red states suck, blue states don't

[boutons_deux]

"You need to know this.

By almost every measure, Americans are better off living in a Blue state.

On Friday, Politico Magazine released a list of state rankings,

www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/01/states-of-our-union-are-not-all-strong-102547.html?ml=lb_9#.Uue1XPvnar8 (http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/01/states-of-our-union-are-not-all-strong-102547.html?ml=lb_9#.Uue1XPvnar8)

using respected sources like the Census Bureau, the FBI, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What they found was stunning.

On average, Americans living in Red states had lower wealth per capita, were more likely to be living in poverty, had shorter life expectancy, higher rates of infant mortality, and lower overall well-being.

Republicans love to say that lower taxes, less regulation, and pro-business policies benefit Americans, but this report proves that people are suffering in states that adopt those principles.

Americans who live in Blue states tend to have lower rates of obesity, higher scores in reading and math, and higher per capita income.

Progressive policies like stronger social safety nets, higher corporate taxes, and larger investments in education and infrastructure actually benefit people living in democratically-controlled states.

This report provides an incredible snapshot of how Republican policies effect Americans.

Yet, in the face of these overwhelming statistics, Republicans want to enact these extreme policies nationwide.

They want to slash our national safety net, eliminate corporate taxes, create a national right-to-work-for-LESS law, and privatize education and our commons.

These policies don't work for the people in Republican-controlled states, and they won't improve life for Americans if they were instituted on a national scale.

This is why elections matter, and this is why we must enact progressive policies that actually benefit all Americans, regardless of the state in which they reside."

http://truth-out.org/news/item/21479-on-the-news-with-thom-hartmann-americans-are-better-off-living-in-a-blue-state-and-more

red states = (p)Ayn-Randian, VRWC/ALEC dystopias

iow, vote Repug and screw yourself.

btw, VA Senate now 20 Repug - 20 Dem, tiebraker is Lieut. Gov = Dem.

[angrydude]

Minnesota #2?

hahahahahahahahahahahahaha

What a shitty list.


"The approach isn’t scientific or comprehensive (hey, neither was Mencken’s), and not all states are created equal—California’s economy is the world’s eighth largest, for instance, and Texas’s population outranks that of most countries. We also hold no grudges against the State of Mississippi, which came in last not just overall but on four of the individual lists, and certainly don’t attribute its woes to “hordes of barbaric peasants,” as Mencken did. But given that eight of the lowest-ranking states on our list overlap with the bottom 10 on his, maybe less has changed in the past 83 years than you’d think."

[AntiChrist]

The top ten states in that list aren't blue -- they're lilly white. Those are some of the least diverse states in the US.

[Winehole23]

ladies and gentlemen, DarrinS, champion of racial diversity and all around PC scold

[AntiChrist]

ladies and gentlemen, DarrinS, champion of racial diversity and all around PC scold


Ladies and gentlemen, Winehole, resident ankle biter and pretentious blowhard.

[Winehole23]

lol

[Jacob1983]

Why is it cheaper to live in red states than blue states?

[monosylab1k]

Why is it cheaper to live in red states than blue states?

The fact that Jacob1983 is a jeebotard conservative should say everything about the intelligence level of the right.

[The Reckoning]

except Texas.


best place to live in the US, imo.

[Jacob1983]

I voted for Gary Johnson. Thank you. I don't see myself as a conservative. I see myself as an apathetic but informed independent.

[monosylab1k]

I voted for Gary Johnson. Thank you. I don't see myself as a conservative. I see myself as an apathetic but informed independent.

:lol "informed"

[SnakeBoy]

except Texas.


best place to live in the US, imo.

True but would be better if we stopped funding school districts with property taxes.

[Jacob1983]

I stand by what I said. And you can keep on laughing you ass fuck. Do you think I honestly give a shit what you think of me?

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

Why is it cheaper to live in red states than blue states?

Because wages are significantly lower.

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

The fact that Jacob1983 is a jeebotard conservative should say everything about the intelligence level of the right.

He's a "libertarian" who constantly bitches about how the government doesn't help him enough :lmao

:crythe public transportation sucks:cry

[Rogue]

per capita income as a stat might be even more misleading and biased than Hollinger's PER imho, when 99% of the society's wealth is condensed in the hands of only 1% of population. So in the states where the richest people live, the per-capita income is irreversibly higher than others, even when those states are also home to the nation's poorest.

I remember an old Chinese TV series (the theme song of which was sung by a famous alumni of the highschool I went to, who was also the singer of 08' Olympics theme song), in which the city of NY was described as both heaven and hell. At the start of each episode a narrator read "if you like him, send him to NY because that's the heaven; if you hate him, also send him to NY because that's the hell). I think that series pretty much displays the true reality of NY, and most other major US cities as well.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/27/Red_state%2C_blue_state.svg/350px-Red_state%2C_blue_state.svg.png

[Rogue]

Whereas, the quality of basic education may be a more unbiased and more credible meter to measure the intelligence of people in each state. Just take NY and California as examples, both of which are blue states...


Rank
State
% H.S. Graduate



United States (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States)
85.3%


1
Wyoming (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming)
91.8%


2
Minnesota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota)
91.5%


3
Alaska (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska)
75.4%


4
New Hampshire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire)
91.3%


5
Vermont (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermont)
91.0%


6
Montana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana)
90.8%


7
Iowa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa)
90.5%


8
Hawaii (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaii)
90.4%


9
Utah (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah)
90.4%


10
Maine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maine)
90.2%


11
North Dakota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Dakota)
90.1%


12
South Dakota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Dakota)
89.9%


13
Kansas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas)
89.8%


14
Wisconsin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin)
89.8%


15
Nebraska (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebraska)
89.7%


16
Washington (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(U.S._State))
89.7%


17
Colorado (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado)
89.3%


18
Oregon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon)
89.1%


19
Massachusetts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts)
89.0%


20
Connecticut (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut)
88.6%


21
Idaho (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idaho)
88.4%


22
Maryland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryland)
88.2%


23
Michigan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan)
87.9%


24
Pennsylvania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania)
87.9%


25
Ohio (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio)
87.6%


26
Delaware (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware)
87.4%


27
New Jersey (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey)
87.4%



District of Columbia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_of_Columbia)
87.1%


28
Missouri (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri)
86.8%


29
Indiana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana)
86.6%


30
Virginia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia)
86.6%


31
Illinois (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois)
86.4%


32
Oklahoma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma)
85.6%


33
Florida (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida)
85.3%


34
New York (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York)
84.7%


35
Rhode Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island)
84.7%


36
North Carolina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Carolina)
84.3%


37
Arizona (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arizona)
84.2%


38
Georgia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state))
83.9%


39
Nevada (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada)
83.9%


40
South Carolina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Carolina)
83.6%


41
Tennessee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee)
83.1%


42
New Mexico (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico)
82.8%


43
West Virginia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Virginia)
82.8%


44
Arkansas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkansas)
82.4%


45
Louisiana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana)
82.2%


46
Alabama (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabama)
82.1%


47
Kentucky (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentucky)
81.7%


48
California (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California)
80.6%


49
Mississippi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi)
80.4%


50
Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas)
79.9%




both states are below the national average in highschool graduation rate (especially California, LOL California). Meanwhile, the percentage of bachelor's and advanced degrees of those two states are well above the national average, but don't throw your hats off too fast, because that's due mainly to the large numbers of "legal" immigrants in those state, and international students who don't have the right to vote. So the fact is people in blue states seem to have lower IQs and that's they reason why they tend to be easier fooled by the orating artist that Obama is, and to make things worse, those blue states are also the most populated states in the US.

Your blind hatred against Bush might still be having negative impacts on you guys' minds, preventing you from seeing clearly what a "great" job the incumbent president has done. Only time will allow you guys to realize that imho, hope the time it's going to take won't turn out to be too costly.

[pgardn]

Why is it cheaper to live in red states than blue states?

Possibly because there is abundant less desirable property therefore cheaper.
You could also read it as poor people live in cheap places, their dollar goes further.

[pgardn]

True but would be better if we stopped funding school districts with property taxes.

So you want all private schools? No public?

[Clipper Nation]

He's a "libertarian" who constantly bitches about how the government doesn't help him enough :lmao

:crythe public transportation sucks:cry
:lol He also is proud of voting for a fake libertarian who supports interventionist foreign policy, the death penalty, and slurps the Federal Reserve.... Gary Johnson is just another fraud, like Bob Barr, who the LP nominated to try to grab for public money by getting a certain percentage of the vote instead of trying to appeal to actual libertarians....

[Winehole23]

where's an "actual libertarian" to turn?

[Spurminator]

Why is it cheaper to live in red states than blue states?

Pretty cheap to live in Nigeria too.

[Jacob1983]

DOK, I don't give a shit what you think of me too. Bring it on. Show me your wrath.

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

DOK, I don't give a shit what you think of me too. Bring it on. Show me your wrath.

You probably don't give a shit what your manager at target thinks of you either :lol, how's that working out?

[Jacob1983]

Keep bringing it. I'm ready.

[byrontx]

Crap. There's Texas, on the bottom. I guess we can toss the phrase"thank God for Mississippi."




Whereas, the quality of basic education may be a more unbiased and more credible meter to measure the intelligence of people in each state. Just take NY and California as examples, both of which are blue states...


Rank
State
% H.S. Graduate



United States (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States)
85.3%


1
Wyoming (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming)
91.8%


2
Minnesota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota)
91.5%


3
Alaska (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska)
75.4%


4
New Hampshire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Hampshire)
91.3%


5
Vermont (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermont)
91.0%


6
Montana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montana)
90.8%


7
Iowa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iowa)
90.5%


8
Hawaii (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaii)
90.4%


9
Utah (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah)
90.4%


10
Maine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maine)
90.2%


11
North Dakota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Dakota)
90.1%


12
South Dakota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Dakota)
89.9%


13
Kansas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kansas)
89.8%


14
Wisconsin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisconsin)
89.8%


15
Nebraska (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebraska)
89.7%


16
Washington (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_(U.S._State))
89.7%


17
Colorado (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado)
89.3%


18
Oregon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon)
89.1%


19
Massachusetts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts)
89.0%


20
Connecticut (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connecticut)
88.6%


21
Idaho (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idaho)
88.4%


22
Maryland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryland)
88.2%


23
Michigan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan)
87.9%


24
Pennsylvania (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania)
87.9%


25
Ohio (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio)
87.6%


26
Delaware (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delaware)
87.4%


27
New Jersey (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey)
87.4%



District of Columbia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_of_Columbia)
87.1%


28
Missouri (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missouri)
86.8%


29
Indiana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana)
86.6%


30
Virginia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia)
86.6%


31
Illinois (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois)
86.4%


32
Oklahoma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma)
85.6%


33
Florida (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida)
85.3%


34
New York (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York)
84.7%


35
Rhode Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island)
84.7%


36
North Carolina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Carolina)
84.3%


37
Arizona (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arizona)
84.2%


38
Georgia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(U.S._state))
83.9%


39
Nevada (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nevada)
83.9%


40
South Carolina (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Carolina)
83.6%


41
Tennessee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee)
83.1%


42
New Mexico (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Mexico)
82.8%


43
West Virginia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Virginia)
82.8%


44
Arkansas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkansas)
82.4%


45
Louisiana (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana)
82.2%


46
Alabama (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabama)
82.1%


47
Kentucky (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentucky)
81.7%


48
California (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California)
80.6%


49
Mississippi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi)
80.4%


50
Texas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas)
79.9%




both states are below the national average in highschool graduation rate (especially California, LOL California). Meanwhile, the percentage of bachelor's and advanced degrees of those two states are well above the national average, but don't throw your hats off too fast, because that's due mainly to the large numbers of "legal" immigrants in those state, and international students who don't have the right to vote. So the fact is people in blue states seem to have lower IQs and that's they reason why they tend to be easier fooled by the orating artist that Obama is, and to make things worse, those blue states are also the most populated states in the US.

Your blind hatred against Bush might still be having negative impacts on you guys' minds, preventing you from seeing clearly what a "great" job the incumbent president has done. Only time will allow you guys to realize that imho, hope the time it's going to take won't turn out to be too costly.

[Rogue]

You probably don't give a shit what your manager at target thinks of you either :lol, how's that working out?
Actually it's just something opposite to what you said that has been troubling with my nigga Jacob and holding him back imho... he cares too much about what other people think of him. The best he can do now is learn to make decisions on his own, and he's smart enough to make the right decisions for himself I believe.

[Rogue]

And math is not the only measurement of smartness imho, so having an art degree instead of a finance one isn't necessarily a sign of being intelligently inferior imho. The math geniuses didn't even have a country of their own until the year 1947, was that because of "smartness" or otherwise?

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

And math is not the only measurement of smartness imho, so having an art degree instead of a finance one isn't necessarily a sign of being intelligently inferior imho. The math geniuses didn't even have a country of their own until the year 1947, was that because of "smartness" or otherwise?

So how's your shitty literature degree working out? Has it led to a job yet?

[Rogue]

I don't see how it could lead to a job when I haven't graduated yet tbh. My undergraduate degree ain't a "shitty literature" one but still a shitty degree according to you... applied physics, as far as you're concerned.

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

I don't see how it could lead to a job when I haven't graduated yet tbh. My undergraduate degree ain't a "shitty literature" one but still a shitty degree according to you... applied physics, as far as you're concerned.

Yeah the fact you can't get a job with a degree in applied physics is a personal problem :lmao, I never said that degree was shitty.

[Rogue]

It's not because I couldn't get a job with a physics degree that I chose to come back to school tbh. In fact I didn't even look seriously to find a job after I graduated from college (that was a personal problem maybe, I just don't feel like earning my own money when I don't even need it), but still ended up getting a shitty one somehow, which I would quit only a few months later. Even during those 2yrs I was out of school, I never stopped applying for grad schools and my efforts finally paid off.

I made the decision to come back to school because I thought I would get better prepared for the future with an extra two year something spent in school, learning new knowledge and honing my skills. I don't hurry to make money because I believe that money is probably the last thing that matters to me at this point of my lifetime, but I understand why a Jew can never forbear to start making money as soon as he/she can... venality is written in their genes imho.

[boutons_deux]

They are ALL RED :lol

The 10 Dumbest States in America

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- When writing an article ranking the "smartest" and "dumbest" states in the Union it is important to explain
your methodology. This list is based on the level of education a certain percentage of the residents of each state achieves.

According to information compiled by the website infoplease.com, as of 2010 men with a BA make 60% more than their counterparts
with a high school diploma -- $40,000 to $64,000 -- while women with BA's make 56.6% more than their counterparts with a lower
level of education -- $30,000 to $47,000.

And the gulf is widening. Twenty years ago male college graduates only made 47.5% more than high school grads while female BA
holders made 53% more.

For this reason there is some correlation between states with higher percentages of people with Bachelor's and advanced degrees
also having fewer people living below the poverty line.

One would think that states with more colleges and universities per capita might do better on this list but that is not necessarily the
case. Vermont -- number 8 on the smartest list -- has the most schools per capita with 1 university per 36,545.3 residents, while New
Jersey -- number 6 on the smartest list -- has the second lowest number of schools per capita with 1 university per 526,764.8
residents.

Intuitively states offering better jobs will attract better educated residents. The correlation between states offering better opportunities
and the number of college graduates residing there is strong. Maryland -- number 3 on the smartest list -- leads the nation in median
household income at $70,004 while Mississippi and West Virginia -- numbers three and one respectively on the dumbest list -- are at
the bottom of the median household income list.

Here is a list of the 10 "dumbest" states based on percentage of the population with Bachelor's degrees.

10. Tennessee

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 23%
Median Household Income (2012): 42,764 (44th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1709

Tennessee's economy is centered on textiles, livestock, and electrical power, jobs that do not require advanced educational degrees.
The state has over 82,000 farms, 60% of which are used to raise cattle. Fortune 500 companies FedEx (FDX), Autozone (AZO) and
International Paper call the state's largest city, Memphis, home, while Nashville is the hub of the country music recording industry.
Despite this, Tennessee's 17.9% poverty rate ranks 39 in the country.

9. Oklahoma

Median Household Income (2012): $44,312 (41st)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1689

Oklahoma's economy is driven by the energy industry, with aviation and food processing also offering employment opportunities in the
state. Of the 1.7 million person strong labor force, 23% work in the public sector -- the leading employment opportunity in the state --
while the transportation and utilities sector accounted for another 16.4% of the jobs in the state. The American Airlines (AAL)
global maintenance and engineering headquarters in Tulsa is the largest airline maintenance base in the world. Oklahoma's 17.2%
poverty rate ranks 35th in the country.

8. Indiana

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 22.5%
Median Household Income (2012): $46,974 (32nd)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1470

Indiana's economy is driven by manufacturing with the Calumet region representing the largest steel producing area in the U.S. The
state's largest city, Indianapolis, is home to the international headquarters of pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly (LLY), while Evansville
is home to the headquarters of Mead Johnson Nutrition (MJN). The state boasts the second highest number of biopharmaceutical
related jobs in the country. Despite the strong biotech presence in pockets of the state, Indiana's economy rests on the shoulders of
semi-skilled labor. The state's 15.6% poverty rate ranks in the bottom half of the U.S.

7. Alabama

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 22%
Median Household Income (2012): $41,574 (47th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1608

The majority of Alabama's workforce is in the public sector with Redstone Aresenal (25,373), the University of Alabama (18,750),
Maxwell Air Force Base (12,280), the state itself (9,500) and the Mobile County Public School System (8,100) rounding out the top five
employers in the state. Regions Financial Corporation (RF), BBVA Compass and Superior Bancorp also call the Cotton State
home. The state's median household income is the third lowest in the country and the poverty rate of 19% ranks 45th in the country.

6. Nevada

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 21.8%
Median Household Income (2012): $49,760 (27th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1454

While much of Nevada's economy is tied to the vice industry -- gambling and prostitution -- the state also relies on mining and cattle
ranching as economic drivers. Billions of dollars in gold is mined in the state every year: 79% of all the gold mined in the country
comes from Nevada, accounting for 8.9% of the world's production. While the public sector holds the top three employment
opportunities in the state, Wynn Las Vegas (WYNN), the Bellagio, MGM Grand (MGM), Aria Resort, Mandalay Bay and Caesars Palace
(CZR) make up most of the rest of the top ten. The state's 16.4% poverty rate ranks 32nd in the country.

5. Louisiana

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 21.4%
Median Household Income (2012): $42,944 (43rd)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1655

Louisiana is the largest crawfish producer in the world, accounting for 90% of the world's supply. The seafood industry supplies
16,000 jobs to the state's residents. The state's location at the mouth of the Mississippi River Delta is central to its economy with the
Port of South Louisiana being the largest shipping port in the Western Hemisphere by volume. Louisiana receives the fourth highest
average of dollars from the federal government compared to how much is paid out in taxes at $1.35 per dollar taxed. Some 20% of
residents live below the poverty line, ranking the state 49th in the country.

4. Kentucky

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 21%
Median Household Income (2012): $41,724 (46th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1741

Kentucky's agricultural and livestock industries are alive and well. The state ranks fifth in goat farming, eigth in beef cattle production
and 14th in corn production. Six Fortune 500 companies, Humana (HUM), Yum Brands (YUM), Ashland (ASH), Omnicare (OCR),
General Cable (BGC) and Kindred Healthcare (KND), also call the Bluegrass state home. Kentucky ranks fourth in the country in the
number of automobiles and trucks assembled in the state. The state's coal industry has taken a hit in recent years and the poverty
rate of 19.4% is the fourth worst in the country.

3. Mississippi

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 19.6%
Median Household Income (2012): $37,095 (50th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1673

Mississippi is the state of a bygone era. Prior to the Civil War Mississippi's agricultural economy -- and reliance on slave labor -- made
it the fifth wealthiest state in the country. However currently it is near the bottom in most economic and educational measures.
Mississippi residents received $2.02 in federal spending for every dollar they paid in taxes. The state has the highest poverty rate in
the country at 24.2%.

2. Arkansas

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 18.9%
Median Household Income (2012): $40,112 (49th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1697

Arkansas is home to four Fortune 500 companies including the world's largest retailer, Walmart (WMT). Former President Bill Clinton
is also a native son of the state. The state ranks fourth in the country in lumber production thanks to the Arkansas Timberlands. The
state has the second lowest cost of doing business according to a CNBC study with the 5th lowest cost of living in the country. However
the state's 7.5% unemployment rate is high and the 19.8% poverty rate is was 48th in the nation.

1. West Virginia

% of Population With Bachelor's Degrees: 17.3%
Median Household Income (2012): $40,196 (48th)
Average SAT Score (2013): 1513

The "dumbest" state on our list has a median income that is the third lowest in the country and a poverty rate of 17.8%, or 38th in the
country. Despite this, the city of Morgantown, home to West Virginia University, was ranked by Forbes as one of the 10 best small
cities in which to do business in 2010. In an effort to attract businesses, the state's corporate income tax is set to be reduced to 6.5%
from 8.5% this year. The state's once robust coal industry has taken a hit as the industry faces increased competition from other
energy sources and tougher regulations. Despite this downturn, the state exported $2.9 billion worth of coal last year and the industry
employs 30,000 West Virginians.

http://www.politicususa.com/2014/05/24/10-dumbest-states-america-dominated-republicans.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+politicususa%2FfJAl+%28Politi cus+USA+%29

[TeyshaBlue]

lol Bachelor degree = smart.:lmao

[boutons_deux]

lol Bachelor degree = smart.:lmao

high school dropout, hs diploma = smart :lol

[Wild Cobra]

The 10 Dumbest States in America


NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- When writing an article ranking the "smartest" and "dumbest" states in the Union it is important to explain[/FONT]
your methodology. This list is based on the level of education a certain percentage of the residents of each state achieves.
[FONT=arial]


Too bad they didn't go by "registration by party" stats:

States with more republican:

Alabama (58.5%)
Indiana (59%)
Mississippi (55.3%)
Tennessee (52.8%)

States with more democrats:

Arkansas (56.9%)
Kentucky (58.7%)
Louisiana (66.2%)
Nevada (53.2%)
Oklahoma (55.1%)
West Virginia (65.1)

[DD]

Minnesota #2?

Mayo Clinic

[boutons_deux]

Too bad they didn't go by "registration by party" stats:

States with more republican:

Alabama (58.5%)
Indiana (59%)
Mississippi (55.3%)
Tennessee (52.8%)

States with more democrats:

Arkansas (56.9%)
Kentucky (58.7%)
Louisiana (66.2%)
Nevada (53.2%)
Oklahoma (55.1%)
West Virginia (65.1)

Either these deeply red state "registered" Dems have been gerrymandered to insignificance, or they're PROVE HOW DUMB they are by voting against-their-interest Repug.

[TeyshaBlue]

high school dropout, hs diploma = smart :lol

Makes about as much sense as the article.

[boutons_deux]

Red states pump out more carbon pollution than blue oneshttp://grist.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/redstatediffusioncartogram_production.jpg?w=470&h=714

http://grist.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/redstatediffusioncartogram_consumption-v2.jpg?w=470&h=714

A recent report (http://www.co2scorecard.org/home/researchitem/26) by CO2 Scorecard found that this gap in political will contributed to higher carbon emissions in Republican states, even after “controlling for the effects of income, prices, industrial structure, climatic conditions and population density.” Since energy efficiency can lower suppliers’ revenue, the report hypothesizes that a combination of political pressure and concern for the industry’s economic role prevents states from supporting it. These circumstances are likely to breed similar reluctance to cuts to carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants.

http://grist.org/climate-energy/red-states-pump-out-more-carbon-pollution-than-blue-ones/?utm_source=syndication&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed

iow, just another way Repugs/red-states suck

[boutons_deux]

Where Are the Hardest Places to Live in the U.S.?http://www.truthdig.com/images/eartothegrounduploads/Screen_Shot_2014-06-27_at_6.29_.30_PM_.png


http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/26/upshot/where-are-the-hardest-places-to-live-in-the-us.html

The Repug Confederacy mostly sucks. Why?

The legacy, esp racist, of the Civil War, then Repugs' (Nixon's Southern Strategy to recruit Dixiecrat racists to the Repug party) exploited the Confederate hate of Federal "Union" govt/revenooers to keep the Confederate states ignorant, uneducated, Jim-Crowing (with the help of the Repug SCOTUS5), and low-wage right-to-work-for-less.

[boutons_deux]

What Every Governor Really Believes About Climate Change, In One Handy Map (http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/07/01/3454502/is-your-governor-a-climate-denier/)
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/07/01/3454502/is-your-governor-a-climate-denier/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+climateprogress%2FlCrX+%28Cli mate+Progress%29

[Jacob1983]

Boutons you know the civil war is over right? There is no confederacy anymore. Aren't you being a hateful bigot when you bash red states and the south by saying they are racist confederates?

[FuzzyLumpkins]

Boutons you know the civil war is over right? There is no confederacy anymore. Aren't you being a hateful bigot when you bash red states and the south by saying they are racist confederates?

Georgia only recently changed from the confederate battle flag and SC and MS still do. You cannot paint with that broad a brush on everyone but ffs have you been in LA, MS, AL, the Carolinas or GA anytime recently?

[m>s]

so white people are racist in white countries founded by their white ancestors? fuck off

[ErnestLynch]

What a load.....

[ErnestLynch]

lol Bachelor degree = smart.:lmao

Perhaps. The two aren't necessarily synonymous with each other. Is a business degree from Texas State the same as a degree from Wharton School of Business at Penn ? No Will it determine your future success ? Not as a person, but statistically as a group, yes. I remember back during the tech boom some companies would advertise for Engineering degrees and list the handful of schools they would accept applicants from. Plus, many people have basically worthless degrees from average schools and the massive debt they acquired to get them ends up being a burden for years to come. College actually ends up HURTING them. It's not a place to go because you can't think of anything else to do. It's not an extension of high school. And I know plenty of people that have done very well without a degree or having ever set foot in a college classroom. My best friend from HS dropped out his first semester...thrown out actually, for calling a prof in an intro to architecture class an idiot. He now owns one of the largest construction companies in America. Yeah, he was/is a genius but really smart people, are going to make it no matter what. What impedes most peoples success in life is themselves and their habits. Drinking excessively, using drugs, etc. Starting a family too early. Simply not being responsible. You can't MAKE people be those things. And a lot of people ARE those things. Success in life is not only what you do, but what you don't do.

[boutons_deux]

Boutons you know the civil war is over right? There is no confederacy anymore.

it's not completely over for lots of people in the South, and there is still a "Union"-hating, "tenthers" confederacy


Federal Appeals Court Orders Texas To Issue Confederate Flag License Plates (http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/07/15/3460152/federal-appeals-court-orders-texas-to-issue-confederate-flag-license-plates/)


http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Texas-Confederate-638x319.jpg

The state of Texas’s decision not to issue a license plate that incorporates the Confederate battle flag (http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/13/13-50411-CV0.pdf) violates the First Amendment, according to a divided panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The majority opinion by Judge Edward Prado concludes that Texas engaged in impermissible viewpoint discrimination by implicitly disfavoring the view that “the Confederate flag is a symbol of sacrifice, independence, and Southern heritage” and crediting the viewpoint that “the Confederate flag is an inflammatory symbol of hate and oppression.”

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/07/15/3460152/federal-appeals-court-orders-texas-to-issue-confederate-flag-license-plates/

[boutons_deux]

Boutons you know the civil war is over right? There is no confederacy anymore. Aren't you being a hateful bigot when you bash red states and the south by saying they are racist confederates?

Many still fighting the Civil War...

The Civil War may have come to a close almost 150 years ago but Republicans in three Southern states still aren't sure its outcome was a good thing. Less than half of GOP voters in Georgia, North Carolina, and Mississippi are glad that the North won the Civil War:

-In Georgia 47% of Republicans are content with the Union victory, while 31% wish the South had won. Democrats (58/17) and independents (54/19) are both strongly supportive of the North, making the overall numbers 53/23.

-In North Carolina GOP voters are almost evenly divided on the outcome of the war with 35% glad for the North's victory, 33% ruing the South's loss, and 32% taking neither side. Democrats (55/15) and independents (57/14) have similar numbers to Georgia but due to the greater ambivalence of Republicans about the northern victory, overall less than half of Tar Heel voters (48%) are glad the Union won to 21% who wish the Confederacy had.

-In Mississippi no group of the electorate seems all that enthused about the North having won. Republicans, by a 38/21 margin, outright wish the South had won. Democrats (39/22) and independents (49/15) side with the North but compared to those voter groups in North Carolina and Georgia they're pretty ambivalent. Overall just 34% of voters in the state are glad the Union prevailed to 27% who wish the rebels had been victorious.

A few weeks ago we released numbers showing that a plurality of Republicans in Mississippi think interracial marriage should be illegal. Democrats there think it should be legal by a 68/18 margin and independents do so 56/21, making the overall numbers in the state 54% who think it should be legal to 28% who believe it should be illegal.

GOP voters in North Carolina and Georgia don't have the same hang up about interracial marriage that their peers in Mississippi do. In Georgia Republicans think it should be legal by a 52/29 spread. Democrats do so 67/20 and independents do 74/13, making the overall numbers 62/22. And in North Carolina Republicans think it should be legal by a 55/30 spread. Democrats do so 74/15 and independents do 80/11, making the the overall numbers 68/20.

http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2011/04/many-still-fighting-the-civil-war.html

[boutons_deux]

http://www.addictinginfo.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/us-guns2.jpg

[boutons_deux]

http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/HappinessAnnualIncomeBAR_CROP.png

[boutons_deux]

red states dominate the debtors

http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1936232/thumbs/o-AMERICA-IN-DEBT-570.jpg


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/29/americans-in-debt_n_5629137.html

... but but but .... Cost of Living is lower! :lol

[boutons_deux]

These Are the Regions Where Americans Are Most Likely to Favor Secession

Residents of the Southwest and the Rockies were the most likely to voice support, polling at 34 percent and 25 percent respectively.

A plurality of would-be secessionists reported an annual income of $25,000 or less. ( :lol low-wage, low-education, red-state: Repug/Fox hard core base/viewership )

Texas in particular, which has a history of secessionist sentiment and makes up a large portion of the Southwest, is the one determined state that might actually have a chance at surviving (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/if-scotland-can-secede--so-can-texas-185536102.html) without the American whole. But let's keep in mind Texas has relied heavily (http://www.newrepublic.com/blog/jonathan-chait/82052/everythings-subsidized-in-texas) on their much deplored Washington.

Turns out Texas was the state that depended the most on those very stimulus funds to plug nearly 97% of its shortfall for fiscal 2010, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Texas, which crafts a budget every two years, was facing a $6.6 billion shortfall for its 2010-2011 fiscal years. It plugged nearly all of that deficit with $6.4 billion in Recovery Act money, allowing it to leave its $9.1 billion rainy day fund untouched. :lol

"Texas has everything we need. We have the manufacturing, we have the oil, and we don't need them," one Texan still told Reuters.

But don't be too concerned. The same poll found 53.3 percent understand secession is a no good, bad idea. (http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/19/us-usa-secession-exclusive-idUSKBN0HE19U20140919)

http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2014/09/these-are-regions-where-americans-are-most-likely-favor-secession

[TeyshaBlue]

:lol MotherJones

[boutons_deux]

TB :lol

The forces driving the United States apart

The polarization so evident in Congress is but a pale reflection of the growing chasm separating red states from blue, particularly on issues of workers’ incomes and rights.

While states under Republican rule are weakening workers’ ability to bargain with employers and reducing the pay of construction workers, states and cities

where Democrats dominate are hiking the minimum wage, requiring employers to grant paid sick days and even considering penalizing large employers who don’t pay their workers enough.

With congressional Republicans dead-set against raising the federal minimum wage, states with Democratic governors and legislatures, and increasingly numerous Democratic mayors and city councils, are taking it upon themselves to raise wages (http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/05/20/408026095/how-the-minimum-wage-debate-moved-from-capitol-hill-to-city-halls[npr.org]).

In California, wages will rise to $15 an hour in Los Angeles and San Francisco, with increases also in San Diego, Oakland and San Jose.

They’re going to $13 in Chicago, and the state of Washington is considering following Seattle in raising its standard to $15 as well.

In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/07/opinion/andrew-m-cuomo-fast-food-workers-deserve-a-raise.html?gwh=4B64C46738D0DC352B5B7D0B25A59F44&gwt=pay&assetType=opinion) (D) has created a commission to raise fast-food workers’ pay. In an upset, Philadelphia Democrats just made underdog Jim Kenney (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/20/jim-kenney-philadelphia-mayor_n_7339190.html), who ran on raising the city’s minimum wage to $15, their nominee for mayor.

The Connecticut legislature (http://www.journalinquirer.com/politics_and_government/an-hour-wage-at-center-of-debate-in-legislature/article_6acd5f4a-fb19-11e4-98ac-8b46086294db.html) is considering a bill that would penalize large employers who pay workers less than $15 an hour.

And in California, state labor commissioner Julie Su (http://www.women.ca.gov/AboutUs/JulieBio.aspx) has found that port trucking companies have violated wage laws by classifying their drivers as independent contractors (http://www.prospect.org/article/raising-wages-bottom), even though the drivers must work exclusively for their employers.

Su has required those companies to give drivers the back pay they owe them — though if they acknowledge that their drivers are actually employees and are thus entitled to a vote on unionizing, she will forgive the penalty portion of their fines.

Republican-led states are moving in the opposite direction.

Laws denying unions the right to collect dues from all the workers they represent (under the misnomer of “right-to-work”) in bargaining and grievances — laws that diminish workers’ ability to win wage increases — have spread from the South and Mountain West in recent years to the once-industrial Midwestern states of Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan.

Laws requiring construction work on public projects to be compensated at roughly union scale have been repealed in Indiana (http://www.women.ca.gov/AboutUs/JulieBio.aspx) and, for some such projects, in West Virginia (http://www.wvpolicy.org/west-virginias-prevailing-wage-good-for-business-good-for-workers) and Nevada (http://lasvegassun.com/news/2015/feb/26/school-bond-prevailing-wage-bill-faces-bumpy-assem/).

Democrats have come to power and have been driven left by the increasingly multiracial character of blue states, and particularly by the clustering of liberal millennials and immigrants in cities, where workers, abetted by unions, have been able to organize.

On the other hand, red states have veered right under pressure from the increasingly all-white and disproportionately aged Republican Party, whose most fervid members see government programs — public education, subsidized health insurance for the poor — as a reward to the very people of color who threaten their vision of the nation.

Republican elected officials also see weakening unions as a way to weaken Democrats.

What’s not driving the United States apart, however, is some general desire among the GOP rank and file to hold wages to a minimum.

Voters in such solidly red states as Alaska (http://ballotpedia.org/Alaska_Minimum_Wage_Increase,_Ballot_Measure_3_%28 2014%29), Arkansas (http://ballotpedia.org/Arkansas_Minimum_Wage_Initiative,_Issue_5_%282014% 29), Nebraska (http://ballotpedia.org/Nebraska_Minimum_Wage_Increase,_Initiative_425_%28 2014%29) and South Dakota (http://ballotpedia.org/South_Dakota_Increased_Minimum_Wage,_Initiated_Mea sure_18_%282014%29) approved ballot measures to raise their states’ minimums in 2014.

In matters of wages, GOP governors and legislators appear to take their lead not from voters but from corporate executives.

In a survey this month for Chief Executive magazine (http://chiefexecutive.net/2015/05/07/best-worst-states-business/2015/), the 511 chief executives who responded to a question asking them to

rank the states by how “business-friendly” they were placed six low-wage Southern states,

and five of the 11 with the highest poverty rates, among their top 10. Texas placed first. :lol

In a recent study (http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/13/business/economy/working-but-needing-public-assistance-anyway.html) by University of California economists,

Texas also topped the list of states in the percentage of residents poor enough to receive federal assistance who are also employed. The Texas “job miracle” comes at the expense of U.S. taxpayers.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/two-nations-under-one-flag/2015/05/27/70fd0fa6-0487-11e5-bc72-f3e16bf50bb6_story.html?wprss=rss_harold-meyerson