Worst Place in America Tournament

[The Spirit of Radio]

You may recall that there was a Worst town in America thread quite some time ago. One thing I noticed was that there was no real agreement on the true Worst Town in America. That's why I'm suggesting a tournament. Everyone name the worst town in all 50 states. It can be a continuous list like one person does Alabama, the next does Alaska, etc... Then there could be a March Madness-like tournament to find a definite winner. There would be a round of 50, then narrowed down to 25, etc... Everyone, get nominating!

[Shagnasty]

Massachusetts

Nominee:
Lawrence

Backing up on Prevent Defense:
Brockton

[HubZilla]

Hawaii

Nominee:
Waianae

Although not the most pleasant place (Police just took out 800 homeless in tents on the beach), I don't expect anywhere that says x, Hawaii to last long in the tourney. We'll probably be in the Play-in game to play a #1 seed from the Rust Belt


Predicted Final Four:

1. Gary, Indiana
2. East St Louis, Illinois
3. Camden, New Jersey
4. And one Cinderella

[The Spirit of Radio]

For Maryland, I'd say Baltimore, even though it's pretty good, Maryland's a small state and I wouldn't expect it to last long in the tourney. Also, the District of Columbia is exempt because it is only one city and it would throw off the numbers by making it 51 choices instead of a nice round number like 50. For Virginia, I'll have to go with a book I have by Dave Gilmartin on this topic and say Virginia Beach. Once again, Virginia was a toughie like Maryland.

[twickster]

Camden's a contender. On this side of the river, I'll propose Chester for Pennsylvania.

[The Spirit of Radio]

Also, this isn't a nomination, I've never been to Connecticut, but I've heard that New Haven's pretty cruddy outside the Yale campus. Also, there's blood in the streets there Does anyone know where that's from?

[tashabot]

Are we going based on general miserable-ness, crime rate, or suckitude? Or all three?

From my experience:

Nevada: Wells.

My Final Four prediction:

Gary, Ind.
Camden, N.J.
East Orange, N.J.
Compton, Calif.

~Tasha

[tdn]

Originally Posted by Shagnasty

Massachusetts

Nominee:
Lawrence

Backing up on Prevent Defense:
Brockton

Revere

Parts of Salem

[The Spirit of Radio]

Originally Posted by tashabot

Are we going based on general miserable-ness, crime rate, or suckitude? Or all three?

Pretty much all three.

Originally Posted by tashabot

My Final Four prediction:

Gary, Ind.
Camden, N.J.
East Orange, N.J.
Compton, Calif.

~Tasha

I don't know, East St. Louis is a major contender, may push East Orange out of the Final Four. Plus, you can't have two from one state. One per state.

[Shagnasty]

Originally Posted by tdn

Revere

Hey, my BIL lives in Revere!

...no, you are absolutely right come to think of it. He could make any place a contender just by living there.

[The Spirit of Radio]

So as both Tashabot and Twickster have said, I guess we and declare Camden the worst town in New Jersey?

[tdn]

Originally Posted by Shagnasty

Hey, my BIL lives in Revere!

...no, you are absolutely right come to think of it. He could make any place a contender just by living there.

Sounds like a charmer.

Another nominee might be Mehfuh. I understand that's where ozone depletion got its start.

[HubZilla]

Originally Posted by The Spirit of Radio

So as both Tashabot and Twickster have said, I guess we and declare Camden the worst town in New Jersey?

New Jersey is going to be like the Southeastern Conference, hard to place just one team in.

[Geek Mecha]

Originally Posted by HubZilla

Hawaii

Nominee:
Waianae

I've always been amused at the one-letter spelling difference between Waianae and Waialae. Definitely one of those, "Be sure to enunciate when tourists ask for directions" places.

[Sternvogel]

As a former Ohioan, I nominate Youngstown (Mafia-ridden site of numerous shuttered steel plants) as the Buckeye State's entry.

[The Spirit of Radio]

Originally Posted by HubZilla

New Jersey is going to be like the Southeastern Conference, hard to place just one team in.

Yeah, but, once again, you have to choose one from each state and I'd say that nowhere in New Jersey, no matter how horrible, can beat Camden.

[rhythmonly]

TEXAS

Nominee:

Alpine.

Prediction: could go all the way, especially if judging committee travels there by Amtrak.

[Jayrot]

CALIFORNIA

Nominee: Palmdale

Prediction: Like the Hawaii nominee, it probably won't last long since it is in California. As shitty as it might be, it's at least near some good stuff.

[koeeoaddi]

Washington State

Nomination: Burien
Runner up: Kent

Wyoming
Rock Springs

[threemae]

After a 15 second deliberation, Colorado nominates scenic:

Pueblo, Colorado!

Okay, it's not that bad. We'll leave and expect our appearance check in the mail.

Also, I've eaten lunch in Rock Springs, Wyoming and I didn't think it seemed that bad.

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

Originally Posted by Shagnasty

Massachusetts

Nominee:
Lawrence

Backing up on Prevent Defense:
Brockton

What is so horrible about Brockton? I always hear this from Massachusettians.

I've never been there, but it was the location featured in the suspense film Crush, and it looked OK to me. Right on the river, old, pretty houses, some of them quite large. It seemed like a fairly upper middle class community, clean and well-kept.

[Frank]

Originally Posted by threemae

After a 15 second deliberation, Colorado nominates scenic:

Pueblo, Colorado!

Okay, it's not that bad. We'll leave and expect our appearance check in the mail.

Greeley. Or perhaps Craig.

Pueblo, at least, has a nice little zoo.

[NoClueBoy]

Originally Posted by Frank

Greeley. Or perhaps Craig.

Pueblo, at least, has a nice little zoo.

Um, that was the mall you were at.



Oklahoma!

Okmulgee.




I predict a Great 8 finish.

[Queen Bruin]

Originally Posted by Jayrot

CALIFORNIA

Nominee: Palmdale

Prediction: Like the Hawaii nominee, it probably won't last long since it is in California. As shitty as it might be, it's at least near some good stuff.

Oh I don't know, I think it's Lancaster you should be haytin' on (I live there). We should actually just nominate the whole Palmdale/Lancaster complex.

(Points to location: "You'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.")

[RedRosesForMe]

Gibsonton, Florida.

Shithole if there ever was one. However, what do you expect from a town founded by side show freaks?

[ASAKMOTSD]

On behalf of the (great) state of Michigan, I nominate Flint - former home of General Motors.

[Lightnin']

I nominate Waco. That town's only two claims to fame are Dr.Pepper and Branch Davidians.

I lived there for about two years. The high point was when I got exposed to rabies.

[Tangent]

Originally Posted by Lightnin'

I nominate Waco. That town's only two claims to fame are Dr.Pepper and Branch Davidians.

I came in to nominate Waco also. You left out it's third claim to fame, Baylor University, which I guess is a nice enough school, but the rest of the town leaves much to be desired.

[Nametag]

Palmdale? That's a perfectly unexceptionable desert town in LA county; not anywhere near the pit that Bakersfield is.

[Kilvert's Pagan]

is there a minimum population requirement, or at least a "it's gotta be generally known" requirement? I know a lot of places in Kentucky to nominate, but they're mostly really little.

I'd nominate Evanston Wyoming over Rock Springs. Or Rawlins as a tie-breaker.

I'd nominate Aurora, Colorado, or second the nomination for Greeley, over Pueblo. I like Pueblo... great Mexican food, friendly people, and areas of cool Victorian architecture. Just don't judge it from the interstate.

I'll second Youngstown, at least partially because I don't want Cleveland dragged into this. Of course, as a Cleveland child of the 60's, I should nominate Parma instead.

I'll also nominate Shiprock, New Mexico, unless it's too small.

[Enter the Flagon]

Originally Posted by Nametag

Palmdale? That's a perfectly unexceptionable desert town in LA county; not anywhere near the pit that Bakersfield is.

True, quite true, but have you ever been to Fontana? That's my entry.

[rexnervous]

My Kansan girlfriend nominates Garden City for the great state of Kansas! Unless you like cities with lots of meat-packing plants. Especially in the summer.

[Queen Bruin]

Originally Posted by Nametag

Palmdale? That's a perfectly unexceptionable desert town in LA county; not anywhere near the pit that Bakersfield is.

It's not as unexceptional as it used to be.

The homicide rate for persons ages 15 to 34 was not available for the Antelope Valley area, but countywide, the murders in that age group are double the national average, the report shows.
The number of unintentional drug-related deaths among adults in the Antelope Valley is the highest in the county and nearly double the countywide average.
Statistics showed that while the Antelope Valley has about 3% of the county's adult population, it was responsible for 11% of the admissions of persons seeking treatment for methamphetamine abuse.
The number of deaths from vehicle crashes also outpaced all other areas and was more than double the rest of the county on average.

Although I'll agree that Fontana is quite bad. I had one occasion to go there and I pray I never do again.

[5 time champ]

FWIW, the Casino Queen in East St Louis has the loosest slot machines in the country.

What's wrong with Rock Springs, WY? IIRC, the scenery is nice, if a little rocky.

[Happy Lendervedder]

Originally Posted by ASAKMOTSD

On behalf of the (great) state of Michigan, I nominate Flint - former home of General Motors.

I second this nomination. Flint's five times worse than Detroit.


What's the criteria for "worst?" I worked in Jefferson City, MO for about six months, and pretty much wanted to slit my wrists by the end of it out of boredom and depression, so I'd like to nominate Jefferson City. However, if we're looking at crime, economic depression and pollution, I imagine there are worse places in Missouri.

However, I'm still gonna toss Jeff Shitty, Misery into the pool of worst cities.

[Siam Sam]

For Texas, my nominee is the town of Plains.

[Shagnasty]

Originally Posted by Spectre of Pithecanthropus

What is so horrible about Brockton? I always hear this from Massachusettians.

I've never been there, but it was the location featured in the suspense film Crush, and it looked OK to me. Right on the river, old, pretty houses, some of them quite large. It seemed like a fairly upper middle class community, clean and well-kept.

I have never seen the movie but I suspect it was shot off-location. Like most locations in Massachusetts, it can be superficially pretty in a Massachusetts kind of way. However, Brockton is what some might consider to be a distant Boston suburb but it is mainly a small city left to neglect in its own right. There is nothing upper middle class about it although there are probably some decent homes on the fringes. Brockton is a study case in what happens when the traditional population mostly abandons a town and the lower cost of living starts to attract degenerates from all around in a vicious cycle and that starts to feed itself.

Lawrence is basically the same except worse. A traditionally industrial town was crushed when the industries left and the poor, desperate, and criminal canabilized the whole place for themselves with little traditional structure to keep things under control.

[Lsura]

Originally Posted by Sternvogel

As a former Ohioan, I nominate Youngstown (Mafia-ridden site of numerous shuttered steel plants) as the Buckeye State's entry.

Seeing as how I live there...I came into this thread to say Youngstown.

[Lamar Mundane]

Originally Posted by Kilvert's Pagan

I'd nominate Aurora, Colorado, or second the nomination for Greeley, over Pueblo. I like Pueblo... great Mexican food, friendly people, and areas of cool Victorian architecture. Just don't judge it from the interstate.

I'd say Aurora or Greeley as well. Pueblo isn't at all bad for a small city. Colorado is tough, there isn't a city or town with really bad crime, and the poorest towns are often located in some of the most gorgeous scenery in the country.

There must be some eastern plains town with a feed lot and a bunch of meth addicts, but I've never seen it. Those eastern plains folks are some of the nicest I've ever met. Some of the gas towns in the northwest don't seem all that great, but drive five miles and you're in a Marlboro commercial.

We surrender.

[Shagnasty]

The Southern states are indeed impoverished in places and very rich in others but they have long been that way and that is part of their character and the reason why states like Mississippi have a disproportionate influence world-wide on things like music and culture.

My home state of Louisiana has plenty of poor, racially segregated towns but they tend to live in a quiet homeostatus unlike some of the poor, Northern industrialized cities and blend into interesting if not contrasting cultures.

For Louisiana, I nominate Lake Providence, Louisiana. It is one of, if not the most, poorest towns in the country. The median household income is less than $17,000. Sitting right on the Mississippi River, it is one of the closet places you will find to mimic white overlordship over an extremely poor black population of the days gone by.

[Civil Guy]

Can't help but think this might be a little unfair: some of these places are sort of naturally impoverished and it's hard to tell whether its really their fault that they're dumps. I'm thinking, for instance, towns on Native American reservations - there's one in Montana that I'm thinking of that I will NOT nominate for the reason just given. But me and my GF should have kept on driving.

Compton is sort of South Central L.A., but not strictly so. That said, South Central L.A. is pretty bad. Ah, but it probably doesn't qualify, as it's not a separate town.

[dalej42]

For Texas, I actually think the Midland/Odessa area is the worst part of the state.

[Least Original User Name Ever]

Originally Posted by ASAKMOTSD

On behalf of the (great) state of Michigan, I nominate Flint - former home of General Motors.

It's either Flint or Jackson. I've never spent any time in either, but I have a hard time believing they're any better than Detroit.

Detroit might be a tough place to live (in some places) but it's just not the despair-ridden place that Flint is. Flint is where "meh" is manufactured. There's just nothing there.

[Beware of Doug]

Originally Posted by The Spirit of Radio

Also, this isn't a nomination, I've never been to Connecticut, but I've heard that New Haven's pretty cruddy outside the Yale campus.

New Haven's a distant third behind Hartford and Bridgeport. Bridgeport's so far gone people there envy Newark.

[Running_In_Place]

Nevada

Winnemucca.

Utah

Tooele, out of sheer irritation. It's actually a rather pretty town, but the people suck.

Texas

Snyder. An incredibly dinky town in west Texas. There is nothing there.

[TristramAiblins]

No one has put Butte out there yet? Well, I've only driven through, but I went 5 mph faster just to get out quicker.

Oh, and another nomination for East St. Louis. The only thing they've got there are abandoned buildings, casinos, and strip clubs.

[Garfield226]

Originally Posted by TristramAiblins

No one has put Butte out there yet? Well, I've only driven through, but I went 5 mph faster just to get out quicker.

Oh, and another nomination for East St. Louis. The only thing they've got there are abandoned buildings, casinos, and strip clubs.

Cairo doesn't even have the casinos or strip clubs.

Depending on the definition of "worst," I nominate Cairo.

[tashabot]

Originally Posted by Running_In_Place

Nevada

Winnemucca.

Dude, Winnemucca's got nothing on Wells. There's nothing in Wells except for a liquor store and cow shit.

Oh, and a Motel 6. I was stranded there for two days.

~Tasha

[movingfinger]

The most visually depressing town I can recall is Gray's Harbor, Washington. I drove though it in 1971 and was plunged into depression by the dismal air of decrepitude. I visited again in 1998 and wondered if I would find any change. Yeah; it was even more run-down and desperate.

[Kilvert's Pagan]

Originally Posted by Civil Guy

Can't help but think this might be a little unfair: some of these places are sort of naturally impoverished and it's hard to tell whether its really their fault that they're dumps. I'm thinking, for instance, towns on Native American reservations...

Fair point. If that's the case, I should withdraw my nomination of Shiprock, NM. Maybe Las Vegas NM instead?