The United States of Shame   (CHART)

Whether it’s a fat population, high rate of STDs or excessive tax rate, it turns out that every state ranks dead last in at least one unsavory category. Check out the map (click image to enlarge) to see what your state is the worst at, then review additional stats and references after the jump:

 

Rationale and statistics:

Most stats taken from http://www.americashealthrankings.org/ and http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/rankings.html (unless otherwise noted)

1. Alabama: highest rate of stroke (3.8 percent) (tied with Oklahoma)

2. Alaska: highest suicide rate (23.6 suicides per 100,000 people in 2004)

3. Arizona: highest rate of alcoholism

4. Arkansas: worst average credit score (636)

http://www.talkbusiness.net/article/ARKANSAS-RANKS-LAST-IN-CREDIT-SCORE-AVERAGES/1007/

5. California: most air pollution (15.2 micrograms per cubic meter)

6. Colorado: highest rate of cocaine use per capita (3.9 percent total population)

7. Connecticut: highest rate of breast cancer

http://www.statehealthfacts.org/comparemaptable.jsp?ind=469&cat=10&sub=112&sort=a

8. Delaware: highest abortion rate (27 per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44)

9. Florida: highest rate of identity theft (122.3 reports per 100,000 people)

10. Georgia: sickly based on highest rate of influenza

11. Hawaii –highest cost of living (tied with California)

http://www.cnbc.com/id/38148092/States_With_the_Highest_Cost_of_Living?slide=11

12. Idaho – lowest level of Congressional clout

http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/roll_call_rocky_mountain_states_still_at_bottom_of_congressional_clout_list/C559/L559/

13. Illinois: highest rate of robbery (284.7 incidences per 100,000 people)

14. Indiana: rated the most environmentally unfriendly by NMI solutions

http://www.environmentalleader.com/2010/09/15/indiana-comes-in-last-on-green-state-ranking/

15. Iowa: highest percentage of people age 85 and older (1.8 percent) (tied with three other states)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/peo_per_of_peo_who_are_85_yea_and_ove-percent-who-85-years-over

16. Kansas: poorest health based on highest average number of limited activity days per month (3.5 days)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_lim_act_day_per_mon-limited-activity-days-per-month

17. Kentucky: most cancer deaths (227 per 100,000 people) (BONUS fact: Kentucky also has the highest rate of tobacco smokers – 25.6 percent)

18. Louisiana: highest rate of gonorrhea (264.4 reported cases per 100,000 people)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_gon_rat-health-gonorrhea-rate

19. Maine: dumbest state claim based on lowest average SAT score (1389)

http://www.commonwealthfoundation.org/policyblog/detail/2010-sat-scores-by-state

20. Maryland: highest rate of AIDS diagnosis (27.6 people per 100,000 people)

http://www.avert.org/usa-states-cities.htm

21. Massachusetts: worst drivers claim based on highest rate of auto accidents

http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2002/11/11/150352.html

22. Michigan: highest unemployment rate (13.6 percent)

23. Minnesota: highest number of reported tornadoes (123 in 2010)

http://woodbury.kstp.com/content/minnesota-ranks-first-nation-tornado-reports-2010

24. Mississippi: highest rate of obesity (35.3 percent of total population)

BONUS facts: Mississippi ranks last in the most number of categories. These include highest rate of child poverty (31.9 percent), highest rate of infant mortality (10.3 percent) lowest median household income ($35,078), highest teen birth rate (71.9 per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19) and highest overall rate of STDs.

25. Missouri: highest rate of bankruptcy (700 out of every 100,000 people)

http://www.bcsalliance.com/bankruptcy_statestats.html

26. Montana: highest rate of drunk driving deaths (1.12 deaths per 100 million miles driven)

http://helenair.com/lifestyles/article_c48ad0a6-bce0-5f69-931e-dc5ca0f83583.html

27. Nebraska: highest rate of women murdered annually

28. Nevada: highest rate violent crime (702.2 offenses per 100,000 people). BONUS fact: Nevada also has the highest rate of foreclosure (one in 99 houses)

29. New Hampshire: highest rate of corporate taxes

http://newhampshire.watchdog.org/7194/nh-ranks-last-in-corporate-tax-climate-7th-best-for-business-overall/

30. New Jersey: highest rate of citizen taxation (11.8 percent)

http://retirementliving.com/RLtaxes.html

31. New Mexico: antisocial claim based on lowest ranking in social heath policies

http://www.lasg.org/NMecon05.htm

32. New York: longest average daily commute (30.6 minutes) http://www.statemaster.com/graph/lab_mea_tra_tim_to_wor-labor-mean-travel-time-work

33. North Carolina: lowest average teacher salary

http://www.southernstudies.org/2008/01/north-carolina-ranks-last-for-teacher.html

34. North Dakota: ranked last in ugliest residents report as chosen by The Daily Beast

http://www.thedailybeast.com/galleries/1272/1/?redirectURL=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-02-01/the-most-and-least-attractive-states/

35. Ohio: nerdiest state claim based on highest number of library visits per capita (6.9)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/edu_pub_lib_lib_vis_per_cap-libraries-library-visits-per-capita

36. Oklahoma: highest rate of female incarceration

37. Oregon: highest rate of long-term homeless people

38. Pennsylvania: highest rate of arson deaths (55.56 annually)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/cri_ars_dea-crime-arson-deaths

39. Rhode Island: highest rate of illicit drug use (12.5 percent of population) http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/11/drug-use-across-the-united-states-or-rhode-island-needs-more-rehab/

40. South Carolina: highest percentage of mobile homes (18.8 percent)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hou_per_of_hou_uni_tha_are_mob_hom-housing-percent-units-mobile-homes

41. South Dakota: highest rate of forcible rape 76.5 per 100,000

42. Tennessee: chosen most corrupt state by The Daily Beast

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-05-11/the-most-corrupt-states/

43. Texas: lowest high school graduation rate (78.3 percent)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/edu_hig_sch_dip_or_hig_by_per-high-school-diploma-higher-percentage

44. Utah: highest rate of of online porn subscriptions

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705288350/Utah-No-1-in-online-porn-subscriptions-report-says.html

45. Vermont: infertility claim based on lowest birth rate of any state (10.6 births per 1,000) (tied with Maine)

http://www.statemaster.com/graph/hea_bir_rat_per_100-birth-rate-per-1-000

46. Virginia: highest number of alcohol-related motorcyle deaths

http://www.vabiker.net/2008/09/virginia-ranks-last-nationally-in-alcohol-related-motorcycle-deaths/

47. Washington: most cases of bestiality (4 reported in 2010)

http://www.pet-abuse.com/pages/cruelty_database/statistics/state_ranking.php?year=2010&search=go

48. West Virginia: highest rate of heart attack (6.5 percent of population)

49. Wisconsin: highest rate of binge drinking (23.2 percent of population)

50. Wyoming: highest rate of deadly car crashes (24.6 deaths per 100,000)

http://www.autoinsurancequotealert.com/news/wyoming-leads-nation-with-highest-motor-vehicle-fatality-rate/

o