This is a pretty great chart which highlights each of the States in the U.S. and tells you what they are worst at. Which one would you most rather have? I’m just pumped I don’t live in North Dakota. Click on the image to enlarge.
Rationale and statistics:
Most stats taken from http://www.americashealthrankings.org/ and http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/rankings.html (unless otherwise noted)
1. Alabama: highest rate of stroke (3.8 percent) (tied with Oklahoma)
2. Alaska: highest suicide rate (23.6 suicides per 100,000 people in 2004)
3. Arizona: highest rate of alcoholism
4. Arkansas: worst average credit score (636)
http://www.talkbusiness.net/article/ARKANSAS-RANKS-LAST-IN-CREDIT-SCORE-AVERAGES/1007/
5. California: most air pollution (15.2 micrograms per cubic meter)
6. Colorado: highest rate of cocaine use per capita (3.9 percent total population)
7. Connecticut: highest rate of breast cancer
http://www.statehealthfacts.org/comparemaptable.jsp?ind=469&cat=10&sub=112&sort=a
8. Delaware: highest abortion rate (27 per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44)
9. Florida: highest rate of identity theft (122.3 reports per 100,000 people)
10. Georgia: sickly based on highest rate of influenza
11. Hawaii –highest cost of living (tied with California)
http://www.cnbc.com/id/38148092/States_With_the_Highest_Cost_of_Living?slide=11
12. Idaho – lowest level of Congressional clout
http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/roll_call_rocky_mountain_states_still_at_bottom_of_congressional_clout_list/C559/L559/
13. Illinois: highest rate of robbery (284.7 incidences per 100,000 people)
14. Indiana: rated the most environmentally unfriendly by NMI solutions
http://www.environmentalleader.com/2010/09/15/indiana-comes-in-last-on-green-state-ranking/
15. Iowa: highest percentage of people age 85 and older (1.8 percent) (tied with three other states)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/peo_per_of_peo_who_are_85_yea_and_ove-percent-who-85-years-over
16. Kansas: poorest health based on highest average number of limited activity days per month (3.5 days)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_lim_act_day_per_mon-limited-activity-days-per-month
17. Kentucky: most cancer deaths (227 per 100,000 people) (BONUS fact: Kentucky also has the highest rate of tobacco smokers – 25.6 percent)
18. Louisiana: highest rate of gonorrhea (264.4 reported cases per 100,000 people)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_gon_rat-health-gonorrhea-rate
19. Maine: dumbest state claim based on lowest average SAT score (1389)
http://www.commonwealthfoundation.org/policyblog/detail/2010-sat-scores-by-state
20. Maryland: highest rate of AIDS diagnosis (27.6 people per 100,000 people)
http://www.avert.org/usa-states-cities.htm
21. Massachusetts: worst drivers claim based on highest rate of auto accidents
http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2002/11/11/150352.html
22. Michigan: highest unemployment rate (13.6 percent)
23. Minnesota: highest number of reported tornadoes (123 in 2010)
http://woodbury.kstp.com/content/minnesota-ranks-first-nation-tornado-reports-2010
24. Mississippi: highest rate of obesity (35.3 percent of total population)
BONUS facts: Mississippi ranks last in the most number of categories. These include highest rate of child poverty (31.9 percent), highest rate of infant mortality (10.3 percent) lowest median household income ($35,078), highest teen birth rate (71.9 per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19) and highest overall rate of STDs.
25. Missouri: highest rate of bankruptcy (700 out of every 100,000 people)
http://www.bcsalliance.com/bankruptcy_statestats.html
26. Montana: highest rate of drunk driving deaths (1.12 deaths per 100 million miles driven)
http://helenair.com/lifestyles/article_c48ad0a6-bce0-5f69-931e-dc5ca0f83583.html
27. Nebraska: highest rate of women murdered annually
28. Nevada: highest rate violent crime (702.2 offenses per 100,000 people). BONUS fact: Nevada also has the highest rate of foreclosure (one in 99 houses)
29. New Hampshire: highest rate of corporate taxes
http://newhampshire.watchdog.org/7194/nh-ranks-last-in-corporate-tax-climate-7th-best-for-business-overall/
30. New Jersey: highest rate of citizen taxation (11.8 percent)
http://retirementliving.com/RLtaxes.html
31. New Mexico: antisocial claim based on lowest ranking in social heath policies
http://www.lasg.org/NMecon05.htm
32. New York: longest average daily commute (30.6 minutes) http://www.statemaster.com/graph/lab_mea_tra_tim_to_wor-labor-mean-travel-time-work
33. North Carolina: lowest average teacher salary
http://www.southernstudies.org/2008/01/north-carolina-ranks-last-for-teacher.html
34. North Dakota: ranked last in ugliest residents report as chosen by The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/galleries/1272/1/?redirectURL=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-02-01/the-most-and-least-attractive-states/
35. Ohio: nerdiest state claim based on highest number of library visits per capita (6.9)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/edu_pub_lib_lib_vis_per_cap-libraries-library-visits-per-capita
36. Oklahoma: highest rate of female incarceration
37. Oregon: highest rate of long-term homeless people
38. Pennsylvania: highest rate of arson deaths (55.56 annually)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/cri_ars_dea-crime-arson-deaths
39. Rhode Island: highest rate of illicit drug use (12.5 percent of population) http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/11/drug-use-across-the-united-states-or-rhode-island-needs-more-rehab/
40. South Carolina: highest percentage of mobile homes (18.8 percent)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hou_per_of_hou_uni_tha_are_mob_hom-housing-percent-units-mobile-homes
41. South Dakota: highest rate of forcible rape 76.5 per 100,000
42. Tennessee: chosen most corrupt state by The Daily Beast
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-05-11/the-most-corrupt-states/
43. Texas: lowest high school graduation rate (78.3 percent)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/edu_hig_sch_dip_or_hig_by_per-high-school-diploma-higher-percentage
44. Utah: highest rate of of online porn subscriptions
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705288350/Utah-No-1-in-online-porn-subscriptions-report-says.html
45. Vermont: infertility claim based on lowest birth rate of any state (10.6 births per 1,000) (tied with Maine)
http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_bir_rat_per_100-birth-rate-per-1-000
46. Virginia: highest number of alcohol-related motorcyle deaths
http://www.vabiker.net/2008/09/virginia-ranks-last-nationally-in-alcohol-related-motorcycle-deaths/
47. Washington: most cases of bestiality (4 reported in 2010)
http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/cruelty_database/statistics/state_ranking.php?year=2010&search=go
48. West Virginia: highest rate of heart attack (6.5 percent of population)
49. Wisconsin: highest rate of binge drinking (23.2 percent of population)
50. Wyoming: highest rate of deadly car crashes (24.6 deaths per 100,000)
via Pleated Jeans
