A great thing about the United States is that each state can do things differently. Then, by comparison, we can see which ideas work and which ones don't. In going through lists of various attributes for states, a certain pattern emerges. The most notable is that, in just about every category, the top ten are dominated by blue stares, whereas the bottom ten are dominated by red States. Even though there is a clear religious component involved, there are also structural differences. Here is a state by state ranking that puts Colorado on top. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/economy Here is one about innovation, that puts Colorado at 5th place. https://wallethub.com/edu/most-innovative-states/31890/ In the last round of testing, for eighth graders, in math and science, Colorado ranked number one. This is by no accident. When Colorado first became a state, it was decided that it support three industries, mining, agriculture and technology/manufacturing. In order to support these they also created three college systems. The School of Mines, for mining, Colorado State University, a land grant college, for agriculture, and the University of Colorado for manufacturing. Not surprising, these industries have long thrived in Colorado. With tourism being a later addition. Colorado is one if those states that allows for citizen initiatives, a direct democracy thing that is a liberal thing to do. Colorado was the first state to give women the right to vote. The first state to forbid segragation. The first to decriminalize and then the first to legalize marijuana. Colorado is one of the more educated states, with the Boulder area being the most educated of anywhere. And it is one of the least religious states with Boulder being the least religious city in the country. Colorado may be the healthiest state in the country. It is a very outdoor kind of state, with extreme sports being popular, along with slow peaceful walking. And the people tend to be better looking. When I go around the country, there are two things I notice. That the people elsewhere don't look as good and healthy as they do in Colorado. The other is trash. Colorado is a clean state. Except for parts of Denver and Arvada, there isn't a lot of litter. Not like one sees elsewhere. A lot of why Colorado succeeds is because it has a close relationship between government, business, education, and the citizenry. Colorado has gone to an all mail-in voting system, similar to what they had in Oregon and Washington. By getting as many people to vote, Democrats almost always win. One of the best things about Colorado is the dislike of Trump, and by association, the Republican Party. Corey Gardner, Colorado's Republican Senator is going to lose handily to John Hickenlooper. And Colorado citizens have long had a lower opinion of Trump than the national average, as most want him impeached and tossed out.
You've listed many of the reasons I live just outside of Denver. CO has become a blue state after being red when I moved here. That was inevitable seeing as Colorado is one of the more educated states.
For most of Colorado’s history it has been kind of purple, usually leaning a bit blue. It only became red during Bush’s term, when Bill Owens was governor and Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell switched parties and thereafter refused to meet with or talk to constituents or reporters for the rest of his term. A lot of it had to do with California earthquakes. An earthquake had opened up the earth and sucked the “Focus on the Families” crowd’s compound back to hell, where it came from. As a consequence, they moved their operations to Colorado, directly across I-25 from the Air Force Academy, turning Colorado Springs quite red. However, it was Owens, and the libertarian Republicans, who demonstrated to the people, just how bad right wing politics can drag one’s state down. The Republicans have been losing ground ever since. Compare Colorado to its neighbors, or compare Idaho to Washington and Oregon. The pattern is clear, a more educated population is less religious and more liberal than a less educated population.
Says the person who steps over the homeless, needles, excrement, and anti-fa on their way to the free co-op every day.
So you’re addicted to right wing propaganda? Just can’t figure out why so many conservatives prefer fantasy over reality. Oh wait, I know, it’s religion. We know that Trump’s base is mostly Evangelicals. Hatred of liberals is part of the indoctrination.
Conservatives don't hate all liberals, they dislike the laziness that accompanies most of them. Yupper, you are correct, compared to Portland anywhere in CO is better, (for now)
I'm not It had its chance. Electronics began in two distinct locations, Texas and California. At Texas Instruments and Fairchild. Both companies claimed to have invented the integrated circuits and the competition was on. The Dallas/Fort Worth area was becoming a high tech center with TI's success in TTL and with calculators, and the rise of Tandy and Radio Shack. There was even a serious consideration of building a super collider that could find the Higgs particle. But for some reason, Texas, the people, and the politics, more or less rejected public support for such things. However, California saw it differently. They supported the budding computer age with tax and infrastructure incentives, as well as geared their Universities up, to produce the engineers and scientists that would be needed. They did the same thing in Boulder. They wooed the industry into their midst. In many ways it is why the high tech industry is the way it is. If one experiences the, I guess hip, culture of places like San Fransisco, Seattle, or Boulder, there is a certain way of thinking, of being, I suppose, that seems to value creativity and higher intelligence, and the innovation that brings, above all else. That and this inherent desire to preserve the environment. I don't think it came by accident. There were purposeful efforts to draw in and cultivate these industries, and the types of individuals who would be needed for success. I don't think it was even necessarily political. In Boulder it was more economic. The city had long billed itself as the Athens of the west, and attracting the type of people who help fullfil that characterization has long been a priority. Bringing high tech to Boulder was in the same vein as bringing National Laboratories. And, as always, having the educational system to support it. It is rather interesting that it has been overwhelmingly liberal leaning individuals, who have been attracted to the high tech industries. As for Texas, TI is still hanging in there, but Tandy and Radio Shack are mostly history
Yes. I remember all that. But never thought to view it as the state government dropping the ball. But, you're right.
It is kind of the point that comes up time and time again in articles that discuss the economies of states. That it is those states that invest in their future, and support their workers and their industries, who perform the best.
It depends on the category. If you are talking about Science, Texas will be very low. It's a state that teaches Christian fundamentalism as "science" in public schools, and in the past they tried to make those classes mandatory, and would suspend students who objected for first amendment reasons. And the only reason they stopped making them mandatory is because they were threatened with hundreds of millions of dollars and lawsuits and fines, and loss of funding from the Department of Education.
Well, Pueblo Colorado may be a clue. It’s violent crime rate is similar to Chicago and Wichita. It is over 50% Latino population but I don’t think anyone knows how many are illegal. Historically, Pueblo had a lot of 2nd and third generation Latinos but I’m sure that’s changed like everywhere else. I don’t know current numbers but in the past decade or so 20% of incarcerated persons in Colorado were illegals. I knew a lot of generational native Colorado Latinos when I lived there that were some of the best people I’ve ever known. I doubt they are thrilled with the changes.
