
Forbes Magazine came out with its list of "America's Fastest Dying Cities". Out of 10 locations, Ohio has four cities on the list: Cleveland, Youngstown, Dayton and Canton.
High unemployment, a fleeing population and lack of economic growth make up the measuring tools Forbes used to compile the list.
Behind Ohio, Michigan is second with two cities on the list: Flint and Detroit. Flints unemployment is now close to 10 percent.
So far this decade, 115,000 people have left Cleveland. When the number of people coming to Cleveland is added in, there is still a loss of 51,000 people in eight years. That is close to 20 people leaving every day and possibly never coming back. Unemployment in Cleveland this past June hit 7.7 percent compared to just over 3 percent in 2000. GDP growth for the city is listed as 1.7 percent.
Canton's GDP yearly growth was a mere 0.7 percent, according to Forbes.
Forbes Magazine goes on to say only Pittsburgh and New Orleans witnessed sharper declines in population. New Orleans had Hurricane Katrina, but Cleveland has large companies who keep trimming its workforce.
Here's the list of 'dying cities' in no particular order from FORBES Magazine.
Cleveland, OH
Youngstown, OH
Dayton, OH
Canton, OH
Detroit, MI
Flint, MI
Buffalo, NY
Springfield, MA
Scranton, PA
Charleston, WV
We've been dying here in the rust belt for quite a while.
The patient is near death, time to call in the mourners.
Why is it that all the disaster aid is sent to US cities with floods, mud slides and forest fires that repeat themselves over and over ? Where is the aid for US cities who have been left to slow rot ? Why does it have to be an emergency to qualify for aid? A real disaster is played out in Detroit day and day as this once proud, productive US city crumbles. Where are the news casts and the cries for aid? Scew Detroit, screw Cleveland and Buffalo, it's not news. Actually, aid for any of the cities on this list would not be necessary if people would simply buy American made cars. Ohio and Michigan could then go back to being productive and thus be once again a source of revenue to support the disasters in California and Louisiana...just as before.
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