Which is the worst state in the United States of America

there are things to love about all the states

Matter of taste, really. I went with Delaware.

http://www.househunt.com/washington-dc/washingtondc-neighborhoods/images/map_washington-dc.gif

am0n you want this:

Worst American-controlled territory left off of the worst state poll

florida but maybe virginia

I don't think I've ever been to any of the really awful states, so it is hard to say. I've heard bad things about Arkansas.

I would say Texas has the most pernicious effects on the country as a whole, but that's only because it's so huge.

Glad this is getting a second go. I hope the two fucks who voted LA last time around have dropped off the board. I was really torn b/w TX and MS, but ultimately had to go with MS b/c the Butthole Surfers, Galveston, and Roky are pretty rad and Stennis Space Station somehow managed to be a school field trip letdown every year.

fwiw a really awful family tragedy has basically made it impossible for me not to look at LA extremely negatively; I don't remember if I voted for it last time or not

there are things to love about all the states

otm

yeah. just ask sufjan stevens.

what is there to love about New Mexico

xxp yeah yeah there are definitely a lot of things to love about all the states but im feelin south carolina as worst right now

but if ppl are voting TX or FL because of righty dirty tricks they might also want to take a look at OH and the shit it pulls every four years

parts of new mexico are beautiful!

what is there to love about New Mexico

breathtaking natural beauty? may not compel you tho in which case my bad, there is also good food

what is there to love about New Mexico

― Wrinkles, I'll see you on the other side (Shakey Mo Collier), Thursday, February 18, 2010 4:40 PM (40 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

food, landscape, funny taos new-agers

but if ppl are voting TX or FL because of righty dirty tricks they might also want to take a look at OH and the shit it pulls every four years

I'm voting texas cause it's texas

can't imagine new mexico being in the top third of this poll tbh

i like all the states, really.

hey I was just asking

xp: JD truth bomb right there, my in-laws drive people to polling locations every year and have many stories about how polling stations for ppl who might vote lefty are put in inaccessible places and will get moved at the last minute without any notification

xpost to iatee man take a walk through Lubbock & think of Buddy Holly in his garage listening to blues records and thinking "man I gotta play music like this somehow" and making those beautiful records

Texas is sweet whatever else it has to answer for and there are a lot of awesome creative people from there & still there doin awesome things.

florida but maybe virginia

Uh, VA is awesome, used to go hiking all the time in Shenandoah when I lived there. Also, my mom's family first settled there, in what eventually became West Va., back in the 1710s.

it would be nice to have a thread where we all had to find three good things about each state

and south Texas is so weird and cool too, has one of the best & raddest recording studios in the country

xp to dan - You said on the original thread that you went with Florida. If you're going for LA this time I can totally understand given the circumstances. My ire is more directed towards people like the guy who said he voted LA b/c of Katrina.

I am voting LA because of Mardi Gras.

it would be nice to have a thread where we all had to find three good things about each state

Yes, all of the negativity is boring.

haha my trip to Tallahassee must have been way worse than I remembered

also I am totally fine with this thread being a total US State lovefest regardless of the title/poll results

This is why you can't vote TX, despite all of the despicable things about it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cnx3fWJHkUo

Shakey Mo, do you dislike NM, and if so, why?

Was that jokez, Laurel??!

Probably 60% joeks.

Delaware isn't a state, it's the Grand Duchy of Citibank.

Rather than blame a place for a natural disaster that it didn't deserve, and after which it got totally screwed by the supposed "support systems" it was counting on, I'm blaming LA for hosting a giant drunk-fest and encouraging tourists to behave like animals regularly. Also I dislike crowds and loud noises. And fun.

noodling and whatever traces remain of woody guthrie's "spirit" are not enough to save you from my vote in this poll, oklahoma

hmm, connecticut maybe

Shakey Mo, do you dislike NM, and if so, why?

nah I just don't know much about it apart from a trip to Santa Fe as a child

New Mexico – is that the one with all the sand?

gut feeling is florida

i kinda impulsively voted for RI even though i can find plenty of nice things to say about providence at the least

delaware's probably worse tiny-state-wise but i haven't spent any time there, only driven though it.

im feelin south carolina as worst right now

Charleston is fantastic – some of the best restaurants and best-looking people in the country. I dunno about the rest of the state.

My first instinct is to say my home state of NC. However, my view of it is skewed from having lived there for so long and under such dire circumstances. And they have good BBQ, so that's a plus.

Delaware has tax free shopping and nice beaches.

I would have to go with Oklahoma.

Wow, kind of funny that the deadly combination of a big yearly celebration of life and one street's worth of girls-gone-wild-frat-fest located in a neighborhood with one of the richest musical traditions in world history is the worst thing that America has to offer.

makes you think

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWmVTbWHgFc

I might have to pick Wisconsin/Iowa because of lol state rivalries

Don't worry, I'm blaming LA for other things, too. Like okra.

I might have to pick Wisconsin/Iowa because of lol state rivalries

it's why I voted for both Minnesota & Missouri lol

Recent research: I have been in Florida, Georgia, and Texas today. They all kind of such but Florida is still the worst.

today? I hope you got sleep

I've never been to Florida (or the USA) but from the evidence I've seen (Will Smith's video for "Miami") it looks pretty good.

I've lived in Florida and I've lived in Georgia and Georgia is worse, believe me

The board knows I'm no sentimentalist, so I'm curious: the fuck makes Georgia, Alabama, etc. better than Florida?

I should also note: South Florida is not Florida.

North Florida is culturally similar to Georgia but still better. Gainesville as a college town is better than Athens. Plus North Florida has other charms that Georgia lacks.

the fuck makes Georgia, Alabama, etc. better than Florida

Atlanta.

Last year I spent a week in ATL with my mom (flew in from China, we met there -- in January to be clear.) It was so nice, we had so much fun there, everyone was friendly, we went to some great restaurants, saw a stand up comic who killed us with her dry stoned wit. I want to live there. I know stoned comedy isn't for everyone tho.

I found some very affordable tickets from Tampa to London, but for me the best route was to go to Orlando first. The difference between Orlando and Tampa was striking to me. Maybe it was just the areas of the respective cities I saw but people in Orlando seemed positively hostile much of the time, Tampa was much more welcoming. (I was in downtown Tampa, and the area of Orlando was between the airport and downtown.)

Charleston is also not far from home to me, and what I usually tell people is that they really specialize in their own unique brand of racism in Charleston. Although my cousins went to college there and say the cops will often profile poor looking white people if they're in the wrong neighborhood too. Of course I'm sure the brutality is much much worse against minorities.

Josefa why do you think Gainesville is better than Athens?

between the airport and downtown = yeaaaaaaaah, hard pass. best parts of Orlando to check out are the areas surrounding exits 84 and 85, really.

downtown DOES have some nice areas - the trick is to hit the 'other' side of Orange Ave. once you start to hit the 'club' area, yer fucked.

I have had some lovely experiences at Orlando City Stadium though. having professional soccer in my backyard and also being able to see touring squads come play there has been a godsend (like the US Women's National Team, World Cup qualifiers, etc).

I adore East Atlanta (the artier, more woke side near The Earl, at least)

I’ve only had 3 experiences in Florida, 1) first with a college friend’s parents in Naples for the holidays, the beach was beautiful and the ambience seemed unreal, it was almost a clichéd country club atmosphere. I watched Some Like it Hot with his family and was embarrassed because I thought that they knew I was gay and that that was the reason we were watching it, but they seemed to love it and they accepted me, 2) the second was going to parties and bars in Miami Beach and Fort Lauderdale with gay friends some years later, 3) later had a more sedate time in Sarasota going to restaurants and walks on the beach with my sister, her husband, and her in-laws

They were all different but pretty good and not like any other experiences I’ve ever had. They were all in the wintertime though, not sure I would like it in the summer

Josefa why do you think Gainesville is better than Athens?

Better local music scene ime, and a less pretentious one, although none of the bands I liked from Gainesville ever made it big. Admittedly my frame of reference may be way out of date. I just thought what was happening in Gainesville in my day was more creative, and what was happening in Athens was too constricted by the idea of being "Southern."

Gainesville has quite a few good concert spots/bars. I like The Atlantic.

Also Gainesville is not near any big city, so it has to be it's own oasis in the cultural void, whereas Athens can kind of fall back on the fact that it's near Atlanta.

sorry for the extra apostrophe

mostly remember Athens as a hub for Elephant 6 in the late 90s

what was happening in Athens was too constricted by the idea of being "Southern."

Seems spot on. I can't name any bands from Gainesville tbh. When I was coming up Chapel Hill was the main scene hub, maybe that's a bit played out in a similar way to Athens. But when we became more interested in raves and clubs, Greensboro had some of the best action. I was living in NC by then, and would go to ATL for events once in a while.

Never been to Athens or Gainesville actually, but I like the region around Athens because that landscape suits me -- it's not really that different from Chapel Hill, a little more hilly maybe?

in the late 90s

Mmmhmm, that's when I'm referring to as well. There was a crew from Atlanta called Earthtone Soundsystem that our little rave scene in Asheville was affiliated with.

Full disclosure we were also big fans of Dubtribe Soundsystem back then.

If the poll were done today I think my native state of Missouri would rise in the rankings. Probably third.

Full disclosure we were also big fans of Dubtribe Soundsystem back then.

Do It Then

Oregon may have overly rosy public relations, but it is far from the worst state on any measure, including racism.

Full disclosure we were also big fans of Dubtribe Soundsystem back then.

Do It Then

Ha thank you! I wanted to pull some meta zing out of that but I just didn't have it in me.

(For what it's worth, Earthtone Soundsystem was nowhere near as trendy/cultish as Dubtribe. All of them that I met were genuinely cool people, much like Cloudfactory in the SF Bay Area for example.)

Regarding Oregon, it's not just the historic white supremacy. As was briefly mentioned upthread the demographics continue to be quite monochrome compared to most of the South etc. According to the US Census, Oregon is 87% white, 2% Black; Mississippi is 59% white and 38% Black. (It is best to only capitalize "Black", not "white"; or to capitalize both? Genuine style question, no troll.)

So yes on average OR is light years more progressive than MS. But I would guess that even in Oregon on average there is more support for Republicans among whites than among Blacks in Mississippi. Maybe I'm wrong.

why is delaware so high up on this? the tax haven thing? it seems innocuous.

in oregon (along w/ louisiana) you could be convicted of a crime if 10 people on a jury said guilty and 2 said not guilty until the u.s. supreme court outlawed it last year

Oregon is 87% white, 2% Black

There's a reason why the Proud Boys et al. are always marching in Portland and not, like, here.

Kentucky is a tough one. They do have two asshole senators, but they have a democratic governor, and there is tons of cool shit in the state, from the bourbon trail to the Muhammed Ali Center to Mammoth Cave to lots of good music. Plus, the state is really pretty. Also, centrally located, and not too big.

tipsy to thread!

(It is best to only capitalize "Black", not "white"; or to capitalize both? Genuine style question, no troll.)

I'm curious what the thinking is on this as well. lowercase white vs uppercase Black might on some level support the implication that whiteness is "default"

unsurprisingly it seems like a no win situation the more you think about it

Here you go:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/05/insider/capitalized-black.html

I noticed just the other day that the New Yorker capitalizes "Black," which maybe they've done for years? No idea what they do with "white."

about what I figured. not really a satisfying answer but that's the nature of style (and change in progress). xp

the New Yorker capitalizes "Black," which maybe they've done for years?

I believe "everyone" (meaning "the media") started capitalizing Black more or less in the last 12 months. I know that's when I started doing it in my own writing, for Stereogum (and in my upcoming book).

I miss Atlanta so much :(

xpost

Here's the revised AP style guide on "Black" etc (it's dated from July 2020 but I saw a Guardian article from June, referencing the AP decision to capitalize Black):

https://apnews.com/article/9105661462

Atl is a legit great city. And if you don’t have to be in the car much its ranking goes way up imo. The urban canopy really is remarkable.

For sure, the predominant car culture is main issue there. But within the city limits at least it looks like they're doing their best to move away from that.

(I was without a car for a few days there taking care of some business, and I have to say it's quite cool how there are little public shuttle buses that go all over the place and which seem to have sliding scale payment. Of course MUNI in SF is also sliding scale if you know how to avoid the driver's eyes as you slip in the back door. I would never!)

*main issue I have

*the

Gonna go against the grain here and say I found Atlanta to be pretty depressing and grey

Apparently it's Alabama, but even that is better than DC:

https://today.yougov.com/topics/travel/articles-reports/2021/04/13/us-states-ranked-best-worst-according-americans

if you look at the Bloomberg Vaccine Tracker, Alabama is the only state with a mega light-green shade.

why am i not shocked.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0331/3061/products/Mutual-Feelings_60x36_Flag_Photo_1200x1200.jpg

Jersey tied with Iowa and Arkansas.

Been trying to think up what trouble those three states could get into together, with no luck.

I reckon TX has this now

otm

Certainly top contender for worst state that has the most awesome things in it ruined by the shittiness.

Nov, 2022 is when we're hopefully going to get rid of Abbott. If Texas doesn't do something about the bastard I'm going to have to move. Fuck this shit.

If you lose Abbott, you're only going to get somebody worse because he was primaried.