If you want a vision of America’s future, look no further than Jackson, Mississippi. My family and I have lived in Jackson for more than 10 years. We are not tucked away in a gated community, insulated by private security and high-priced homes.
We live in a quiet neighborhood bordered by large pockets of homelessness, drug use and human trafficking, facilitated by proximity to Interstate 55. It is not the worst part of town, but also not the best.
And we have seen it all: constant boil-water notices — so common that the courtesy calls stopped long ago; brown, wormy bathwater; unreliable or nonexistent trash collection; dangerous, pothole-ridden roads; poor drainage that causes flooding; frequent blackouts (as I write this, we are going on our seventh day without electricity); and uncertain police protection.
Jackson is approaching what political observers call a “failed state.” A failed state is one in which the government no longer functions.
Jackson is not quite there, but whenever there is any kind of strain on the system — bad weather, political squabbling or even a big football game — the city has trouble providing even the most basic services.
Source : Washington Times