Unhappiest city in America

So according to Business Week, I live in the unhappiest city in America. Take a look at the stats:

Portland, Oregon.

Overall rank: 1*
Depression rank: 1
Suicide rank: 12
Crime (property and violent) rank: 24
Divorce rate rank: 4
Cloudy days: 222
Unemployment rate (December 2008): 7.8%

I was reading some of the comments on Business Week and our local rag that passes as a newspaper, and Portlanders were actually incredulous, even somewhat angry that Portland earned this dubious distinction. It doesn’t take a genius to know why most Portlanders are unhappy. It’s a four letter word: jobs.

Portland is a beautiful city, blessed with gorgeous weather in the spring and summer and some of the most picturesque scenery in the United States. In this area, Portland can compete with just about any location. It has snow capped mountains, lush green forests, the incredible Columbia gorge and is only about an hour and a half away from some beautiful ocean beaches.

The problem is that you can’t eat scenery. Portland has been losing jobs for years. Many companies won’t locate here because the city has a deserved reputation for being anti-business. The huge business taxes and a city council that has mixed up priorities just doesn’t help. What’s worse is that the 7.8% unemployment rate is deceiving…the actual rate of unemployment is probably far higher if you factor in people that are chronically under-employed. If you want to find a job waitressing or working for tips at a coffee shop, you can find jobs like that in Portland. However, if you want to find a professional job, say something suitable for a college graduate with some experience, this isn’t the city for you.

This isn’t to say the city is all bad. However, there’s been a few times where you just get exasperated when you see a city council work so hard not to offend bicycle riders (who are a huge constiuency here) and not focus in attracting business or develop the economy.

If I sound a little bitter, it’s probably because I am. It’s been increasingly clear that I don’t fit in this city. It’s not that I dislike the emphasis on green, sustainability, alternative transportation or containing urban sprawl. I think those *are* important issues. However, I dislike seeing these things tossed out to crush any initiative to realistically talk about economic development. People have to make choices, and Portlanders are clearly happy (or unhappy) to have the privilege of staring at picturesque landscape while they are either collecting unemployment or working for minimum wage.

I wish more Portlanders would drink up more of that coffee that they’re so famous for and realize that people who are able to work, feed and clothe themselves adequately won’t be unhappy no matter where they are. As for me, I’m giving notice now that I’m looking to relocate.

So what does this have to do with games, anime or science fiction? Honestly, not a thing. Just had to get this off my chest.

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