Quote:
Originally Posted by Natural
Oregon(Portland) is currently the causality of several events acting concurrent/successional.
1. Covid
2. Political Demonstrations
3. Homeless/ Crime
4. Dysfunctional State, City. Local Gov
5. Cultural War with far Right Wing Interests attaching Oregon's vitality
along with other Blue/Technocratic Regions.
The mentioned events have begun to dismantle the reputation, economy of the State. Any single event or two would not be an economy killer, but a succession of multiple events is fatal. IMO the current Cultural War Event underway in the Country ( Red vs Blue) has inflicted the largest blow to Oregon. Everywhere on the Social Media Platforms are Right Extremists who are trolling hateful Anti - Portland propaganda, showcasing the Homeless, Crime, Store closings, Antifa Conspiracies and other disinformation which is proving to be a very effective weapon ( death of a thousand cuts). The current issues afflicting Portland are also nationwide in scale, affecting all markets. Portland is an easy target-low hanging fruit to exploit! It is no accident that this economic downturn is occurring and can make the inference that it is actually being orchestrated. This downcycle in Oregon could last another 2-5 years depending the next years Election Cycle and /or termination the current Social/ Economic Cycle....hard to tell for sure because there is no simple solution with so many moving pieces.
Look around the Country and take notice that the vast majority of hyper growth /success oriented locations are Ultra Conservative Red States with the following characteristics-Secrets of Success??
EXTREME:
Pro Business
Tax Incentives/Subsidies for Corp
Anti Environment
Voting Rights( Gerrymandering, Accessibility to vote)
Anti Women/Human rights
Texas checks all the boxes
Oregon checks no boxes.
The economic climate is getting competitively fierce and all the the old rules of fair play are being discarded. It is more like gang warfare with lines being drawn and only causalities. Winner take all spoils (companies, jobs, monetary growth). How States like Oregon are able to function in this environment in the future is uncertain.
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This is a very bizarre assessment. It's also an overly broad and disconnected set of factors you mention. Let's just focus on the obvious - homelessness, drugs and crime. Those are particularly bad in west coast states. The city of Portland and Multnomah County are particularly lousy at addressing these issues, which could explain the net loss of population in the last couple years for Multnomah County. Every state dealt with covid and it's not a distinguishing factor. Many cities in Oregon are extremely pro-business (and so is the state which allows for tax subsidies for large employers moving to the state and for tech companies with expensive equipment). Being anti-environment, anti-democratic, or anti women/human rights is not a demonstrable recipe for success. Cultural wars have nothing to do with this. I've read about people moving from places in Indiana to places in Texas to live in a more progressive community. I've read about people from relatively higher cost-of-living states move to Texas because it's cheaper. The bottom line is the cost-of-living and local environments. Texas is not bright red. All the urban areas are very blue. To oversimplify this at a state level is really missing the mark.