IPFS
Menckens Ghost
More About: Politics: Republican CampaignsPhoto & Commentary: Trump Supporter's Home
Dear Thinker:
The photo below was taken near the small town of Mt. Jewett, in northwestern Penn. Note the Trump sign in the front yard.
Also note the chimney pipe on the side of the house, which suggests that the house is heated with a wood-burning or gas-fired stove. Think about how drafty and poorly insulated this home is, and what it's like inside during the bitterly cold winters in that part of the country. No doubt, there is lead paint and mold inside. (Commentary continues below the photo.)
Homes like this don't meet HUD standards for people getting government rental assistance. As such, new homes have been built nearby by the local housing authority for people getting rental assistance, almost all of whom are single moms with several kids, and many of whom trash the homes and are on drugs.
Imagine living in the home in the photo and driving by the HUD homes every day. That could change one's politics.
For an idea of the wages in the area, Mt. Jewett is considering the hiring of a part-time police officer, since it doesn't have a police dept. The hourly wage would be $10 - $12. Meanwhile, urban police are gorging on rich pensions, on the ability to moonlight in uniform at private venues, and on little-known wage and hour laws that mandate overtime for police supervisors.
Contrast the scene in the photo with the glitz, glamour and wealth of the Imperial City of Washington, or with the Manhattan Island of Oligarchs, or with Geek Valley, Calif.
See a problem for American society in such contrasts?
Sadly for the residents of this home, neither Trump nor anyone else is going to bring back high-paying jobs to the area. First, the loss of high-paying jobs had little to do with foreign competition or immigration from Latin America. Wealth originally came to the area in the late 19th century and early 20th century from natural resources that have since been played out--from timber and oil and associated industries. Hardwood forests were clear-cut, and oil was pumped out with little regard for environmental consequences. There is some fracking nearby, but the fracking companies tend to bring in their own experienced crews.
Granted, there is some residual wealth in the area, due to inherited capital. Some local entrepreneurs have gone through a boom and bust by spending this capital or going into debt to buy fleets of trucks to supply water and sand to the fracking companies.
Growing "industries" are a nearby federal prison and Medicare- and Medicaid-dependent businesses, such as physical therapy, mental health facilities, nursing homes, and transportation services for the disabled and elderly.
A monument to how things used to be in the area and in America is several miles down the road. It is the remains of what was the longest and highest railroad bridge in the world, the Kinzua Bridge, which spanned the Kinzua Valley to bring coal from coal mines to the south to Bradford, Penn., to the north. It was 2,053 feet long and 301 feet high. Get this: It was built of iron in 1882 in just 94 working days, or just over three months. Today, it would take over three years just to compile and file the environmental red tape--work that is done by consultants with advanced degrees and six-figure salaries, who, most assuredly, don't live in towns like Mt. Jewett.
Regards,
Mencken's Ghost
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