Coronavirus spreads. But don't panic! (topical thread)

[Aroura]

Progressive, yet you need to be a millionaire to live in their cities, and wade through piles of homeless folks. Things don't quite add up out on the west coast.

That's completely untrue in both Oregon and Washington (and northern California as well).  Seattle and Portland both have more affordable housing and rent than some little towns out in BFE, not to mention other cities like Tacoma, Eugene etc, that are very working class. I know, I lived in and around Portland for about half my life, and various other areas in either of those states for most of the rest of it, all while not being rich.

Some big cities in southern California have serious housing and homelessness problems.  That isn't the entirety of the west coast, not even close to it. That would be like lumping Charleston WV in with NY NY.

https://www.security.org/resources/homeless-statistics/

Raw numbers, they had Cali #1, Washington #5, Oregon #7.

Adjusted by population, Oregon #4, Washington #5, Cali #6.

Eugene, Oregon has the highest homeless rate per 100k in the country (2018 numbers)

Something wonky is going on there.  Maybe it's the heroin rather than real estate prices in some of the areas?  But a lot of roofless folks over yonder.

I don't know what your point here is, because I'm not saying there aren't housing problems, all of America is suffering housing problems, thanks largely to neoliberal policies.  I'm saying San Fransisco is Not Portland.

Eugene (and Salem) are cesspools of severe income inequality, and Eugene is Trump country (We lived just north of there in 2016).

But you specifically said "yet you need to be a millionaire to live in their cities" which is just blatantly untrue.   I get it, hyperbole makes a more powerful sounding statement, but it doesn't actually help your argument, whatever it is.  I mean, the south and the bible belt siphons money off of the wealthier coastal states in general.

If your point is that the west coast should not try and become a separate country, I agree. It's a stupid overreaction, and our politicians aren't any less corrupt or somehow better than anywhere else in the country.  I'm just saying, you don't have to be a millionaire to live here, and there aren't "piles" of homeless people.

As for your Heroine comment, that drug problem is actually much worse in the middle of the country than on the coats.  By a lot.  Assuming homeless people are drug addicts is gross.  They are more likely to be suburban moms who hurt their back, and homeless people are often ill folks who've slipped through our shitty healthcare system.

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/lea...e-by-city/





And look at this!  The coasts have the LEAST overall drug use.