SEATTLE: IS THE EMERALD CITY ON ITS DEATHBED?
Thursday Column
While We're on the Subject w/ Anthony Mixer
3/28/19
I recently viewed a documentary titled “Seattle is Dying,” about the rising rates and problems of homelessness in the city. We are often told by big-city politicians and state media (depending on the state you live in) that “homelessness is a growing crisis.” Well, I would say it is a problem that isn’t likely to be fixed anytime soon, and there are numerous reasons why it continues to persist.
First, let’s talk about the effect of burdensome taxes on homeowners. We should be good citizens and pay our taxes, but is there a point where it becomes unbearable? According to CNN Money, the tax burdens on the citizens of Seattle is 6.50%. Sounds reasonable when compared to other major cities, right? After all, it’s 47 on the list of heavily taxed areas nationwide, but I need to add, it is No. 1 in the state. If you add on the city’s income, property, and sales taxes, you have a whopping chunk of money to pay. That does not include other small taxes that the city has enacted, which I won’t go into detail about. It makes you stop and think, right? How much is left over to pay your mortgage or car payment, etc.? If you don’t have a substantial income, you most likely won’t be able to pay your monthly bills.
What I have described doesn’t just affect Seattle. Many major cities across the U.S. practice the same ideals, and their areas have gone to waste like Seattle. San Francisco tops all other cities in the amount of homelessness that has resulted from severe restrictions on housing development, therefore causing a housing shortage. This also has caused rent for apartments, condos, and homes to skyrocket in the Bay Area. According to Wikipedia, “a minimum wage worker would have to work approximately 4.7 full-time jobs to be able to rent a two-bedroom apartment.” This causes me to pose the question; What’s the point of raising the minimum wage if at the same time taxes are increased and heavy restrictions are placed on housing development?
Now while we’re on the subject of homelessness, we need to look at the deeper side of why this is becoming a common occurrence. It’s a horrible thing for anyone to lose their home, but this accounts for only a small percentage of homeless people on the streets of the Emerald City. The reason why hundreds, if not thousands, of people are on the streets, or living in tent cities is because of drugs. Caleb Lawson mentions in a recent article about building the wall, “90% of all opioid and fentanyl drugs in the United States comes illegally from Mexico through our weak southern border.” Those drugs travel across many states, and a large amount flows into Seattle.
The Seattle City Council passed ordinances to have injection sites placed across the city so that drug users would have an area to shoot up. Afterward, these drug addicts toss the needles wherever they desire. Complaints have been heard from many citizens, including business owners, of needles left on the streets and in city parks. Tents line streets and cover cemeteries. Homeless camps are set up under overpasses throughout the city. Visitors to the Emerald City have complained of the horrible smell from mountains of garbage and human waste. Many business owners have closed up shop and moved their businesses to nearby cities. Yet the elite politicians don’t seem to care.
Yes, it is true that Seattle is the fastest growing city in America, but for how long? “We are not a welcoming city in the way Seattle has historically been,” said former mayor Mike McGinn. How long does Seattle have before it looks like a third world country? Is the Emerald City on its deathbed? Can it be saved before it’s too late, or could it all be part of the radical left’s plan to destroy America?
Anthony Mixer is the Chief Editor and a weekly columnist for As a Matter of Fact.
You can follow him on Twitter here.