They Say This Is The Ugliest City in Louisiana. Is That Right?
Recently the website travel.alot.com published an article that caught my attention. The main reason it was eye grabbing for me was how unnecessary and malicious it appeared.
Examine the title for yourself and see if you don't immediately go to the dark side where I went. "The Ugliest Cities in Each State". Why is it worth pointing out that someone's hometown is ugly? Remember what Mama used to tell you when you were a kid? If you ain't got nothing nice to say, don't say nothing."
Why Would They Write This?
How easy would it have been to simply not write this article? Maybe the thinking is lost on me, but nonetheless, they published the article and then really poked a stick in the eye of everyone who lives in Bastrop, Louisiana as this little town of 9,691 residents was declared the ugliest of all in the Bayou State.
Sure, Bastrop could use some tender, loving care. It needs a heaping helping of maintenance and probably a week or two of dozer work, but is Bastrop really the ugly step sister of all Louisiana?
The website quoted a former resident of Bastrop who was pretty critical, stating:
Bastrop has a lot of things that should change. The town has gone down so much due to no extra activities for kids when they get out of school. There are so many drugs in this town that also has led to it being run down.
Couldn't the same be written of a lot of Louisiana towns? Drugs have led to the ruin of towns throughout the state.
I'm thinking travel.alot.com must have never visited Raceland. This small community of just under 11,000 residents that sits to the southwest of New Orleans, was once a bustling community of farmers, fishermen and oilfield workers. It's now reported that over 18% of the population lives below poverty level.
Drugs Have Brought A Blight To Lots Of Louisiana Towns
Talk about what drugs can do to an area. One of my friends grew up there and he said there is such a meth problem that the poorest man in town is the dentist.
But why continue to point out what's ugly about it? Do you think the people living there might not have noticed? It just somehow slipped their attention that buildings are falling down, there's garbage in the ditches and no one would walk barefoot in town for fear of tetanus.
Why Bastrop When There's Obviously A Better Choice
I honestly believe that Bastrop was a bad choice. Course, the most obvious choice for most of us who live here in Louisiana, isn't even an entire city. It's just one building in one city.
Little hint here; it's in Baton Rouge. Bet you can guess where I'm going when you see the picture below.