A very bad sign for all but America’s biggest cities

Washington Post ^ | 22 May 2016 | Jim Tankersley

[Lorianne]

Americans in small counties are much less likely to start new businesses, a trend that jeopardizes the economic future of vast swaths of the country. ___ Americans in small towns and rural communities are dramatically less likely to start new businesses than they have been in the past, an unprecedented trend that jeopardizes the economic future of vast swaths of the country.

The recovery from the Great Recession has seen a nationwide slowdown in the creation of new businesses, or start-ups. What growth has occurred has been largely confined to a handful of large and innovative areas, including Silicon Valley in California, New York City and parts of Texas, according to a new analysis of Census Bureau data by the Economic Innovation Group, a bipartisan research and advocacy organization that was founded by the Silicon Valley entrepreneur Sean Parker and small group of investors.

That concentration of start-up activity is unusual, economists say. In the early 1990s recovery, 125 counties combined to generate half the total new business establishments in the country. In this recovery, just 20 counties have generated half the growth.

[exDemMom]

Why do reporters keep insisting on calling this a recovery, when clearly it isn’t?

The “bail-outs” put a lot of pressure on the economy, and we are still reeling under their weight.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

It seems like half the people in my 100,000 population town are running lawn service companies to cut the grass of the other half.

[Jack Hammer]

The proliferation of endless directories of new rules and regulations by government bureaucrats and other flaks looking to pad their bailiwicks and throw up roadblocks may have something to do with it.

[disndat]

What are they talking about?

I see a new taco wagon around here about every week.

[familyop]

The most technically inclined and capable people are being driven away from their own properties by new regulators from the northeast and by NIMBYs. There will indeed be an economic collapse. The following--Democrat and Republican--are not the "makers" they claim to be. For the cause of the problems, they should have a look in the mirror.

OpenSecrets.org
American Fedn of St/Cnty/Munic Employees [State/County/Municipal Employees]
[Total Contributions:] $94,708,977
[To Dems & liberals:] $93,739,954
[To Repubs & Conservs:] $671,755
[Pct to Dems & liberals:] 99%
[Pct to Repubs & Conservs:] 1%

Leviathan (Uncle Sam employs more people than you think)
National Review ^ | 02/03/2011 | Iain Murray
"...nearly 40 million Americans employed in some way by government."

...and pensioners from the same.

America’s Ruling Class — And the Perils of Revolution
http://spectator.org/articles/39326/americas-ruling-class-and-perils-revolution

The Fragmenting of the New Class Elites, or, Downward Mobility
http://volokh.com/2011/10/31/the-fragmenting-of-the-new-class-elites-or-downward-mobility/

Environmentalism and the Leisure Class
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2835601/posts

The New Upper Class and the Real Reason We Dislike Them
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2843575/posts

Are you a member of the political class?
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2010/08/are_you_a_member_of_the_politi.html

Downton’s Class System — and Ours: We have a ruling class that despises the free market and does...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3024119/posts

[soycd]

Not as bad as running out of ammunition when the feral scum comes looting...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVHm47bXhKU

[antidisestablishment]

Lawn service and food trucks have relatively low startup costs. Uber is the fastest growing company in history. Lots of people chasing the same dollars in all of it.

[familyop]

"Americans in small counties are much less likely to start new businesses, a trend that jeopardizes the economic future of vast swaths of the country."

See regulations against builders camping on their own property before building, county zoning ordinances against manufacturing, ordinances against auto repair on residential properties, etc.

NIMBYs deserve every bit of what's coming to them after the defaults.

[familyop]

"It seems like half the people in my 100,000 population town are running lawn service companies to cut the grass of the other half."

That's how the regime of recirculating debt works, you see. Those who mow lawns get their income from those who get their incomes from government. The beautiful part, is that the vicious circle eventually and rapidly gets smaller and smaller, until it pops.

Then no more NIMBYs or regulations. Perfect.

[Timpanagos1]

“In this recovery, just 20 counties have generated half the growth.”

Not all that surprising.

Lots of new business ventures are high tech and those companies are clustered in cities with educates work forces.

[SoCal Pubbie]

I sure haven’t recovered.

[PGR88]

Obama’s war on the middle class.

No one can afford his health plan, his debt, his regulations, and his racial-warfare.

[Timpanagos1]

“See regulations against builders camping on their own property before building, county zoning ordinances against manufacturing, ordinances against auto repair on residential properties, etc.”

Not sure about that.

Most, if not all big cities have much more onerous regulations than small towns and rural areas.

[Moonman62]

Obama’s war on the middle class.

...

Obama’s only the latest. The government’s war against the middle class started 50 years ago.

[Moonman62]

I think WaPo is trying to say we need to Make America Great Again!

[combat_boots]

What the h3ll does WaPo care about anyone who might actually reside in the countryside, where rubes and rednecks VOTE TRUMP? It’s not like we grow lattes.

[PrairieLady2]

Aside from that which has already been mentioned, many small counties have small towns/cities with small populations which can’t support more businesses. And then there are the ‘good ole boys’ who want to be big fish in a small pond. I’ve seen more of THAT than anything.

[familyop]

Thank you for the reply. It's a good point. But there are not enough manufacturing efforts starting in those cities, either, unless American-"based" manufacturing on foreign soil is included.

Although it isn't pretty to stylish folks, much of the ingenuity is in small towns and rural areas. In my opinion, many more of us need to be joining efforts like the following, but with more self-educated and vo-tech technologists (hand-eye coordination developed from repairs in response to dire needs) instead of more "interns."

Marcin Jakubowski - The Open Source Economy | @marioninstitute
https://youtu.be/MIIzogiUHFY?t=35s

Open Source Ecology
http://opensourceecology.org/

[familyop]

"Most, if not all big cities have much more onerous regulations than small towns and rural areas."

By the way, I live in one of the more remote and sparsely populated counties in our country (on the CO Rockies). It's as regulated as many of the largest cities and more so than many others.