Is Florida the Sunset State?

[Lunican]

Is Florida the Sunset State?

Water Crisis Mortgage Fraud Political Dysfunction Algae Polluted Beaches Declining Crops Failing Public Schools Foreclosures. Greetings from Florida, where the winters are great!

Otherwise, there's trouble in paradise. We're facing our worst real estate meltdown since the Depression. We've got a water crisis, insurance crisis, environmental crisis and budget crisis to go with our housing crisis. We're first in the nation in mortgage fraud, second in foreclosures, last in high school graduation rates. Our consumer confidence just hit an all-time low, and our icons are in trouble--the citrus industry, battered by freezes and diseases; the Florida panther, displaced by highways and driveways; the space shuttle, approaching its final countdown. New research suggests that the Everglades is collapsing, that our barrier beaches could be under water within decades, that a major hurricane could cost us $150 billion.

Full Article:
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1821648,00.html

[BridgeTroll]

Geez... the good news is we arent in California.  Every state has its own litany of problems.  Ours are no more daunting than anyone elses...

[reednavy]

Any reason why they're picking on Florida?

Stupid yankee assholes.

[RiversideGator]

Not to worry.  Whenever Time catches onto a trend, that almost always means it is over.  So, Florida's troubles must be over and we are now on the road to recovery.   

[Ocklawaha]

Water Crisis Mortgage Fraud Political Dysfunction Algae Polluted Beaches Declining Crops Failing Public Schools Foreclosures. Greetings from Florida, where the winters are great!

Otherwise, there's trouble in paradise. We're facing our worst real estate meltdown since the Depression. We've got a water crisis, insurance crisis, environmental crisis and budget crisis to go with our housing crisis. We're first in the nation in mortgage fraud, second in foreclosures, last in high school graduation rates. Our consumer confidence just hit an all-time low, and our icons are in trouble--the citrus industry, battered by freezes and diseases; the Florida panther, displaced by highways and driveways; the space shuttle, approaching its final countdown. New research suggests that the Everglades is collapsing, that our barrier beaches could be under water within decades, that a major hurricane could cost us $150 billion

.

So what has changed? I mean like duh, send in another panther...the last one was delicious! Damned Yankees don't have a life anyway, summer must have fell on a long weekend this year and someone had more time to sit on the front porch with his laptop.

DEO VINDICE Y'ALL!

OCKLAWAHA

[Driven1]

much of the article focuses on the maladies of s. florida.  if we had half-way decent leadership, jax could stand out from the crowd.  oh well.  chalk it up to an additional lost opportunity.

lol - and i just remembered...our new slogan  - "Where Florida Begins"

[Captain Zissou]

I don't know why they pick on the education system so much.  While our graduation rates are low (whose aren't?), we also boast some of the best public schools in the county (Stanton, Paxson, Nease, Suncoast).  This again may be south florida dragging Jacksonville down.

[Driven1]

I don't know why they pick on the education system so much.  While our graduation rates are low (whose aren't?), we also boast some of the best public schools in the county (Stanton, Paxson, Nease, Suncoast).  This again may be south florida dragging Jacksonville down.

no, i bet we drag them down in this area.  graduation rate is ridiculous here.  i don't remember (we were discussing it on another thread here recently) but i think like only 55% of high school students actually graduate in duval.

[BridgeTroll]

I don't know why they pick on the education system so much.  While our graduation rates are low (whose aren't?), we also boast some of the best public schools in the county (Stanton, Paxson, Nease, Suncoast).  This again may be south florida dragging Jacksonville down.

no, i bet we drag them down in this area.  graduation rate is ridiculous here.  i don't remember (we were discussing it on another thread here recently) but i think like only 55% of high school students actually graduate in duval.

This is where we beat L.A. and NYC...

http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/dc/2008/40districts.h27.pdf

[Driven1]

wow - that's just sad.  we BARELY (by .2) beat NYC.