Ryan Curtis is a gifted singer/songwriter whose newest debut solo album, ‘Rust Belt, Broken Heart’ is sure to strike a chord in the working man who has been there and done that.
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Tag: rust belt
Commentary: Pennsylvania Is a Microcosm of America’s Housing Crisis
In recent years, an acute housing crisis has engulfed both America’s coastal metros and Rust Belt regions. California’s Bay Area, for example, confronts a crisis of affordability and limited supply that hastens a population exodus. Midwest cities like Detroit face low real-estate prices and low demand, intensifying urban decline.
Pennsylvania is a microcosm of such alarming housing trends, especially east of the Susquehanna River, which is seeing an influx of metro New Yorkers relocating to the area.
From the Keystone State’s middle-class suburbs to its post-industrial locales, the housing crisis is a major challenge. In the midstate, most notably in Harrisburg and Lancaster, housing has become significantly more expensive. In the northeast’s anthracite coal region, anchored by Scranton, rents are spiking. And in suburban Philadelphia’s Lansdale, a townhouse went for nearly $500,000.
Read MoreCommentary: Forgotten Again
Neglected by Republicans and Democrats alike, vilified by the culture, and preyed upon by globalization, white working-class voters in 2016 cast their lot with the one candidate in a generation who remembered them, and thus became Donald Trump’s base—a constellation of blue, white, and pink collar laborers. This spark ignited what was supposed to be a revolution in party politics and carried Trump into the White House.
Read MoreCommentary: A Ban on Fracking Would Kill 6 Million Jobs Across Seven States by 2025
Joe Biden upended the historic formula of a Democratic presidential nominee. Usually, the hopeful plays his liberal greatest hits to the primary crowd, before tacking to the center as the election dawns and ordinary Americans start listening.
Since his assisted capture of the nomination, Biden has veered leftward, crafting, with the help of the party’s progressive wing, the most progressive platform since the ill-fated George McGovern in 1972.
Read MoreLast of Lordstown Auto Parts Manufacturing Ends Two Months Early: More Layoffs to Follow
The last manufacturing orders left for the rapidly shuttering Lordstown Auto Plant finished up on April 5. The project – metal stamping replacement parts for the Chevy Cruze – was slated to last until June, ensuring work for those few employees still not laid off. With the job wrapping up…
Read MoreAs US Economy Swells, Ohio Gets Left Behind
2018 was one of the best economic years for America in decades. The coup de grâce came in December with a jobs report that shattered the most generous expectations by more than double. 312,000 new jobs were added to the US economy. While unemployment rose slightly, this was primarily due to…
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