http://realestate.msn.com//slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=18184152&GT1=35000#2

Seattle didn't even make the top 10!

How depressing.

These kinds of surveys are total BS and are a waste of everyone's time.

Yet here you are posting in this topic.

From "Paulwalker"'s link-

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I'm using a Mandrake box and this is on M$N. (I can't see it. Go figure.) So, what are the 10 unhappiest cities in America?

Since I live in Vancouver, I am not an unhappy person.

But, I think the survey is on to something.

Portland traffic is terrible. You can't get from point "A" to "B." How happy is that?

So, if we stay at point "A," try to find parking. Impossible. Unless you pay a very unhappy price.

Well, we solve this by taking the MAX. Except it is full of unhappy people who just frown and turn up their iPods.

Get off the MAX, and you're in the middle of homeless ("No I can't spare twenty dollars. You must be drinking micro-brew."), drug dealers ("Do I look like I want some 'really good smoke?'"), hookers ("It's 9 in the morning and I'm not quite ready to party yet."), and mad-dog bicyclists ("Are you sure you own the street AND the sidewalk?"). None of these folks look happy. And, none of them make me happy.

I tend to stay out of Portland because I like my happy Vancouver.

Just look at the smile on Mayor Royce Pollard's face and you know why I like my city.

Have you seen Sam Adams smile lately?

These kinds of surveys are total BS and are a waste of everyone's time.

Hey, someone is getting paid to do it so therefore it is stimulating the economy.

Have you seen Sam Adams smile lately?

He......Naw. I won't go there!

Well, we solve this by taking the MAX. Except it is full of unhappy people who just frown and turn up their iPods.
...
I tend to stay out of Portland because I like my happy Vancouver.

Don't get me wrong, I like Vancouver, too (I happen to like Vancouver Mall, and you can disagree with me all the way home that C-TRAN is one of their best-kept secrets), but I absolutely love Portland.

And, just today, I struck up a casual conversation with two fellow regular riders I've seen all the time, for quite some time, but hadn't had the chance to say hello yet. Turns out we're all riding the same bus, at near the same time, for most of the same reasons!

Not to bash Vancouver at all, but I bet a Vancouver mayor's election where Royce Pollard and Tim Leavitt face off is going to make everyone in Vancouver jump up and sing "Happy Happy Joy Joy!"

Sounds like we have a bad case of deniel in P-town. Also LV came in fourth.

I live in Happy Valley and I couldn't be jolly er. For out-a-towners, Happy Valley is just SE of Portland.

I'm glad marketing scheme hatched by the mayor's office to keep Vancouverites and Clark co hillbillies from moving to Portland is working like a charm.

God, leading sheep around is SO easy! No wonder George W . . .

Was in Vancouver this evening. Actually I go to church in 'Couver.

I had a long time friend of mine who was a big wig with the Vanc. Economic Development Commission. They did some real nice renovations to parts of the downtown core area. And some of the sub-divisions are not that bad.

But all in all Vancouver is still the ugly step-sister to Portland. I can walk anywhere I want in PDX, I don't need to actually drive to most of my appointments. I love that bikers piss off drivers. Working from and living in the urban area couldn't be better.

Seriously, a Vancouver resident is dissing on Portland traffic?

Be proud of what they've done in the 'Couv to improve some things, but really, traffic is not one of them.

Oh, and BTW, this survey is ridiculous.

People, I am 100% serious. For some reason I can't get the thing to display in Konqueror or Firefox. (<sarcasm> Only works with IE? Wow. What a shock. </sarcasm>)

So I am going to ask again: what are the 10 unhappiest cities in the US?

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As for Portland: no, I will never live there again as long as I can avoid doing so. Lived in an apartment downtown whilst attending college (2004-2007) and don't really miss it at all. A lot of the people I encountered don't really seem interested in even giving you the time of day let alone acknowledge your presence, the bike riders can be really rude especially downtown (many, but thankfully not all. You know who you are), the current mayor's a perv, the traffic's a nightmare and you can't even pump your own f--ing gasoline. I mean, what more is there to say?

(Oh yeah, the satellite reception at the apartment in PDX was absolutely deplorable, but I am not getting into that on this thread..........)

Nope. I'm a Vancouver boy by nature.

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Motozak2, here they are:

1. Portland
2. St. Louis
3. New Orleans
4. Detroit
5. Cleveland
6. Jacksonville
7. Las Vegas
8. Nashville
9. Cinncinnati
10. Atlanta

They took things like depression, suicides, cloudy days, unemployment into account.

You might find more at businessweek.com

I agree, this report is not very scientific, but does put a lot of stats together in a way I have not seen before.

Vancouver is the stinky armpit of portland. It's a terrible city and the only reason why people move their is because housing prices are cheaper! They are Cheaper for a reason!! You're living in a dump!
"VANCOUVER,The Poor man's portland"

Vantucky.

I'm kind of surprised La$ Vega$ made the li$t. Might it be because of gambling addictions (and the financial hardships that pretty much inevitably accompany such an addiction?)

Seattle didn't make the list. Truth be told, if I did have to live in a major city I'd just as soon live in SEA. (At least you can pump your own gas there.)

Go sit in the corner, Beano. Some of us here on this board are a native species to that "dump" of which you refer and would much rather live here than other overpopulated nearby cities.

*plonk*

"VANCOUVER,The Poor man's portland"

Interesting variation.

Having spent 7 years (not my choice, it was my parent's) actually living in Vancouver, all I can say is that it is worthy of all the potty mouth directed its way!

how about Pahrump Nevada??

I'm glad to see folks supporting their Portland.

As to the really nasty remarks about Vancouver, I'll just chalk that up to unhappy Portlanders.

Why Vancouver for me?

No income tax here. I can run across the river for major purchases and pay no Washington sales tax (except for cars). And, a wonderful old cottage and four acres with a pond in a semi-rural neighborhood that cost less than a studio apartment in the Pearl.

You decide.

four acres with a pond in a semi-rural

Chances are there is a trailer park on one side, apartment buildings on the other and an eyesore of a "farm" across the street that is now in the hand of their kids with abandoned vehicles and at least two travel trailers with people living in them.

Oh, the abandoned radiator shop is behind you.

Jeeze Skep, you make it sound like every West Virginia joke I'v ever heard (or told)

Gotta go with KQ4 tho, if you can play both sides of the river, Van is a fair tradeoff. Having been born in #5 lived and worked in #1, Every place has it's +s and -s. Never had any issues getting around PDX, but housing is more expensive on the south side of the river. Obvious it was the percieved quality of life that racheted up the prices. A crummy house in a crummy neighborhood in 7 of the cities on that list would sell for about a 10th of a similar place in PDX. Obviously ambiance and perception plays a part. I guess someone would rather pay bigger money for a house in a gang infested neighborhood in PDX than in DEE-troit. The question is WHY? What makes the difference? (IT Isn't light rail)

I just painted the worst. There are many beautiful areas in the city limits, but like everyplace else, there are also places you wouldn't want to break down.

There are many beautiful areas in the city limits

Can you name 5 beautiful areas in the city limits of Vancouver? (The new Fred Meyer store doesn't count!)

Officer's Row and the Reserve is a cool area. I like to go up there and walk sometimes, believe it or not. Esther Short Park is pretty nice now, if there aren't homeless people wandering around...

"Gotta go with KQ4 tho..."

Roger, that was "Kq4guy" you were actually responding to. He's in Vancouver. I am THE "Kq4" in Portland.

Larry, I guess one of us will have to change our handle! ;)))

Can you name 5 beautiful areas in the city limits of Vancouver?
(in no particular order)
Esther Short Park
(Vancouver) Waterfront Park
Area in and around Clark College
McGillivray Blvd. (IMO, should be McGillivray Parkway)
Parks around Burnt Bridge Creek

That was easy, and I don't even live in Vancouver!

The area down near Beaches Restaurant along the waterfront in Vancouver is really very nice. Whoever developed that area did a very good job. The path that runs from just east of Beaches to the Quay is a nice walk on a warm and sunny day.

As for the area around Officer's Row and the Reserve, it too is very nice.

Another really nice item in Vancouver is its Farmers Market on the west side of Esther Short Park. If you enjoy that sort of things, it's great. I've been there several times.

caused by lack of sunshine!!!

Don't know that I would agree with the conclusions and order.
However, it just goes to show that you can take any set of figures/stats you want and arrange them to get any conclusion you want.
Should Portland be at the top of this list? Depending on your criteria, Yes and No. I would say it certainly is higher than it would have been years ago. I have been around the country a lot and I would say that depending on where you are in a given city, you could say that city is or isn't the worst.

Notice, there are no California cities in the top 10. I think there are cities in California that are unhappier, depending on the criteria.
I do not find Las Vegas to be that unhappy. Get off the strip and into the communities where the average people are that don't frequent the casinos and live a normal life and they are quite happy.
In today's climate with unemployment and uncertainty, I would say that most places could be considered very unhappy places to be. Just running around Portland lately compared with two years ago, I would say it is more unhappy now than then. Right now, I am glad I do not live in Portland. Maybe people are friendlier on the other side of the mountain.

Jimbo--The other day my wife and I went to the strip. It was like being in a alternitive reality compared to our life in regular Vegas. There are three dangers down here. Divorce, excessive gambling and excessive drinking. If you dodge those three vices. You can live a very normal life down here. Vegas is unhappy now because of unemployment and high forclosure rate on houses. Otherwise it's paradice.

There's a fourth danger Steve, excessive drive-thru marriage!



See ya in a couple days sir.

Divorce is a vice? Interesting perspective.

Steve,
Yes, I know. We have good friends living in Vegas, actually out west just off Sahara. We go often and just hang out with them and go where they go and mix with the locals off the strip. They are basically having a good time. True, it is different now with the housing and economy slump but they still are the same people. Down on the strip is not normally locals except for working there. They usually don't hang there or go there. Our friend goes to the casino gift shops for her job... she represents some firms and stocks the shelves with merchandise, but normally they don't go there unless someone visits and wants to go. You can go and have a good time relatively cheaply if you know where to go and how to do it. We always drive to a hotel and use valet parking....best bargain on the strip. Use backroads. It has changed a lot in the last 10 years but we still like the area, even in the summer. Another friend lives up in the hills west of town. It is cooler up there in the summer. Construction has slowed down and people are still losing jobs but right now you can get good rates at the big places. Fortunately, we always have free places to stay down there, anyway.
Plus, we can go to the IN-N-Out. Like Coors used to be......it was good because we couldn't get it here. When we could, it no longer was that great mystery.