Probably the worst city (in the worst state): Data
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11/8/2012
I'll provide a mix of data (i.e., fact) and opinion. I moved here about two years ago to work as a scientist in the medical industry, and I'm *hoping* to take a pay cut to leave. The sad part: I love my job, but I find the area completely unbearable. Over 35 years, I have lived in seven states, visited every state in the contiguous US, and I'm perfectly confident stating that Huntington, WV is -by far- the worst city (i.e., pop. 50,000+) in the worst state... and I've lived in Arkansas. My evidence: The 2012 Gallup Poll (best places to live in the US) ranks states according to 13 indexes. WV not only ranks as the worst state overall, it also ranks *last* in five of the 13 indexes: "economic confidence index," "learned something new yesterday," "easy to find a safe place to exercise," "obesity rate," and "smoking rate." WV ranks 2nd-to-last in the US for "employed full time," 3rd worst in the US for "standard of living," "city/area getting better," "easy to find clean, safe water," and 4th worst in the US for "visited a dentist in the last 12 months." Thus, to sum it up, out of 13 indexes, WV ranks in the bottom 8% for 10 of 13 of them!!! That's simultaneously impressive and depressive... (these are facts, not my opinion, and the 2009 Gallup poll provided very similar findings). However, that's not the worst of it: WV claims to be "wild and wonderful," and that might be true of the northern and eastern parts of the state near national forest land (especially Morgantown, which is semi-tolerable and "only" about an hour from Pittsburgh). However, Huntington is more than three hours' drive from Morgantown, and Huntington's closest larger city is Lexington, KY (more than two hours' drive). If you want to see a "nationally known" concert (other than country music 1-2 times per year), buy organic produce, visit a Whole Foods Market (or similar), frequent a brewery/brewpub, or go to a nice museum (that actually occasionally changes its content and pertains to something other than coal mining or coal trains), be prepared to drive to Columbus, OH (3 hours' drive). That's right... Huntington, WV and Charleston, WV: Two cities with pop. 50,000+, and not a single brewery, brewpub, or museum worth visiting. It's the same boring life -day after day- (to echo an earlier comment on this thread). Notably, I'm not an alcoholic, but I feel that brewery presence is an appropriate indicator of 'quality of life' provided that most cities in the temperate climate world have had a brewery since about 1600 AD (that's a conservative estimate). In addition, WV is the oldest state (in terms of average resident age)... now, you might be wondering: "How can WV be the 'most aged' state provided that the area (especially Huntington) is among the unhealthiest in the US?" Well, I'd be willing to float the hypothesis that young people move away as soon as they are able and, provided that an overwhelming majority of Marshall University students are WV residents (i.e., few out-of-staters come here), I'll submit that this hypothesis could be very easily supported. Thus, if you're a single professional (especially a 30-something), this is just about the worst place in the US to meet a potential mate. Some more interesting facts: WV is the most toothless state in the US (according to the ADA) and the most depressed state (according to the APA). Again, these are facts (or as close as we can get to them in the social sciences), and not my opinion. The incredible irony about this place (as another writer noted in this very thread, and with whom I couldn't agree more): West Virginians (those who remain, anyway) are *very* defensive of their state. In my opinion, it is their incredible mule-like stubbornness (coupled with regional poverty, depression, and an almost genetic knack for passive-aggression) that prevents the area from improving. As an example, the area around Huntington has an abundance of unoccupied mountains and hills... tons of them... so you might expect a wide array of camping and biking opportunities, as one would expect in Idaho, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Virginia, etc., right? Wrong. The lack of young people (and their intention to move away as soon as they're educated) practically stamps out any motivation to improve the area. Another opinion: Huntington is said to have "one of everything." Well, observations don't support that proposition (cases in point: there are no ethnic groceries or breweries). However, think about the consequences: If one brewery (or ethnic grocery) were to open here, exactly what would be their incentive to offer selection, quality, or value? The answer: There is no incentive, because the nearest competition is over two hours away! Any given Mexican restaurant will have sub-par Mexican food, as will any Chinese restaurant, grocery store - consumer product availability in general. You'll find yourself increasingly ordering products online (which, by the way, will take longer to deliver due to the "rural location"). In short, if you move here from any city in the US (of pop. 50,000 or greater), I can guarantee that you'll perceive a large drop in quality of life within one year - after the "honeymoon period," as it were (unless you're looking for a place to watch TV, eat unhealthy food, and be left alone). However, to be fair, after all this (some of it objective) negativity, I should point out a few positive aspects of the area: Cost of living is low, taxes and energy costs are low, and there's virtually no traffic in the Huntington area. Do you know why? Because *most people don't want to live here*! As the old adage provides, you get what you pay for.
Joe | Culloden, WV