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There are jobs. You need to be able to pass a drug test.
Yeah, that is problem up in my parts. There are jobs advertised everywhere, most not the kind you can support a family on by its own, but enough income for these parts to piece together with a partner or roommate to live comfortably. The drug scourge has wrecked the work force, making them disinterested or unable to pass the test.
+1. That post is full of misinformation at best, outright stereotyping and bigotry at worst.
Boo friggin hoo. Care to point out hwhat the actual misinformation is? You seem to blinded by pride and love for your own state to come to terms with it being the worst in the country. Sometimes hwhat you need is an outsiders perspective.
Also, Connecticut and Vermont have gained population in the last 10 years. I'll admit I did not know Illinois was dropping in population though. Regardless, all three of those states are wealthier than the US average (connecticut being the 4th or 5th richest in America) and all three have very diverse and thriving economies unlike WV.
Boo friggin hoo. Care to point out hwhat the actual misinformation is? You seem to blinded by pride and love for your own state to come to terms with it being the worst in the country. Sometimes hwhat you need is an outsiders perspective.
Also, Connecticut and Vermont have gained population in the last 10 years. I'll admit I did not know Illinois was dropping in population though. Regardless, all three of those states are wealthier than the US average (connecticut being the 4th or 5th richest in America) and all three have very diverse and thriving economies unlike WV.
No need for the fake outrage, I'm not from WV, nor do I live there now. I am a close neighbor who appreciates what the state, and its people have to offer.
The "misinformation" is the list of tired old stereotypes you trot out to describe and define the residents of the state. I live right next to WV, know countless people from there. None are married to their first cousin, they have their own teeth, none live in trailers, none drink moonshine except the fancy craft distilled type. If your experience with West Virginians is like you describe, I have to question, and express concern about, who you choose to spend your time with.
No need for the fake outrage, I'm not from WV, nor do I live there now. I am a close neighbor who appreciates what the state, and its people have to offer.
The "misinformation" is the list of tired old stereotypes you trot out to describe and define the residents of the state. I live right next to WV, know countless people from there. None are married to their first cousin, they have their own teeth, none live in trailers, none drink moonshine except the fancy craft distilled type. If your experience with West Virginians is like you describe, I have to question, and express concern about, who you choose to spend your time with.
Fair enough. Not from WV never lived there either but driven thru many times. Even if moonshine, toothlessness, and incest is rare, there are still probably more rednecks per capita in WV than any other state. Reactionary social views, meth/opoid use, mobile homes, and teen pregnancy is still quite common.
I dont see how you can possibly disagree with WV politicians only caring about coal and not caring about the needs of WV citizenry and how to diversify the ecomony.
West Virginia and New Mexico are considered the poorest states in the nation. The capital Charleston has little to no opportunities.
I am not putting the state down, but I am curious what people think the economic opportunities should be invested in. Education? Health care?
The state is in a downward spiral.
Money is being concentrated in large metro areas, and of course West Virginia's big problem in that regard is it doesn't have any. The closest you have is Pittsburgh, and as best I can tell, its economic influence maybe barely seeps into some of the border area near the panhandle.
The best hope for rural areas these days is to draw the people with money out of the cities via tourism, but that's not the most stable way to support an economy. I guess unstable economy is better than no economy.
Boo friggin hoo. Care to point out hwhat the actual misinformation is? You seem to blinded by pride and love for your own state to come to terms with it being the worst in the country. Sometimes hwhat you need is an outsiders perspective.
Also, Connecticut and Vermont have gained population in the last 10 years. I'll admit I did not know Illinois was dropping in population though. Regardless, all three of those states are wealthier than the US average (connecticut being the 4th or 5th richest in America) and all three have very diverse and thriving economies unlike WV.
Connecticut and Vermont have lost population according to the US Census, linked to above.
You didn't know people were leaving Illinois? You can hardly go a mile here in Indianapolis without seeing Illinois plates. They aren't moving here for the unions, free college, wind farms, legal weed or boondoggles you suggest. They're certainly not leaving a thriving economy.
I don't know what the answer is to West Virginia's problems, but I wouldn't emulate the above-mentioned states.
Boo friggin hoo. Care to point out hwhat the actual misinformation is? You seem to blinded by pride and love for your own state to come to terms with it being the worst in the country. Sometimes hwhat you need is an outsiders perspective.
Also, Connecticut and Vermont have gained population in the last 10 years. I'll admit I did not know Illinois was dropping in population though. Regardless, all three of those states are wealthier than the US average (connecticut being the 4th or 5th richest in America) and all three have very diverse and thriving economies unlike WV.
There are enormous income disparities in Connecticut, with the averages skewed heavily by very wealthy people clustered near the NYC line and commuting there for work. Much of the state is at least as poor as West Virginia. Same goes for Virginia by the way. Move away from the DC suburbs, and wealth is not readily apparent. I'm not sure where you are getting your population figures, but check again for the losses and growth in Connecticut. In general, the Northeast states have not faired well during the past couple decades.
From what I can tell, not all of West Virginia is losing population, and certainly not all of it is poor.
Also, Vermont is not especially wealthy. New Hampshire, on the other hand is quite well fixed.
Money is being concentrated in large metro areas, and of course West Virginia's big problem in that regard is it doesn't have any. The closest you have is Pittsburgh, and as best I can tell, its economic influence maybe barely seeps into some of the border area near the panhandle.
The best hope for rural areas these days is to draw the people with money out of the cities via tourism, but that's not the most stable way to support an economy. I guess unstable economy is better than no economy.
While I agree that the areas near large population centers are doing much better than other areas, I don't know where you are getting your information. From what I can tell, the Eastern Panhandle is booming from DC growth, and all of northern West Virginia is getting influence from Pittsburgh. There is a major research concentration in Morgantown, a growing healthcare sector, and lots of oil and gas money flowing around there. You are correct that West Virginia per se does not have large population centers, but there is definitely proximity in the northern and eastern portions.
There are enormous income disparities in Connecticut, with the averages skewed heavily by very wealthy people clustered near the NYC line and commuting there for work. Much of the state is at least as poor as West Virginia. Same goes for Virginia by the way. Move away from the DC suburbs, and wealth is not readily apparent. I'm not sure where you are getting your population figures, but check again for the losses and growth in Connecticut. In general, the Northeast states have not faired well during the past couple decades.
From what I can tell, not all of West Virginia is losing population, and certainly not all of it is poor.
Also, Vermont is not especially wealthy. New Hampshire, on the other hand is quite well fixed.
I agree that much of CT's wealth comes from NYC. Fairfield County comprises almost 30% of the state's population and is basically one giant upper-class suburb of NYC. Yes, there are many poor areas in Hartford, Waterbury, and Bridgeport too. Though the claim that most of CT is just like WV is just absurd. For starters, out of any state, Connecticut has the lowest percentage of white people in poverty. Guess which one has the highest percentage? West <<BLEEP>> Virginia. It also has the 2nd lowest amount of rural poverty out of any state (with NJ being the lowest). Even rural parts of CT that are not near NYC range from middle class to wealthy, while nearly all of WV's rural towns suffer from abject poverty. The Connecticut economy has always been a service economy with financial, insurance, tech, and medical being the main sources of revenue; unlike WV it is not a manual labor/heavy industry based economy and is very diversified. CT also has a lot of prestigious universities while WV has zero. CT seems to be losing population over the last few years because the birth rate has been falling and immigration from central America has slowed, while WV has been losing population for decades because of its bleak economy.
I agree that my state of VA has some poor, backwater areas outside of WV. The mountain towns of Front Royal, Luray, Woodstock, Shenandoah, and Bluefield seem quite poor. but VA's poverty is nothing compared to WV. Even in rural, coal-dominated areas of the state, the highest level of poverty for a county in VA is less than 20%, while WV's MacDowell County has a poverty rate of 37%. Part of that is because VA learned how to at least somewhat diversify the economy even in rural, once coal-dominated areas. I hate to play the politics card but maybe VA being a blue state has something to do with it being less poor, especially in rural places.
Last edited by mensaguy; 11-16-2020 at 08:26 AM..
Reason: Unacceptable language.
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