Posted on 09/04/2014 7:34:03 AM PDT by C19fan
A funny-sad back-and-forth appeared in the pages of the Hartford Courant last month.
It started when one Christopher Edge wrote into the letters section to say he had had it and was moving out in a brief tirade entitled “Farewell, Connecticut.” More positive residents then chimed in with their support for the Nutmeg State. “Running away is not the solution,” chided one Patricia Karwoski.
But what problems could Edge possibly be trying to duck by bailing? Who would run away from Connecticut in the first place? It seems a state not afflicted, a lovely, hilly green hamlet nestled between Boston and New York. It has a low crime rate. It has stellar schools. It has the highest per-capita income of the 50 states. It’s got America’s best pizza, for God’s sake.*
Edge complained primarily about the state’s political incompetency and its “freeloaders.” But there’s a much deeper malaise afflicting Connecticut and its angry letter-writers. While there is great wealth, there is stagnant growth. Along with high incomes has come increasing poverty. Amid those million-dollar mansions, the middle class has eroded.
In short, Connecticut has somehow managed to become both the richest and worst economy in America. And what’s worse, America has started to look more and more like Connecticut.
(Excerpt) Read more at nymag.com ...
“It has the highest per-capita income of the 50 states. It’s got America’s best pizza, for God’s sake.*”
This invalidates the credibility of the author.
"...and then I asked myself, 'where would people never notice a town full of robots?' Connecticut!"
- Claire Wellington (played by Glenn Close), from the film remake of The Stepford Wives"I'm in hell. Connecticut is the fifth ring of hell."
- Gus the cat burglar (played by Denis Leary), from the film The Ref
Except for a two stint in Chicago, I’ve lived in CT for 55 years. In the last 20 it has driven itself straight into the ground as fast and as hard as it can. We have about 2-3 years left here and then it’s on to VA. I’ll miss the pizza but not much else.
How many minorities are there in Connecticut? The more blacks and Hispanics, the more extreme poor, the more it skews the average. If there are a great many people there with traditional middle-class jobs who are struggling, then there’s a problem. But if the “poor” we’re talking about are either chronically unemployed i.e. lazy or the types of jobs they can do are only minimum wage jobs, then there is no solution.
I’ve eaten pizza in Chicago, New York, Italy and Quebec. Pepe’s, Sally’s and Modern put them all to shame; no possible comparison.
When travelling south from NH, we specifically avoid entering MA or CT and wish we could avoid NY, due to the draconian anti gun laws and infestation of liberals.
Never had Pepe’s have you?
CT is around 70% non-Hispanic white. But the minorities are concentrated in hell holes like Bridgeport, New Haven, and Hartford.
The question is, at what point with the U shaped economy will CT fulfill Maggie Thatcher’s take on Socialism and lose the ability to financially support the poor with the earnings of the rich? They’re headed in that direction, but not quite there yet.
With any luck, one of those proprietors will also get fed up and move to a different state as well. And keep making the same pizza.
The rest of the state has a problem. The town I was brought up in, like so many, is a mess from building booms going back to the '60s with no responsible zoning. Manufacturing, farming, and the insurance industry have never been replaced, and the state evaded resonsibility by having that casino revenue. Every time I go back, there seems to be a larger poor and/or immigrant class and less to do for everyday folks.
When I grew up, we actually knew we were fortunate to live in such a wonderful place, and this was a small working class town at that time. Now, it's painful to return and see the mess that area is in.
Pick any Central American country, and the wealth demographic looks identical.
CT has the economy of Mexico. Very, very rich people and the poor. The middle class have become economic prisoners, trapped in their mortgages and their kid’s college bills.
I’m in CT and fit your description precisely. Really nice salary and all, but I’m broke. Taxes are a big hit.
Foley may beat Malloy in November (most polls show Foley with a 3-5 point lead), but with an overwhelmingly leftist legislature and a liberal suburban soccer mom culture (let alone the minorities and illegals) there is little Foley can accomplish. Remember, in CT the Marxist beat Romney 57-41. As well, Foley doesn’t strike me as a revolutionary type who will shake things up (aka, RINO). Expect more of the same.
Exactly! The more taxation imposed on a population is the stomping on the economic engine's throat. Both personal and business taxation. When it's both at once it's a free-fall locomotive to depression.
The middle class is being made poor by moochers voting for wealth transfers. What no bonehead journalist has yet discovered is that non-cash benefits are not counted in poverty statistics. People can be getting food stamps, free medical care, free or subsidized housing, free education (such as it is) and 3 meals a day plus take home food from the schools, and free everything else PLUS have a small cash income PLUS make money under the table, and still be counted as living in poverty! It’s a scam.
(sorry for the giant run-on sentence)
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