Back in the Carter years, things were bad - but you could still find a job in NJ, there was activity going on.
This is now bad on a whole different scale.
No one wants to move here, so most houses can’t sell, just certain highly-desired ones.
People are trapped here. Job situation real bad since 2008.
It is BAD, but still grinding along, people scraping around and finding a way to get by.
NJ has world class access to:
seaports
railheads
airports
transportation and highway system
data networks
finance
pharma
insurance
personal wealth
nyc
genteel suburbs
elite horse industry
elite golf
some of the best retail areas in the nation
workforce - blue collar, professional, scientific, manufacturing, etc., etc., etc.,etc. - basically, you name it, you got it.
all just 80 miles from nyc to delaware river (PA) or about the same from Philly to the Jersey Shore area.
all of this is at a huge discount to it’s close neighbor, nyc.
I’m probably leaving a lot out.
How bad do you have to be to mess up a golden goose of this order ?
It’s practically impossible to mess it up, but somehow NJ’s government is corrupt enough to pull it off.
You make a very compelling argument as to why New Jersey should be the economic “Texas” of the northeast. Instead, it resembles a giant version of Detroit and it all boils down to their leftist politics. I always marvel when I hear union leaders lamenting the loss of industrial and manufacturing jobs in northeastern and some midwestern states, and they have no clue as to why. Consider yourself lucky not to live in a blue state these days.
As a resident of NJ for over 50 years until I moved out in’06, I agree with all you described about NJ.
Excellent summary!