Blastwave, Continued

I've referred to the area's steady depopulation as a slow-motion neutron bomb before- the population is being wiped out with a thoroughness akin to nuclear bombardment. If this report (PDF Warning) is to be believed things are about to get a whole lot worse. Here's a sample of some of the conclusions:

- Oswego County in the Syracuse area will lose over half it's population by 2020.

- Herkimer County will be effectively uninhabited by 2020, with over 90% of the population either dying or moving out of the area.

- Oneida County's population implosion will accelerate, with over 15% of the year 2000 population gone by 2020. It's not clear if those population figures take into account the massive numbers of prisoners, but if it doesn't the picture is even bleaker. In just over a decade Oneida County will effectively be a gigantic nursing home, with close to 70% of the workers employed by government or government-sponsored jobs. The rest of the population will be overwhelmingly poor and increasingly geriatric.

I'm increasingly in favor of the massive pork project aimed at improving Route 12, because it's starting to look like we'll need all that extra highway capacity to support the flood of people leaving the area.