We're #1! We're #1!
08 Mar 2017US News and World Report just (well, last week) ranked Massachusetts the top state in the country. In this uncertain time, when the broader country is doing its damnedest to literally regress against the progress we’ve made over the last decade, it is heartening to live in a state that has been at the forefront of that movement.
That being said, it’s not all rosy here in the Bay State. We have a massive income inequality gap, have a bias towards the portion of the state living inside 128, and have (at best) a public infrastructure in need of significant overhaul.
However, the state is ready for it’s next leader (sorry, Governor Baker), who’ll come in and take up the mantle of continued progress. With the right leadership, there’s an opportunity to strike while the iron is hot[1], and solidify Massachusetts place as guiding force for the broader US.
Also, the Patriots, Celtics, and Red Sox aren’t so bad.
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There’s clearly an opportunity to rethink our public transit system, which is a key factor in helping to unlock economic opportunity and close the income gap. If I had 10 million dollars, I would start a VC fund focused on companies in the Western part of the state (I mean, it’s not like everyone out around Amherst is a dummy). (There are some funds out there, but I think there’s an opportunity to really blow it open.) Massachusetts has a lot of workers who need to be moved to jobs that are ready for the next few decades, i.e. clean energy, being the easiest example. There’s also got to be some remedy to the housing issue, so that Boston doesn’t end up like San Francisco. ↩