Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX; another vote for Miami, FL; Montgomery, AL; Richmond/Petersburg, VA; Philadelphia, PA; and even though it is not a state, the armpit of the country is Washington, D.C. except the NW part.

And let's add the northern Virginia "suburbs" to that - litter everywhere, traffic gridlock, strip malls, high living costs, lack of green space - I hated every minute of the three years I lived there.

I second Fresno, California. Also, I thought Birmingham, AL was the pits. I like South Beach but Miami proper was a little scurry. As far as English being spoken, there are places in Louisiana and Alabama that have white folk speaking something incoherent. I think they call it redneckese. It took me a while to learn but alas, I am now bi-lingual.

I agree that Worcester, MA is the armpit of Massachusetts, but rivalling it for second place are Haverhill, Lawrence, Clinton and Leominster. Clinton's claim to fame, other than for the fact that Jimmy Carter actually made it a campaign stop, is that there are more bars per capita there than anywhere else in the US.

Colorado: Pueblo.

Let me agree with Sabie. The Virginia suburbs of Washington are unusually uninspired, a concrete jungle of immense dimensions. I'm very conservative yet I am certainly forced to agree that unbridled growth can destroy a landscape. Northern Virginia, site of the estate of the greatest American, George Washington, and the site of several Civil War battles, is now an armpit that only the ugly developer extraordiaire, John "Til"
Hazel, can love.

I am originally from NY BUT the city of Niagara Falls...what a mess. Refineries everywhere and it literally stinks! If they cleaned it up a little,,,it could have some hope! Niagara falls itself the attraction...is very pretty.....but anything outside that area..forget it...........................

I think if more people visited Eureka California, fewer people would mock Fresno. That being said...
As Fresno seems to be a common pick for arm pit of CA, think of how sad it would be to have Fresno as your Mecca for cultural events, shopping, dining, etc. That was my world growing up:( So, my vote is anywhere in the Central San Joaquin Valley: Small towns, small minds. Nothing to do except watch the grass (and the sky) turn brown. It's the only place I've ever been where they have to put billboards on the side of the highway (HWY 99) saying not to beat your wife. At least now the kids there have the Internet and cable TV to keep them from drinking beer out in the orange groves every night.

jenneepoo - I had to smirk (laugh would not really be appropriate since it really is a sad state of affairs) at your comment about the billboards along 99 that tell you not to beat your wife. Those are as bad as the billboards up in Gridley (also on Hwy 99 interestingly enough) that warn men that it is a felony to date underage girls and warn parents that it isn't a good idea to let their underage girls date older men. People have to be told this stuff on a billboard? Very sad.

jason888 - Alviso isn't really that bad. I used to work in Milpitas and we would go out there for lunch at least once a month - there is a great mexican restaurant there. Also, there are some nice trails out along the water - good for riding bikes, bird watching, and that kind of thing. And up until a few years ago when more and more tech companies were moving out that way, it used to actually be an affordable area of SJ. Not anymore though.

I agree with those who feel that English should be the offical language. If one was to move to Germany they would be expected to learn the language to hold a job.

I think that our country is way to lax about people not learning the language. All street signs, resturant menus, etc are in English. This is not Canada where things are done in Engilsh and French. This is America. If one wants to live here so badly, they should learn the language.

Please don't attack what I've said, as this is just my opinion. I realize that not everyone will agree with me.

While learning the language they should heed the distinction between the words "too" and "to".

ANOTHER vote for Fresno CA.
At least Eureka's weather is cooler.yesterday Fresno 106 with a low of 82!!!
Eureka 74 -this is considerd a "heat wave" However you must like fog to live there happily..
Fortunately, I have not been to many of the other places mentioned!!!

what a fun thread!! i just finished reading every single reply! hilarious! oh, and yeah, you hit the nail on the head with fresno. so what am i, vote number 7 or 8 to crown this vapid town as armpit of cali? poor fresnoians....

Isn't Fresno the inspriation for the movie AMERICAN GRAFITTI? What would Richie Cunningham say about the way some posters have busted on his hometown?

Detroit, MI

SteveJudd,

"Message: Isn't Fresno the inspriation for the movie AMERICAN GRAFITTI?"

No. It was Modesto.

As far as I'm concerned, the whole Central Valley qualifies for consideration including these gems; Coalinga (I grew up there, now what a dump), Bakersfield, Taft, etc.

I also agree with Los Angeles. Talk about Urban Sprawl.......worst air in the US......grid locked freeways....bone ugly.

C

Forgot to add, Fresno is second only to Los Angeles in poor air quality in the United States!!

C

Jon Eric: I will be 8 on my next birthday, but thanx for asking!

I've been through a town called Cadiz, Ohio, birthplace to Clark Gable. A real armpit. Also, Cadiz has the cheesiest memorial park I've ever seen- to Gable and Gone With the Wind.

Shut up logandog. I was in a hurry. Everyone makes a typo now and then.

Hey I detest that cdt said New York City is an armpit. Maybe because I'm born and raised here, but I would pick here any day over what my pick for an armpit is, Milwaukee, WI. Maybe there is plenty to do there that I didn't actually experience, but it seemed to me that the habitants there mainly relied on just drinking and watching football and nothing else. Ugh.

I also sdecond the vote for Worcester, MA. What a depressing place!

To paraphrase a famous actress.."There are no small 'armpits', there are only small 'armpitted' people". 8-}

Having said that, those of you that are picking "Fresburg", ya ever been to Oroville? =-O

Oroville, CA? But of course.

I believe there is a city ordinace that to live in that town, you must be involved in some sort of welfare fraud.

Fresno maybe a pit, but what about the Inland Empire?!!? San Ber-doo, River-tucky, Fontucky? Rancho Cuca-florida.

John, how about Butte, Montana?

Anyone ever been to Morgan City, LA?

And you lived to tell about it?

Jon....did you tuck your tail and run? i was looking forward to a come back.

Thought of another I considered a pit..El Paso, drove back 45 miles to avoid spending the night here.

Armpit of Washington state: Tacoma, corrupt politics, crazy police, and it smells bad.

I'm in PA. I don't agree Phila. is the armpit, alhtough sections of the city would certainly qualify, such as the oil refineries around South Phila. Unfortunately, they are one of the first things a visitor sees (and smells) if they arrive from the airport. And there are sections of North Phila. I don't feel safe driving around, even in the daytime. But Kelly Drive, Valley Green and Rittenhouse Square are very attractive.

I guess I'd nominate central PA, which is said to have the 2nd or 3rd highest concentration of Ku Klux Kans members in the country. A politician once described PA as Phila. to the east, Pittsburgh to the west, and in between is Alabama.

I have to say this is a fun thread to read. As a native Califonian my first thought was Fresno, but Los Banos is pretty nasty too. Another really horrible area is the whole area around highway 5 between Burbank and Disneyland. I

I'm from central PA and can honestly say in 22 years of living there and attending college in another part of central PA I have never met a KKK member. What a terrible and backwards comment. I appreciate the beauty in all of America and don't consider any part of our nation to be an "armpit".

Come now, at least a little part of Detroit is an armpit. Right?

Leslie - You can't have been to Haverhill very often if you think its worth mentioning in this thread. Haverhill has tons of open space, at least 4 golf courses, the Merrimac River, some very nice parks and lakes. You can find some very nice reasonably priced homes, the Bradford section is very attractive. I don't live in Haverhill but live near by and spend lots of time there for shopping, doctors, music lessons for the kids. True there are some working class neighborhoods but its by no means an armpit. Lawrence and Lynn are worse but even they have their redeeming qualities. Brockton maybe or Fall River. But definately not Haverhill.

HarryR Ct no armpit please I was born and brought up here and there are just as many pits as we have great locales.


Torrington, Waterbury (mayor in jail for child molestation) Loki was right with BRidgeport, HArtford , Coventry ( isn't that the heroine capital of the USA ) and I could go own and on.

APRIL
Butte is not quite an armpit but I will admit it is at least an elbow!!!!

John,
I only saw it a few decades ago and then I was sure it was an armpit. Maybe it has improved since? I won't be rushing back to find out though.

Hi, I am concerned that several of you mentioned Baltimore as your favorite armpit. My daughter is thinking about going to Johns Hopkins University which is in Baltimore. More information would be appreciated. Is the area around the school awful? and why. The campus looks nice. Is the city of Baltimore dangerous? Thanks

I wouldn't say that Detroit is the armpit of Michigan, Detroit is just...dead. It's a beautiful big town on the river with a view of Canada, but it just needs a little life coursing through it...maybe someplace to go shopping or a restaurant and entertainment district. Perhaps some humans milling about. They're trying...

No, the distinction of "armpit of Michigan" would probably have to be awarded to one of myriad industrial Detroit suburbs like Taylor or River Rouge or Roseville or Melvindale....