IV. Rural Life

In a previous column outlining mental health issues in rural communities, I requested comments from readers on what they thought I left out of my discussion. I received the following replies.

"One stress point is lack of alternatives in choice-making. For instance, there are fewer persons from whom to choose friends. There are fewer choices in purchase options - only one grocery store, one clothing store, and so on. There are fewer choices in churches.

"That ...

A while back readers of this column took a survey about satisfaction with their lives. At the end of the survey many rural readers added their comments about how they felt about the rural economy. Here is what they said:

"Environmental issues also determine happiness with our community. Income dissatisfaction due to the amount of return for the number of hours worked. Too little pay! The price of cattle doesn't keep up with the cost hikes.

"In general, very s ...

Question: As a parent, would you want your children to stake their future on a life in your small community? As a parent, teacher or rural clergy, how would you advise youth to prepare for their future?

Advice: Leave. Leave and get val

What ever happened to respect and civility in public life? Everyday we are confronted with rudeness and coarseness that tell us that decency and consideration for others is declining.

I was offended by profane graffiti on a cement emba

What is a sense of community? How is it created? Why do some rural towns have a greater sense of community than others? Are rural towns losing their sense of community? Why? How can it be increased?

I asked Darryl Hobbs these questions

As rural states and communities plan for their economic survival, one common strategy is to encourage processing plants to come to their communities. Midwestern communities have found that these plants bring radical change - change for which the

What is the social and financial impact of school consolidation? This is an important question for Great Plains communities that have declining populations. In 1930, there were more than 130,000 school districts in the United States. By 1990, th

How is your organization doing? Are you struggling to keep membership and participation? Do you have enough willing hands to share the work? If not, don't feel alone.

The decline of organizational participation.