In 2019, Seattle news channel KOMO produced the documentary “Seattle Is Dying” by Eric Johnson, which was viewed by more than 15 million people on YouTube.

The Homeless Industrial Complex and liberal apologists have gone insane, claiming the piece is irresponsible and inaccurate “propaganda.”

“‘Seattle is Dying’ is something else. I have written One of the liberal-leaning columnists from Oregon.

But it wasn’t. “Seattle is dying” was prophetic not only for Seattle, but for cities above and below the West Coast. (Related: Wendell Cox: Gavin Newsom denies people are fleeing his state; data paints a very different picture)

Once known as the Emerald City, Washington’s largest city, in 2019, when this documentary was made, is now frustrated by rising crime and a declining quality of life, and contemplating an exit. , facing a crisis of trust.

Some people actually quit. King County, where Seattle is located, saw a net loss of 37,655 domestic migrants in 2021 and a net loss of 16,035 net domestic migrants in 2022.

Eric Johnson didn’t make up for the terrible situation in the city. He just pulled back the curtain and called as if he had seen it.

Now, according to a recent poll conducted by Suffolk University, Seattle Times indicates A full third of Seattle residents are considering abandoning the communities they once loved. The city’s reputation as a thriving metropolis has been reversed as the downtown streets are filled with illegal tramps and addicts.

“Frittle”, as it has become known to some, is where deadbeats and drug addicts can take advantage of the city’s generosity.

But the city is not as liberal as many people think. According to a Pew Research Center report, 41 percent of Seattle residents are Republicans, 42 percent are Democrats, and 17 percent are undecided. Despite political diversity, the public elects liberal and even socialist officials. Families are being pushed between public policy and homeless industrial complexes. More than 50% of Republicans polled in King County are considering leaving, according to a Seattle Times poll.

Of those looking for communities outside of Seattle, 34% cite increased crime as the primary reason. It doesn’t help that Governor Jay Inslee and the liberal Congress have created a statewide environment that is unfriendly to families and lenient to petty thieves, drug traffickers and felons.

The situation in Seattle can also be seen in Portland, Oregon.Latest US Census make clear After 15 years of continuous growth, Portland’s population began to grow. rejected Because people leave during the pandemic and working households don’t come back.

And in the coastal Bay Area, all counties are seeing population declines. Some believe that this decline, combined with a shortage of immigrants, is making Bay Areas more likely to choose not to have children.

The Bay Area contraction picked up momentum in 2020, in part because the Covid-19 pandemic has allowed people to work remotely. Freedom of choice has made many decide to leave for places like Bend, Oregon, where the population is growing at an annual rate of 2.54 percent.On the other hand, the Bay Area lost 93,000 residents from April 2020 to January 2021.

In 2022, Los Angeles County experienced the largest population decline in all of California, losing 90,704 residents and continuing its downward trajectory.

From 2021 to 2022, the county lost 271,098 residents. This is equivalent to the population of Anchorage, Alaska.

Even Anchorage, the largest city in the Red State, is not immune to population exodus from liberal-run cities.

Anchorage’s population fell below 290,000 in the last U.S. Census, as those who could afford to move took refuge in the conservative Massu Valley.

Anchorage’s legislature and school board have become hotbeds of socialist policymaking, further alienating middle-class families, while the Massu Valley offers greater housing options, less onerous housing regulations, better schools, and provides a sense of security.

People vote for politicians who promulgate policies. And when those policies prove to turn communities into dystopian nightmares, people vote with their feet. Sometimes people fleeing the ruins bring liberal tendencies with them en masse, unaware that they are causing the very problems they leave behind.

What these dying cities have in common is the generous values ​​of making life “painless”. The benevolent left believes that legalizing painkillers will make life pain free. That is why the left also promotes universal basic income, universal health care and SNAP benefits. (Related: Suzanne Downing: They’re coming for your kids)

Pain is always a warning signal, and the right to a pain-free life allows people to escape feedback on their behavior. Rather than allowing people to receive warning signals to stop whatever they are doing, cities are creating whole industries that are co-dependent on enabling and magnifying bad behavior.

In 2019, one brave reporter, KOMO’s Eric Johnson, was right all along. Despite being humiliated by many news commentators and big government advocates, Seattle is still dying. So are Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Anchorage.

Suzanne Downing is the publisher of “Must Read Alaska”.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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