The Sioux Falls Optimist Club must be the nation's leading chapter. An extensive Gallup survey finds Sioux Falls is the most optimistic city in the country. Specifically, Gallup asked folks if they feel the city in which they live is "getting better". 77.7% (a lucky number!) of Sioux Falls respondents said, "You betcha!"
Here are the ten most optimistic and most pessimistic cities Gallup identifies:
Nobody from Minnesota in the top ten! Join me and Joel Rosenthal in saying whoo-hoo, Sioux Falls!
Of course, our neighbors in the Twin Cities could contend they don't need to worry about whether their town is getting better, because they are already plenty satisfied. The Gallup data show Prince's people ranking 17th in metro-satisfaction, while Sioux Falls ranks 36th. The percentages are 91 and 89.4, respectively, so in a hundred random conversations, you'll only find one or two more cranky people dissing their town at the Empire Mall than at the Mall of America.
Looks like blue state weariness for years of subsidizing red state happiness.
So why don't they stop?
Because they're just good people, Stan?
I see my retirement area came in at #6. People ask me why I like it down there and I tell them they are happy and friendly and one of the few Democratic bastions in Texas.
Optimistic...or delusional?? ;)
The link to Gallop takes me to a City Satisfaction survey and I can't find Sioux Falls anywhere. Anyone else have a problem like this?
Paul, you're talking about the second link in the post, right? Click it, then scroll down: I took the optimism charts from the discussion in that Gallup article midway down the page. Let me know if it's not coming up for you, and we'll figure out what's happening!