WSJ: Why is Mississippi Falling Behind Rest of South? (Jackson: university, casino)

[Southern man]

Originally Posted by Suesbal

Southern man, better keep your head.

Actually, my screen name has nothing to do with Neil Young.It was the company I worked for. Anyway, I’am a
Skynyrd fan born and raised in “Sweet Home Alabama”.

[Suesbal]

Originally Posted by Southern man

Actually, my screen name has nothing to do with Neil Young.It was the company I worked for. Anyway, I’am a
Skynyrd fan born and raised in “Sweet Home Alabama”.

We don’t need the Wall Street Journal around anyhow.

[An Einnseanair]

Originally Posted by stephenMM

Leaving aside the educational points of view, the reason for Missippi being what it is year after year and day after day (and I'm a native of the state) is the Republican party, pure and simple. Or rather, it is the people in the Republican party, and the people in the state that see eye to eye w/ them and constantly vote them in. They have this mentality that poor people should suffer, so they are not ever going to do one single thing to help their own people.

At the risk of turning this political, which is not my intent, the problem is not the Republican party. It's as you said in your second sentence, it's the people who are currently running as Republicans. Going back to the mid 20th century, the ancestors of the people in charge today were "Dixiecrats", the southern wing of the Democratic party. They started leaving the Democrats when the Civil Rights act was passed by the Dems, then Reagan's anti-welfare stance followed by Gingrich's "contract with America" sealed the migration. But ultimately it's all the same type of people no matter which coat they're wearing this year. F*** the poor, "prosperity Gospel Christian", protect their wealthy friends from the taxman types.

That said, I will also say that I have noticed some improvement lately. It's slow, but still improvement.

I was continually bugging my local state representative about fiber internet by sending him info on how it was done and successful in other rural areas and how it helped them. Finally he helped get the law changed to allow REA's to provide that service a few years ago. I'll note that his gravel road in the middle of nowhere somehow was one of the first in the state to get fiber, but at least everyone else is able to eventually get it as well.

There was slight movement recently about Mississippi maybe finally expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Maybe the politicians are finally wising up to the fact that the majority of their voters are "working poor" and would benefit from the expansion. There's only so may times you can lie to them when they have full-time jobs, but still are somehow faced with life-altering, "sell the land to pay for dad's heart attack bill" events.

Every time one of my extreme conservative friends or relatives posts a complaint to Facebook about the state of the medical system and/or insurance problems, I politely (and non-politically) mention the fact that there's an easy and obvious solution: single-payer healthcare. It doesn't even have to be Medicare/Medicaid (which is the quickest solution, but politically charged). It can be a private-managed system, but single-payer with everyone enrolled and paying into the system, and every hospital and doctor automatically in-network.

It's a process.

[bus man]

Originally Posted by rodentraiser

To be honest, I think it's your people in power holding Mississippi back. You don't have to be liberal like California or other states, but there are many things that need to be brought out of the 1960s and into the 21st century. Expanding Medicaid, for example, or allowing abortions, or having protections for gay people. I know conservative people in Mississippi don't want to have those things, but those things are what's going to bring businesses to you and with businesses locating in the state come jobs, good paying jobs. There's also things unique to the South that need to be addressed, like a lack of accessible health care way out in the boonies for people, along with food deserts.

Job growth in certain selected states in 2023, including national rank:

2. Texas: 6.1%
14. Tennessee: 4.4%
16. West Virginia: 3.9%
18. Indiana: 3.8%
24. South Carolina: 3.4%

Interestingly, Mississippi was ranked No. 34 with 2.6% job growth.

Source: https://wisevoter.com/state-rankings...owth-by-state/

You know what these above-listed states (aside from MS) have in common? One, they are all at or above the national average in job growth for 2023. And two, they (along with MS) are all ranked as having the "most restrictive" abortion laws as of the start of 2024, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

https://states.guttmacher.org/polici...rtion-policies

Just thought you might like to know.

[Sharif662]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Georgia has a large Black population, about 32%. Alot of people are moving to Georgia, especially to the Atlanta area. Georgia has a strong economy and a large Black middle class. Georgia has progressed from the 1960s to now. Mississippi has been falling behind for decades. In fact, many Black people from Mississippi have been leaving for opportunities elsewhere.

Maryland is around 30% Black. With the exception of Baltimore, Maryland has a decent-size Black middle class. Maryland isn't falling behind.

Black Americans in Georgia and Maryland are doing far better than Blacks in Mississippi. If it was about a large Black population, Georgia and Maryland would be far behind too.

Atlanta have a strong economy and progressed from the 1960s.

MD Suburbs have a hefty sized Black middle class. MD suburbs isn't falling due to being economically influence by D.C and twchniaclly Baltimore too ( actually are middle class Black communities there).

Yes Black Sippians have been moving to ATL since the 70s and even moreso in the 2000s. Along with the usual big cities of TX, TN, AL, NC, & FL too.

Black Sippians population still have a growth here and actually have a middle class here for many that clearly don't know.

MS falls behind due to slow growth overall while the major economies of select southern metros have a disproportionate growth due to their immense size.

[ion475]

Originally Posted by Sharif662

Atlanta have a strong economy and progressed from the 1960s.

MD Suburbs have a hefty sized Black middle class. MD suburbs isn't falling due to being economically influence by D.C and twchniaclly Baltimore too ( actually are middle class Black communities there).

Yes Black Sippians have been moving to ATL since the 70s and even moreso in the 2000s. Along with the usual big cities of TX, TN, AL, NC, & FL too.

Black Sippians population still have a growth here and actually have a middle class here for many that clearly don't know.

MS falls behind due to slow growth overall while the major economies of select southern metros have a disproportionate growth due to their immense size.

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Georgia has a large Black population, about 32%. Alot of people are moving to Georgia, especially to the Atlanta area. Georgia has a strong economy and a large Black middle class. Georgia has progressed from the 1960s to now. Mississippi has been falling behind for decades. In fact, many Black people from Mississippi have been leaving for opportunities elsewhere.

Maryland is around 30% Black. With the exception of Baltimore, Maryland has a decent-size Black middle class. Maryland isn't falling behind.

Black Americans in Georgia and Maryland are doing far better than Blacks in Mississippi. If it was about a large Black population, Georgia and Maryland would be far behind too.

For Georgia - once you're outside of Metro Atlanta you have just as bad of a rural black poverty as Mississippi (mainly delta). In fact, some of the "poorest" (as in lowest median income) county in the country are in Georgia.

For Maryland - it's actually more complicated b/c you have the really poor African-Americans in "inner" Prince George's County and also Baltimore City, but also middle class / upper middle class families in "outer" Prince George's county, Charles County, part of Anne Arundel County, and NW Baltimore County. Then there are the historically more "southern" agririan part of Maryland in Eastern Shores, especially around Salisbury, that do also have poor rural black population.

Either way, yes, Metro Atlanta and suburban DC are known for being hotbed for middle / upper middle class African-American families, which is what really push GA and MD up. Those are the exception rather than the norm.

Side note - what about Nashville at least versus Memphis?

[Charlestondata]

Sounds like South Carolina until the late 60’s. Keep the faith.

[Charlestondata]

South Carolina has the “Corridor of Shame,” the poverty-affected stretch along I-95. While the GOP has been in control of the state legislature for decades, they finally seem to be paying more than lip service to this problem, saying they intend to attract industry with decent pay to the COS strip and to other challenged rural areas of the state.

The rural poverty problem has brought the state’s overall stats down since forever. All of the state’s major cities and metros are in good shape. Write to representatives. Get involved.

[Suesbal]

Originally Posted by Charlestondata

South Carolina has the “Corridor of Shame,” the poverty-affected stretch along I-95. While the GOP has been in control of the state legislature for decades, they finally seem to be paying more than lip service to this problem, saying they intend to attract industry with decent pay to the COS strip and to other challenged rural areas of the state.

The rural poverty problem has brought the state’s overall stats down since forever. All of the state’s major cities and metros are in good shape. Write to representatives. Get involved.

Is I-85 the “Corridor of Prosperity”?

[Charlestondata]

Originally Posted by Suesbal

Is I-85 the “Corridor of Prosperity”?

I haven’t heard it called that, but that corridor performs well along with the other developed parts of the state such as the Charleston and Columbia metros and the southern portion of metro Charlotte.