Exit Billings. Getting closer to Mississippi, but not that quickly. I’m a bit anxious about that. Arlo is anxious about this lengthy form he has to fill out for the new job. Cool temperatures as we left Billings, about 9:45 a.m., but I had layered plenty of clothes on to keep me warm and to peel off as needed. Because we were passing by, we stopped at the site of the Battle of Little Big Horn. As an historian, I was interested in seeing the location where the events I’d read about and taught actually occurred, but we didn’t have time to spend really investigating. Lots of tourists were there visiting and I began hearing some Southern drawls which refocused my thoughts on Mississippi.
En route to Sturgis, our next destination, facts floated to the surface of my wandering mind about Mississippi and Jackson. I’ve been researching and the contrasts between Seattle and my soon to be new home are like the differences between Disneyland and the Forbidden City. That’s neither good nor bad, depending on who you are.
For one thing all the national newspapers have released the fact that Mississippi has the most obese population of all 50 states. Why is that? I will be really sad living among really fat people because I will recognize all the limitations on their lives as a result of their weight. Washington isn’t the leanest state...that award is given to Colorado, but Washington is near the top of the pack.
One of the websites I visited looks at categories in which a state is at the top or at the bottom. For instance, Washington is number one in Total Refugees from Egypt from the years 2000-2004 as per capita figures expressed per 1 million population. That seems like a very random number one ranking. On this same website, Mississippi is listed as ranking number one in the total of Black people killed by lynching from 1882 to 1968. How is that fair? That number one listing is from 41 years ago. So, I needed to find a ranking that is from at least 2000 to have any meaning. So, here’s one--Mississippi ranks first with the percent of people living below the poverty level in the past 12 months, 2004. Put that with the bottom ranking for Mississippi in the category Median Family Income (In 2004 Inflation-adjusted) at $39,319.00 and contrast with Washington’s ranking in the same category as 15th in the nation at $57,478.00 and it’s clear there are some real economic differences. Check out the site yourself for more interesting rankings http://www.statemaster.com/index.php and imagine, no...realize that all these states are part of one nation.
Arrived at Sturgis. Not Harley Rally time, but still plenty of motorcycles cruising the roads.
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