole different ball game. I do know Madison County schools are very good and have heard good things about Rankin County schools, but education overall sucks. How can it be good with average teacher pay around $25,000. A state worker told me the drop-out rate is 25% on a state average, but in some areas is as high as 50%. I know of several instances of high school football players getting scholarships to Division I schools, but couldn't bring their grades up to get in. Big meth problem in the country side.. Jackson is a dumpster fire out of control and the only to way to re-vibe that city is to bulldoze everything but the Capital, the arena, and Talimara Hall and start over again. On the positive I will say that women in the south are much easier to talk to. Also, I lived in Ridgeland, right next to Madison, and Madison is the most beautiful town! Absolutely loved Madison!!! The country-side around Madison and Yazoo City is nice too. I would not say the rest of the state is beautiful, it's mostly barren fields with pine forests. The country-side of MS pales in comparison to Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, western Virginia, and eastern Tenessee. Politics are very corrupt too, although not as bad as Lousianna. That's great that you are proud of your state and concerned about it's reputation, but as an outsider, that's my honest opinion.
I have distant family living in Mississippi. Like everywhere else, MS has both its own good and bad points. However, some places get bashed more than others. For an example, Chicago and several northern cities had bloody racist riots and still has one of the highest crime rates in the country; however, people tend to overlook those because Chicago itself is very well-known, global city with job opportunties, diversifying economy, and top-notch Northwestern University.
I'm not saying that Chicago is better than MS; you have to admit that MS greatly pales in comparsion to Chicago so people do not take MS seriously. For those people who never visit MS, all they know about MS is what happened in history books with Civil Rights, Philadelphia murders of three young men, Freedom Bus Ride to Jackson, and KKK activities along with the landslide victory from 2000 election to keep the racist state flag. I understand why MS is perhaps one of the states with bad reputation even though I don't agree with what people said about MS. They are just stereotypes. However, I still think MS could have move forward more quickly than the slow progress the state is experiencing right now while being more open to new changes. That's my only complaint.
I agree. Many Mississippians are content with complacency - which in some areas can be ok, but many aspects of our general culture need to evolve and much more quickly. Many states have that one city or several cities that act as a spokesperson/leader for the state: Illinois has Chicago, New York has NYC, Georgia has Atlanta, etc. Mississippi doesn't have that voice - at least not yet. The people of Mississippi need to realize that we all need to stand behind our central business hub, Jackson - which also happens to be the state capitol. Investing in this city will greatly improve our state's image and it will promote our state's assets which in turn will improve our economy, create more job opportunities, and increase the quality of life.
I agree. Many Mississippians are content with complacency - which in some areas can be ok, but many aspects of our general culture need to evolve and much more quickly. Many states have that one city or several cities that act as a spokesperson/leader for the state: Illinois has Chicago, New York has NYC, Georgia has Atlanta, etc. Mississippi doesn't have that voice - at least not yet. The people of Mississippi need to realize that we all need to stand behind our central business hub, Jackson - which also happens to be the state capitol. Investing in this city will greatly improve our state's image and it will promote our state's assets which in turn will improve our economy, create more job opportunities, and increase the quality of life.
I agree we need to all get behind Jackson. One of the things that I really dislike is that North Mississippi identifies more with Memphis than Jackson. I understand why, proximity and everything, but that is one third of the state that is not behind Jackson. I also agree Mississippi needs to be more proactive in promoting itself, and trying to improve.
I think since Jackson doesn't have a unique name it gets even less spotlight. For example, everyone knows there is only one Chicago, New York City, etc. but there are 20 different towns or cities named Jackson throughout the country.
I understand there isn't much going on RIGHT NOW in Mississippi as for as contributions to our culture, but in the past Mississippi has contributed heavily to the medical field with the first successful heart, lung, and autokidney transplants, as well as the Textbook of Medical Physiology by Mississippian Dr. Arthur C. Guyton, used as a teaching tool around the world, and the premier Medical Physiology textbook.
Contributions to music include blues and rock and roll, both of which shape our music as we know it. Mississippian Robert Pittman founded MTV.
I won't write a novel about our contributions to literature, sports, television, etc. but you get the point.
If we have contributed so much in the not so distant past, maybe we will contribute again when our society goes through the next big change. Maybe it's just my thinking, but I don't underestimate people.
OneJackson, i'm not disagreeing with you or inviting a back and forth competition, just discussing.
I agree we need to all get behind Jackson. One of the things that I really dislike is that North Mississippi identifies more with Memphis than Jackson. I understand why, proximity and everything, but that is one third of the state that is not behind Jackson. I also agree Mississippi needs to be more proactive in promoting itself, and trying to improve.
I think since Jackson doesn't have a unique name it gets even less spotlight. For example, everyone knows there is only one Chicago, New York City, etc. but there are 20 different towns or cities named Jackson throughout the country.
I understand there isn't much going on RIGHT NOW in Mississippi as for as contributions to our culture, but in the past Mississippi has contributed heavily to the medical field with the first successful heart, lung, and autokidney transplants, as well as the Textbook of Medical Physiology by Mississippian Dr. Arthur C. Guyton, used as a teaching tool around the world, and the premier Medical Physiology textbook.
Contributions to music include blues and rock and roll, both of which shape our music as we know it. Mississippian Robert Pittman founded MTV.
I won't write a novel about our contributions to literature, sports, television, etc. but you get the point.
If we have contributed so much in the not so distant past, maybe we will contribute again when our society goes through the next big change. Maybe it's just my thinking, but I don't underestimate people.
OneJackson, i'm not disagreeing with you or inviting a back and forth competition, just discussing.
I wasn't saying that Mississippi hasn't contributed anything - in fact I have used many of the same facts that you just posted in past discussions with people who think that Mississippi is not capable of contributing. I was referring to our culture in the sense of the mentality of many Mississippians, specifically the older generations [40+] and the ones they teach. If you look at our state government, you can see that the average age of our representatives is well above 40 [which is normal, but I'm just trying to clarify the mentality of that generation]. Complacency has become a given for many of our citizens - not all, but many, and it exists in every aspect of the state, from state government all the way down to the small town city councils.
I am the type who is frequently trying to rediscover myself and I try to focus on different perspectives in order to find innovative solutions. This is not to say that I forget all that I have learned from the past, but I know that eventually all things can improve. A well known phrase in Mississippi is 'if it ain't broke, don' fix it.' Well for one, 'ain't' ain't a word. And two, just because something may be working now doesn't mean it is working in the most efficient way nor does it mean that it will continue working the same forever. Imagine if Henry Ford had never started the assembly line. Sure, he could have built cars one by one by hand, but look at how much more the Ford Motor Company accomplished by creating the assembly line. Mississippi needs to focus on the things that will push us forward and not keep us stagnant, and this statement is applicable to all situations - no matter is too small. Something as simple as cleaning the streets and sidewalks or something as big as new legislation that allows for more job opportunities - they can all take us much further than doing nothing at all.
I have distant family living in Mississippi. Like everywhere else, MS has both its own good and bad points. However, some places get bashed more than others. For an example, Chicago and several northern cities had bloody racist riots and still has one of the highest crime rates in the country; however, people tend to overlook those because Chicago itself is very well-known, global city with job opportunties, diversifying economy, and top-notch Northwestern University.
I'm not saying that Chicago is better than MS; you have to admit that MS greatly pales in comparsion to Chicago so people do not take MS seriously. For those people who never visit MS, all they know about MS is what happened in history books with Civil Rights, Philadelphia murders of three young men, Freedom Bus Ride to Jackson, and KKK activities along with the landslide victory from 2000 election to keep the racist state flag. I understand why MS is perhaps one of the states with bad reputation even though I don't agree with what people said about MS. They are just stereotypes. However, I still think MS could have move forward more quickly than the slow progress the state is experiencing right now while being more open to new changes. That's my only complaint.
I see. so Chicago's ability to overshadow their ills with more good helps the City's reputation. makes sense to me.
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