Are we about to be turning blue? (Phoenix, Mesa: 2015, crime rates)

[flint8ball]

Yep military spending is way too high also. But that's a legitimate role of federal gov't at least. Needs to be cut regardless.

[flint8ball]

It sucks that wanting to cut military spending is a dog whistle for not caring about our troops or being some sort of commie.

[yukon]

LOL. Arizona is definitely purple. We have an $11 hr minimum wage with annual increases, mandatory employer provided sick pay, expanded medicaid coverage, felons can vote when they finish serving their time, just to start with. AZ may be fiscally conservative, and it may vote red on national elections, but it's not socially conservative.

[FirebirdCamaro1220]

Originally Posted by veritased

Do not let liberals get a toe hold and infect AZ with their progressive notions.
AZ will be ruined like they did to California with a decade.
And AZ does not have the economic engine of Silicon Valley to prop it up.

I'm doing my part to get as many common sense people over here.

If a Republican majority here did to the Democrats what the Democrat Majority did to Republicans in California, the AZ Blues would be extremely unhappy.

I've lived here since 2001, originally from NY. And I know what it was like when it was still uber red around here. It sucked. I like that it's getting more moderate

[Bondurant]

A few years ago the only party losing more registered voters than the GOP was Democrats. Donations to the GOP being down aren't necessarily telling of support. Especially when the donations to other parties aren't used as a comparison.

[veritased]

Originally Posted by FirebirdCamaro1220

I've lived here since 2001, originally from NY. And I know what it was like when it was still uber red around here. It sucked. I like that it's getting more moderate

What was it that you didn't like ? I'm curious.

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by veritased

What was it that you didn't like ? I'm curious.

Phoenix used to be a wasteland with nice but boring suburbs. Now? It’s made great strides, built a light rail, expanded college campuses, improved night life, walkability, and improved its economy from real estate to tech and other sectors. Tempe has also exploded and is another liberal area.

The only things 2001 Phoenix had on current Phoenix is less people and it was a little more green in the core.

But I’ve lived here for a long time (too long honestly) and current Phoenix is probably the best it’s been since it was a much smaller metro.

[smpliving]

I remember as a kid in the 1970s, my aunt from Seattle visited Phoenix and told us what a dump it was with trash everywhere.

[FirebirdCamaro1220]

Originally Posted by veritased

What was it that you didn't like ? I'm curious.

JG summed it up pretty good in post #47

[AZ Manager]

Originally Posted by JGMotorsport64

Phoenix used to be a wasteland with nice but boring suburbs. Now? It’s made great strides, built a light rail, expanded college campuses, improved night life, walkability, and improved its economy from real estate to tech and other sectors. Tempe has also exploded and is another liberal area.

The only things 2001 Phoenix had on current Phoenix is less people and it was a little more green in the core.

But I’ve lived here for a long time (too long honestly) and current Phoenix is probably the best it’s been since it was a much smaller metro.

Most of the Phoenix economy is unchanged since 2001, the biggest sector is still construction with tech at under half the size of construction. Construction, retail, and manufacturing are a third of the Phoenix job market for males. Construction and tech don't show up for the female numbers where healthcare and retail make up a third for them. Tech is barely a blip, the metro is a service and construction/real estate based economy and that won't change anytime soon.

Phoenix has a crime and unemployment problem, similar to Tempe and Mesa. The unemployment rate for the City of Phoenix is above the national average, around 5%. The crime rate is also quite a bit higher too, even the Maryvale area has a lower crime rate than downtown. For comparison Scottsdale, Peoria, Chandler have unemployment rates around 3.5% and crime rates around half of Phoenix. Even Surprise, a city with a very high unemployment rate, has a much lower crime rate than Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa.