Forbes says Sacto stinks, but at least we aren't Stockton

Sacramento is the fourth largest metropolitan area in California and home to Old Sacramento where history stays alive. As nice as that sounds, Forbes Magazine still listed it as the fifth out of 20 in its annual list of "America's Most Miserable Cities."

According to a Feb. 2 article released by Forbes, Sacramento falls into the miserable city category because of a multitude of budget issues, crime, unemployment, and taxes. Ever since Arnold Schwarzenegger became governor of California, social issues have taken a turn for the worse. Because of the budget issues, Sacramento's reputation suffers. College tuition goes up and state workers get laid off. Overall, state government programs cannot function at full capacity. Crime, unemployment, and taxes are, safe to say, affected by California's budget crisis. So it's understandable why Forbes would consider the city as miserable.

The magazine pointed out that the problems in California attributed to helping land seven other cities in California on their list. Some of these include Fresno, Modesto, and Vallejo. Despite the less than appealing rank, our town is where many people live, eat, sleep, and work. Considering a population of approximately 250,000 Sacramento must not be too bad since citizens have not vacated yet.

So for all you die-hard Sacramentans, don't let the accused status get you down. Yes, the city has elevated amounts of negative factors, but it also has its perks. As known to most Californians, Sacramento is the center of gold country. Sutter's Fort preserves pioneers and relics of the gold rush times. Other elements that attract tourists and locals include the Sacramento Zoo, the State Capitol building, Crocker Art Museum, and of course the California State Fair which brings in an estimated 700,000 people.

 To add to that we have 30 parks, six million trees, and leading agricultural crops such as milk, wine grapes, and corn, according to www.Saccounty.com. Time Magazine voted the city, which is conveniently located near the Bay Area and Vegas, "most diverse" in 2002.

Forbes also goes on about how additional issues are factored in to make their decision, such as weather, commute times, and the local sports team. Sports, really? OK, the Kings won 26 percent of their games in the last two seasons. They suck. We are aware and acknowledge that, move on. The Minnesota Timberwolves are the second worst team in the NBA (The Kings are third) and they weren't on the list. These factors should not qualify to define a city as miserable.

So if that and all the above did not convince you that Sacramento is not miserable, then just be glad you don't live in Stockton because they placed on the Forbes list of "America's Most Miserable Cities" as number one.