If Republicans are so good with money, support marriage, and leave no child behind, why these facts?
Here's the states with the highest divorce rates:
41 Arizona Red
42 Florida Red
43 New Mexico Purple
44 Idaho Red
Alabama Red
46 Indiana Red
47 Wyoming Red
48 Tennessee Red
49 Oklahoma Red
50 Arkansas Red
51 Nevada Red
Which state has the lowest divorce rate? That liberal bastion of Massachusetts (where even the gays can marry!)
Here's the Ten "dumbest" states:
41 Tennessee (Red)
42 Hawaii (Blue)
43 Alabama (Red)
44 Alaska (Red)
45 Louisiana (Red)
46 California (Blue)
47 Nevada (Red)
48 New Mexico (Purple)
49 Mississippi (Red)
50 Arizona (Red)
Here are the Ten Poorest States:
1. Louisiana (Red)
2. Mississippi (Red)
3. Arkansas (Red)
4. West Virginia (Blue)
5. New Mexico (Red)
6. Utah (Red)
7. Idaho (Red)
8. South Carolina (Red)
9. Kentucky (Red)
10. Alabama (Red)
Sources:
http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0104652.html
http://www.morganquitno.com/edrank.htm
http://www.divorcereform.org/94staterates.html
I would garner it's because they continuously vote for bad policies, but that's just my theory.
Here's a word from Economist, Ed Kilgore:
"Like some of today's third world countries, the South, right up to the 1970s, was paralyzed by the idea that decent wages, unionization, protection of natural resources, business regulation, progressive taxes, and quality education were all impossible because they would "price" the region out of opportunities for economic development. All of the South's social and economic weaknesses were perceived as essential to maintaining a "good business climate." And that benighted belief also helped perpetuate Jim Crow, since the ability to keep roughly a third of the region's population in semi-serfdom gave the South a cost advantage no other part of the country could ever meet."
Gradually, by the 1970s and 1980s, southern political leaders, and even many business leaders, woke up to the fact that deliberately maintaining a low standard of living wasn't worth the paltry payoff in low-wage textile jobs."
The rest from Kilgore:
"And slowly but surely, a consensus developed that decent education and adequate public services were positive, not negative, factors in long-term economic development. The states that pursued this "high road" strategy--especially North Carolina and Georgia--tended to prosper. The states that stayed on the low road--especially Mississippi and Alabama--didn't."
Kilgore is a Democrat, yes. And therefore aren't a thoroughly un-biased source. But hihis words make sense.
Why do so many companies choose Canada over the US now? Because the companies don't have to pay for healthcare. It's cheaper to pay the taxes than it is to be responsible for employee healthcare.