Is your city depressed?

[russotto]

Yep, Philadelphia is the poster child for depression. It's the city that hates itself and wallows in its own misery. The politicians are openly corrupt, but no one cares (the Feds sometimes seem to, but they're from out of town). The streets are filthy and in the winter, unplowed, but everyone pretty much expects that. Taxes and unions drive business out of the city but there's no real uproar. The schools basically suck, eroding the tax base, but no one really thinks there's much anyone can do about it. There's a real estate boom going on -- the city's response is to raise assessments to try to kill it. There's three compass directions --North, South, and West associated with "ghetto" -- and East is left out only because the Delaware River is there. The major news station feels the need to run a segment called "Positively Philadelphia" just so they won't lose too many listeners to suicide. Drug companies run major anti-depressant studies in Philadelphia because there's never any problem finding subjects.

The only thing keeping Philadelphians from just en-masse leaping off the Ben Franklin Bridge is probably the city across the river. Camden is worse, and that's what Philadelphians feel good about.

(OK, maybe this is a LITTLE bit exaggerated. A little.)