Posted on 09/01/2010 9:31:43 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
A city does not die when its last resident moves away. Death happens when municipalities lose the industries and vital populations that made them important cities.
The economy has evolved so much since the middle of the 20th Century that many cities that were among the largest and most vibrant in America have collapsed. Some have lost more than half of their residents. Others have lost the businesses that made them important centers of finance, manufacturing, and commerce.
Most of America’s Ten Dead Cities were once major manufacturing hubs and others were important ports or financial services centers. The downfall of one city, New Orleans, began in the 1970s, but was accelerated by Hurricane Katrina.
Notably, the rise of inexpensive manufacturing in Japan destroyed the ability of the industrial cities on this list to effectively compete in the global marketplace. Foreign business activity and US government policy were two of the three major blows that caused the downfall of these cities. The third was the labor movement and its demands for higher compensation which ballooned the costs of manufacturing in many of these cities as well.
24/7 Wall St. looked at a number of sources in order to select the list. One was the US Census Bureau’s list of largest cities by population by decade from 1950 to 2000 with estimates for 2007. Detroit, for example, had 1.9 million people in 1950 and was the fifth largest city in the nation. By 2000, the figure was 951,000. The city was not even on the top ten list in 2007.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
“We also have a lot of social conservitive(ish) police and fire employees that want free market benefits from the things and services they buy, but not in the taxpayer extracted field they work in, which I understand....”
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Yes, the double standard exists and is frustrating.
They want the economic miracles of a free market WalMart or Sam’s Club, but do not want to face the disciplinary rigor of that same marketplace when it comes to their highly cushioned government and quasi-government employment.
Yes, even us stalwart “social conservatives” can recognize economic hypocrisy.
Those higher taxes you pay for food will allow the grocery store to pay higher wages. Think of the prosperity that will ensue if we only tax food highly enough.
It’s not just you pinging folks to a thread you have interest in. It’s your pinging folks over to a thread where you’re getting your ass handed to you that seems rather girlie like.
Then you try to cast this as me belonging on ‘Hello Kitty Online’. If that applied to either of us, it would be you.
I know that little ditty made sense to you, but I don’t see it applying to international trade, trillions in economic activity that has left our nation, and tens of millions of people who have lost their jobs.
Well we just need to treat our mature industries like they were infants I guess.
Ponzi scheme for the well-connected
Meanwhile at a table far far away - But od course that is the main purpose of government anyway - preserve the capital and station of the well connected, by crowding out access to capital. I mean really, freedom is so overated. Barak - would you please pass the caviar?
In any case, let's get back on topic: regarding your yet-undefined concept of "nullification," it appears that you have strayed from arguing in favor of protectionism and into arguing in favor of a closed economy. Do you have any examples of closed economies that have performed particularly well?
Since I have never asked to have a closed economy, I’ll let you conduct that argument with yourself.
All of those cities are heavy manufacturing cities with the exception of Galveston and New Orleans. Manufacturing is leaving for international reasons rather than local reasons. You can outlaw the Democrat party in those cities as well as subsidized housing and it would not change a thing with the exception of having shorter welfare lines and more empty buildings.
Using deductive reasoning and your statement then one would have to conclude that the most liberal city of San Francisco would then be number one dead city in America. Which is simply not true.
Boston and San Francisco both are research and development hubs which also generates cash flow. They are also nice places to live.
Do you think we have thoght through the consequences of the "dollar nullification" effect others have discussed on this thread? **gazing upwards and rubbing chin**
My pleasure, Mr. Axelrod, it's Beluga. Freedom is so passé . . . do you think you can find a way to post a story about dead and dying cities on the internet? We can get the True Conservatives blaming the idea of economic liberty instead of us.
So it is all too much for little ole' me to comprehend, so I should just let the brighter people in the government take care of it. Ok! Sounds good to me!!
Don’t fear - when you get to 11th grade you may learn what a “rhetorical question” is, and as you grow up your confusion will (hopefully) be replaced by some measure of thoughtful analysis.
Meanwhile, I’ll try to help you out. It wasn’t me who claimed that “jobs were shipped offshore”. The phrase makes no sense. It was probably a “rhetorical” way of saying that “American companies sought to maximize profits at the expense of greedy unions by establishing facilities overseas and offshore, and Americans prefer to pay lower prices for the goods and services they purchase with their hard-earned cash”.
Hope this helps.
Study hard and you can earn your diploma (or your high school equivalency. Whatever).
I know you can.
FRegards,
LH
*Actually, an American named W. Edwards Deming built the Japanese up after WWII.*
No, dude, he asked about World War 11 [Eleven].
If I did that, I'd be a protectionist . . . China, sevice jobs, wages and all, so no thanks. Here's a protip for you, though: the word "appears" means just that, and it is a signal that someone is asking for an elaboration. So when someone says that "it appears" that your argument has strayed, think of it as an invitation to bring it back on-track.
In any case, I must also warn you that you are pinging me. Do not do that, you are not allowed. Only one name in the To: field at all times.
And the conversation went on - Now, let's talk about the Rust Belt Jobs Bill. The polling data shows some traction from our "intellegent taxation" campaign, so we can pick off some of the RINOS to get it passed. Do you think if we jiggered up the tariff amounts, we will finally get the Carneggies to come accross with the $10 million in grants to ACORN?
Quote: “Boston and San Francisco are hardly dead or dying cities. If liberal policies alone could kill these cities then they would have been dead long ago.”
Really, is that why so many people who work in Boston are fleeing to New Hampshire? Is that why firms are leaving Silicon Valley and heading to places like Boulder? You think if San Fran has a major earth quake it will rise from teh ashes like it previously did or will businesses head for friendly pastures?
Boston and San Fran are not going anywhere but it is not because of liberal leadership. It is because of geography and history.
It's obvious, we should grow coffee and bananas in Chicago, because we'd keep the benefit of our spending in Chicago and we'd still have all the products we use.
Of course the products would be of lower quality and several times the price, but it's worth it, to "nullify" those exported dollars.
What a moronic "argument". I'm embarrassed for him.
You know, I appreciate you wanting to discuss this more, but I’d appreciate it if you would address 1RudeBoy. You two can have a good time and I’ll just leave the tag team to rest of you.
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