You ve probably heard by now that the . Are you starting to feel a little crowded?
Odds are, you aren t.
In Wyoming, we have roughly half a million people, the least of any state, and only 1/600th of the national population lives here.
I was chatting with an economist in Cheyenne yesterday and it was an utter mystery to him why so few people live in such a great state. He couldn t fathom why, for instance, oil and gas workers weren t streaming into Wyoming to take advantage of high wages and demand for workers.
Some folks find plenty wrong with Wyoming, including the circular argument that nobody lives here. Weather and remoteness are other factors I hear a lot, too. There s also the so-called brain drain, with well-qualified young people moving out-of-state to find work.
But whatever the reason, at a time of rising immigration and population, Wyoming must be looking better and better for folks anxious to flee from urban gridlock and suburban sprawl. To the extent we can welcome them without experiencing that same sprawl here, I think the state is well-poised to take advantage of the country s growing numbers.
Still, you have to worry about too much of a good thing.
Considering the U.S. adds one net person (births and immigration gains vs.
deaths) , in the time it took you to read these six paragraphs, we ve added five people. Is that a good thing, or too much of one? on Tuesday, October 17th, 2006 at 11:14 am and is filed under .
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