The South is out pacing all other regions ...

[BoDawg.sixpack]

The region they claimed as 'the South' is expanded and not to be confused with the ''south east'', but it's still quite interesting.

The South was the only region where child population grew

The South was the only U.S. region where the child population grew — and it also saw the biggest overall population gains.

www.wapt.com

 

[RocketDawg]

The region they claimed as 'the South' is expanded and not to be confused with the ''south east'', but it's still quite interesting.

The South was the only region where child population grew

The South was the only U.S. region where the child population grew — and it also saw the biggest overall population gains.

www.wapt.com

It's not really expanded. The Census Bureau has always considered the South to be everything below the Mason Dixon line, so it includes DC, Delaware, Maryland, and West Virginia. It can be argued that at least portions of those states are "Southern", along with DC.

 

[johnson86-1]

The region they claimed as 'the South' is expanded and not to be confused with the ''south east'', but it's still quite interesting.

The South was the only region where child population grew

The South was the only U.S. region where the child population grew — and it also saw the biggest overall population gains.

www.wapt.com

There was a similar article I saw the other week that pointed out how the Southeastern states, basically Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, LA, MS, Alabama, Geordia and FL accounted for some outsized portion of the GDP growth and jobs growth in the US. To an extent MS and LA being in there (and probably Arkansas and Bama too) were contributing to those stats in the same way that I contribute to financial stats of a group including Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and me. Still, at least makes a bullish case for the southeast as a whole.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Here's a couple comments about the census:

- I ain't never been contacted to contribute to the mother 17er, and I've never heard of anybody I know getting contacted. Maybe they have, they just didn't tell me;
- I know for a fact that they underrepresent rural areas. A small town, where I was working as a consultant for the city, gained quite a bit of population back between 2005 and 2015 (and still is growing, I was just boots on the ground at that time) due to quite a bit of outside investment. They had proof of it via new residential water meters installed, school enrollment, etc. Restaurants were being built. Yet the census showed a decline and still shows it. We made some calls and they said areas under a certain amount get applied a standard national number or something. So while sure, overall it's minimal, it still can not tell the tale in many areas of small town America.
- They are heavily pushing the idea about certain races growing and declining.

Tell me how they can possibly know this shlt? The only thing I trust is the number of babies born and who they are, at least that info is in the hospitals and we know those kids are now American citizens.

 

[BoDawg.sixpack]

Tell me how they can possibly know this shlt? The only thing I trust is the number of babies born and who they are, at least that info is in the hospitals and we know those kids are now American citizens.

They don't know an exact number I wouldn't think. Probably an estimate that starts with the 10 year census and is updated based on local boundary changes, migration approximations, housing (new permits, mobile home placements, vacancy rates) etc. Some of it might be data gathered from dependents claimed based on tax filings but idk.

 

[40 acres and a mule]

Here's a couple comments about the census:

- I ain't never been contacted to contribute to the mother 17er, and I've never heard of anybody I know getting contacted. Maybe they have, they just didn't tell me;
- I know for a fact that they underrepresent rural areas. A small town, where I was working as a consultant for the city, gained quite a bit of population back between 2005 and 2015 (and still is growing, I was just boots on the ground at that time) due to quite a bit of outside investment. They had proof of it via new residential water meters installed, school enrollment, etc. Restaurants were being built. Yet the census showed a decline and still shows it. We made some calls and they said areas under a certain amount get applied a standard national number or something. So while sure, overall it's minimal, it still can not tell the tale in many areas of small town America.
- They are heavily pushing the idea about certain races growing and declining.

Tell me how they can possibly know this shlt? The only thing I trust is the number of babies born and who they are, at least that info is in the hospitals and we know those kids are now American citizens.

On your first comment: I have gotten a census form with my name on it every ten years no matter where I lived. I was late sending it in one year and got a call from some nice lady from the census bureau. I had a nice lady from the census stop by my rural house in 2020 looking for residences of some people who had died, and some houses that had been demolished. I am now wondering if the Feds are watching me......

 

[DoggieDaddy13]

- I ain't never been contacted to contribute to the mother 17er, and I've never heard of anybody I know getting contacted. Maybe they have, they just didn't tell me;

They may not consider you a citizen of these United States.

You may want to look into that....

or...

maybe NOT!

 

[Dawgbite]

I don’t see how because it’s currently too hot to 17!

 

[Maroon13]

Damn... Webster county. Go ahead.

 

[Villagedawg]

It's not really expanded. The Census Bureau has always considered the South to be everything below the Mason Dixon line, so it includes DC, Delaware, Maryland, and West Virginia. It can be argued that at least portions of those states are "Southern", along with DC.

All of those are Southern. Just not the Deep South which Mississippians often confuse with the South.

 

[Maroon13]

All of those are Southern. Just not the Deep South which Mississippians often confuse with the South.

Naw dog. The south is north of I10 in LA, all of MS, AL (heart of Dixie), GA, SC and south into Florida until Gainesville. Once below Gainesville, no longer in the south. Once you are north of the Blue grass parkway, no longer south.

West Va and Va? Carpet baggers
NC? Carpet baggers
South of Gainesville? Carpet baggers
Arkansas ? Naw, wannabe Texans
Texas? Southwest

 

[L4Dawg]

Here's a couple comments about the census:

- I ain't never been contacted to contribute to the mother 17er, and I've never heard of anybody I know getting contacted. Maybe they have, they just didn't tell me;
- I know for a fact that they underrepresent rural areas. A small town, where I was working as a consultant for the city, gained quite a bit of population back between 2005 and 2015 (and still is growing, I was just boots on the ground at that time) due to quite a bit of outside investment. They had proof of it via new residential water meters installed, school enrollment, etc. Restaurants were being built. Yet the census showed a decline and still shows it. We made some calls and they said areas under a certain amount get applied a standard national number or something. So while sure, overall it's minimal, it still can not tell the tale in many areas of small town America.
- They are heavily pushing the idea about certain races growing and declining.

Tell me how they can possibly know this shlt? The only thing I trust is the number of babies born and who they are, at least that info is in the hospitals and we know those kids are now American citizens.

I have got a census form every 10 years since I left my parents home.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Naw dog. The south is north of I10 in LA, all of MS, AL (heart of Dixie), GA, SC and south into Florida until Gainesville. Once below Gainesville, no longer in the south. Once you are north of the Blue grass parkway, no longer south.

West Va and Va? Carpet baggers
NC? Carpet baggers
South of Gainesville? Carpet baggers
Arkansas ? Naw, wannabe Texans
Texas? Southwest

I like this map:

 

[HWY51dog]

There was a similar article I saw the other week that pointed out how the Southeastern states, basically Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, LA, MS, Alabama, Geordia and FL accounted for some outsized portion of the GDP growth and jobs growth in the US. To an extent MS and LA being in there (and probably Arkansas and Bama too) were contributing to those stats in the same way that I contribute to financial stats of a group including Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and me. Still, at least makes a bullish case for the southeast as a whole.

Here you go…

 

[DesotoCountyDawg]

Here's a couple comments about the census:

- I ain't never been contacted to contribute to the mother 17er, and I've never heard of anybody I know getting contacted. Maybe they have, they just didn't tell me;
- I know for a fact that they underrepresent rural areas. A small town, where I was working as a consultant for the city, gained quite a bit of population back between 2005 and 2015 (and still is growing, I was just boots on the ground at that time) due to quite a bit of outside investment. They had proof of it via new residential water meters installed, school enrollment, etc. Restaurants were being built. Yet the census showed a decline and still shows it. We made some calls and they said areas under a certain amount get applied a standard national number or something. So while sure, overall it's minimal, it still can not tell the tale in many areas of small town America.
- They are heavily pushing the idea about certain races growing and declining.

Tell me how they can possibly know this shlt? The only thing I trust is the number of babies born and who they are, at least that info is in the hospitals and we know those kids are now American citizens.

The USDA and RMA do the same thing estimating crop acres and yield. We will get randomly selected for a survey and all those random surveys is how they come up with a number. It’s pretty crazy.

 

[dudehead]

Here you go…

Surprised that CO is negative.

 

[Colonel Angus.sixpack]

You must live way out in the sticks because I get the census every 10 years right on schedule. I even had a census guy come to my house in Memphis once

 

[ReverseCowbell]

On average, a 1% decline in GDP equates to a 10% decline in birth rate.

 

[Villagedawg]

Naw dog. The south is north of I10 in LA, all of MS, AL (heart of Dixie), GA, SC and south into Florida until Gainesville. Once below Gainesville, no longer in the south. Once you are north of the Blue grass parkway, no longer south.

West Va and Va? Carpet baggers
NC? Carpet baggers
South of Gainesville? Carpet baggers
Arkansas ? Naw, wannabe Texans
Texas? Southwest

Perfect demonstration of my point.

 

[johnson86-1]

Surprised that CO is negative.

I think Colorado is well on downslope of the "be awesome, have people pile in, have those people vote in bad policies, start stagnation or even decline" trend.

 

[She Mate Me]

You must live way out in the sticks because I get the census every 10 years right on schedule. I even had a census guy come to my house in Memphis once

Did you eat his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti??…

 

[Dawgbite]

I think Colorado is well on downslope of the "be awesome, have people pile in, have those people vote in bad policies, start stagnation or even decline" trend.

I had a friend in Colorado that said legalizing pot ruined the state. He said that you can’t hire anyone for anything because they can grow enough pot in their backyard to get high on and get by on. He said that finding a hvac guy or a plumber or a flooring guy is damned near impossible. He sold out during Covid and moved elsewhere.

 

[MagnoliaHunter]

Surprised that CO is negative.

Why are you surprised? Have you ever been there?

 

[OG Goat Holder]

I think Colorado is well on downslope of the "be awesome, have people pile in, have those people vote in bad policies, start stagnation or even decline" trend.

Probably the cost of living more than anything political. Nobody is leaving Colorado because it sucks, that's not how this works.

Same for California, Oregon, Washington, Virginia and other well-known vibrant economy states that might have lost population.

 

[Colonel Angus.sixpack]

Did you eat his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti??…

View attachment 1346023

I cut him a break. Old guy. He was polite and first thing he did was show his census ID.

 

[JackReacherDawg]

They don't know an exact number I wouldn't think. Probably an estimate that starts with the 10 year census and is updated based on local boundary changes, migration approximations, housing (new permits, mobile home placements, vacancy rates) etc. Some of it might be data gathered from dependents claimed based on tax filings but idk.

Yeah, that 10 year census is no joke. They literally employ tens of thousands of people. Maybe more. They start with the mail forms (and web invites I'd guess), then they start personally showing up where they didn't get an answer. They hound you until they get it.

Every other study or such is probably done on the ultra cheap, and isn't reliable.

 

[dudehead]

Why are you surprised? Have you ever been there?

Many times, as a child and throughout my life, as recently as two months ago. We lived on the front range and western slope from the late 1980s to the early to mid 1990s with our child being born in Denver. We still have close family in the Denver area and Fort Collins, not to mention good friends and extended family in several mountain towns. So, we know and love CO; Hence the curiosity: why is the population of CO declining?

 

[vhdawg]

The region they claimed as 'the South' is expanded and not to be confused with the ''south east'', but it's still quite interesting.

The South was the only region where child population grew

The South was the only U.S. region where the child population grew — and it also saw the biggest overall population gains.

www.wapt.com

Canonically I thought West Virginia, Delaware, and Maryland were definitely not part of The South at any point in history up until now.

 

[johnson86-1]

Probably the cost of living more than anything political. Nobody is leaving Colorado because it sucks, that's not how this works.

Same for California, Oregon, Washington, Virginia and other well-known vibrant economy states that might have lost population.

I mean, it kind of is. California is still basically paradise on earth with access to tons of jobs and capital, but you have state and local governments squeezing as much of that value as they can and making housing as expensive as possible (partly because of misguided ideas, but partly because restrictive governance maximizes opportunities for graft), and then in the places that are not as desirable in the state, they get the burden of state government without necessarily all the benefits that make people want to move to the state to begin with. If you're rich enough, certainly it doesn't matter (at least until your house gets burned down or something). But if you're not already rich, they are making it painful enough that all the natural advantages and advantages built over time no longer justify it.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

but partly because restrictive governance maximizes opportunities for graft),

You (and many others) really need to drop this mindset, man, for your own good. It's clouding judgment.

If you truly think governmental entities set out to be grifters, I'm not sure what to tell you. People rotate in and out, there's a lot of checks. Now, sometimes when a bad character gets elected here and there, they do things, and are prosecuted. But this generally line of thought that the government is constantly trying to get you is not reality.

An area has a great economy, higher taxes generally follow that. Each state has their own strategy in which to keep revenue coming in. California is an incredible state, again, if you can afford it. No one left there due to the policies.

 

[johnson86-1]

You (and many others) really need to drop this mindset, man, for your own good. It's clouding judgment.

If you truly think governmental entities set out to be grifters, I'm not sure what to tell you.

Governmental entities are organizations. They don't set out to do anything. The people in them do things, and they are self interested to different degrees. People acting in their own self interest isn't really a crazy idea. I would argue that if you think that's not the case, you are the one with clouded judgment.

People rotate in and out, there's a lot of checks. Now, sometimes when a bad character gets elected here and there, they do things, and are prosecuted.

There is a lot of soft corruption you can do without prosecution. And there is a lot of hard corruption that goes with it where it's hard to draw the line. There are absolutely jurisdictions in Mississippi where they are purposefully difficult with respect to development because it makes it difficult for anybody other than protected people to come in and get stuff done. We are not uniquely corrupt. It's just people looking out in their self interest. Often time people that would never take a "bribe," but see no issue with their friends taking them on a fishing or hunting trip or to the saints or Grizzlies game, and of course when their friends call because a somebody is being unreasonable in permitting or code or whatever, they take care of it.

But this generally line of thought that the government is constantly trying to get you is not reality.

It's not that the gov't is constantly trying to get people any more than business owners go out there and try to make people's lives better. The incentives for business people are usually to offer a good or service and is some combination of good and/or cheap that allows them to make money. The incentives for governments are practically the opposite.

An area has a great economy, higher tax rates generally follow that. Each state has their own strategy in which to keep revenue coming in.

FTFY. And that is the opposite of what you'd expect if you thought government wasn't generally full of self interested people. More densely populated areas with vibrant economies will naturally generate more taxes without raising rates, and they can get away with less per person, as each person has less physical infrastructure to support.

But the area being more desirable means they can increase what they squeeze out of people, so they do.

California is an incredible state, again, if you can afford it. No one left there due to the policies.

People can't afford it because of policies. That is why they are leaving. Some of it is crime and disorder and squalor, but mainly it's that they're asked to pay a premium for that.

 

[MagnoliaHunter]

Many times, as a child and throughout my life, as recently as two months ago. We lived on the front range and western slope from the late 1980s to the early to mid 1990s with our child being born in Denver. We still have close family in the Denver area and Fort Collins, not to mention good friends and extended family in several mountain towns. So, we know and love CO; Hence the curiosity: why is the population of CO declining?

If you have been there lately, I don't see how you could be surprised that the population is declining. It is overrun with liberals and potheads. I saw a survey that said that that was the reason so many people were leaving.

 

[Colonel Angus.sixpack]

You (and many others) really need to drop this mindset, man, for your own good. It's clouding judgment.

If you truly think governmental entities set out to be grifters, I'm not sure what to tell you. People rotate in and out, there's a lot of checks. Now, sometimes when a bad character gets elected here and there, they do things, and are prosecuted. But this generally line of thought that the government is constantly trying to get you is not reality.

An area has a great economy, higher taxes generally follow that. Each state has their own strategy in which to keep revenue coming in. California is an incredible state, again, if you can afford it. No one left there due to the policies.

“No one left there due to the policies.”

This is a statement that needs defense. If they aren’t leaving due to the policies why are they leaving then? Too much sunshine, landscape beauty is too good to behold, too many pretty women?

 

[OG Goat Holder]

“No one left there due to the policies.”

This is a statement that needs defense. If they aren’t leaving due to the policies why are they leaving then? Too much sunshine, landscape beauty is too good to behold, too many pretty women?

Post #24.

This is where some of you need perspective. I don't know if it's just the MS bubble or what.

 

[dudehead]

If you have been there lately, I don't see how you could be surprised that the population is declining. It is overrun with liberals and potheads. I saw a survey that said that that was the reason so many people were leaving.

Well, on the last trip we flew into Denver but went straight to a ranch on the WY border. We didn't spend anytime in any of the front range metro. My Denver family has not expressed to me concerns similar to yours and they grew up in our conservative south and raised three girls in the Cherry Creek area. In any event, I don't think CO's legal pot culture is near the problem as the crack/meth gang banger ******** we endure here in the south.

 

[She Mate Me]

https://www.cpr.org/2026/01/27/colorados-population-slows-people-leaving/

 

[Colonel Angus.sixpack]

Post #24.

This is where some of you need perspective. I don't know if it's just the MS bubble or what.

Cost of living is almost certainly due to policies.

 

[OG Goat Holder]

Cost of living is almost certainly due to policies.

Minor aspect.

COL goes up because people want to be there. And let’s face it, it’s all the metro areas. You can still live well in most any rural area, in any state. That’s the secret no one talks about. It’s happening in Texas, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina now. States with major cities and a lot of money, even in states with good policies.

And yeah, as more people move there, things get more liberal as people start caring about dumb shlt that doesn’t really matter. But that is all enabled because the area is highly desirable.

California, Colorado, Virginia, Illinois are just ahead of the others. City goes Democrat first, then gets so big the state flips. It’s not a conspiracy.

 

[RocketDawg]

All of those are Southern. Just not the Deep South which Mississippians often confuse with the South.

Yes, I think that's true. Alabama is also Deep South, but as an example, Huntsville isn't really Deep South. It's barely southern except for hot humid summers.

 

[RocketDawg]

I have got a census form every 10 years since I left my parents home.

The Bureau did a 'test census" starting this spring (and still ongoing with house visits for non-respondents) of certain zip codes in Huntsville and, I think, Fayetteville, NC. Those towns were chosen because of fairly rapidly expanding population, I suppose to nail down census taking procedures for the official next one in 2030. It's internal, so numbers won't be released, nor was it comprehensive for the entire areas.