According to a recent article at our neighbor to the west is America's sixth most miserable city. Why did Beaumont rank so high on this undesirable list?

Chris Hondros
getty images/Chris Hondros
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With a  Well-Being Index score of 62.2 (failing .... or as BISD puts it "recognized".) Only 17.1% of adults have a college degree. The median household income is $43,421.  According to Yahoo.com the survey recorded the physical and emotional health of the residents, as well as financial, employment, and social indicators, among others. The resulting Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index allows for comparisons between places and over time.

According to Wallstreet24/7.com Beaumont residents gave their work environments some of the lowest ratings in the nation. Less than half of Beaumont residents said they were treated like a partner by their supervisors, much less than the 57% of Americans who said so last year. The area’s unemployment rate has been improving in recent years, but at 9.4% it is still among the highest nationwide.  According to a recent University of Vermont study reviewing more than 10 million tweets from around the country, Beaumont was rated as America’s saddest city.

I currently own a home in Beaumont and still officially reside there. I can tell you that it is not as bad as all of this data would indicate. Sure the school taxes are outrageous (especially for the sub standard education students receive.) The property taxes are way out of line with properties real value. The city's old money still makes decisions that hurt the growth of the area; but I enjoyed living there and know many others that do also. I also have to add that Twitter is far from reliable research and does not equally represent all demographics. You can find unhappy people anywhere; still placing number six on this list is not a good thing.

 

 

 

 

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