You've never seen Bakersfield, then.

I wouldn't invite anyone to live in this area; I'd warn them away! The cost of living's insane, there's still unemployment and underemployment on a larger scale than the national average, and the traffic is absolutely rediculous.

If nothing replaces the computer boom (which in turn replaced the aerospace boom in the '60's through the '80's) in a few years, I'll bet this region becomes a ghost town...

I know of quite a few people who have left due to the cost of living and the inability to find work, and I will be following suit after I'm done with school.