“Huge missed opportunity on the part of the city’s social media team taking the news in earnest and not going for the joke.”

We agree with Bill Shaner about lots of things. For example, the sentiment behind his excellent Substack newsletter, Worcester Sucks and I Love It. Anyone who knows Worcester at all knows that while the city has its issues, particularly relating to numerous deranged people in power and their henchpersons, it is also a phenomenal font of life and culture.

We also have similar feelings as Shaner about listicles—top 10 lists, top 100 projects, compendiums of any sort that claim some kind of subjective or—gasp—objective authority on matters. Put simply, they’re silly. Clickbait, little more.

People of critical mind might say the same about any number of bulletpoint-ridden surveys published by U.S. News and World Report. Scientific to a certain extent but based on editorially-structured parameters, they’re typically more arbitrary-seeming than informative or even noteworthy. With some exceptions.

As Shaner noted in his newsletter over the weekend:

The U.S. News and World Report ranked Worcester the 69th city in America or something like that idk I didn’t read the article. Obvious bullshit. However I think we can all agree it’s pretty nice.

Huge missed opportunity on the part of the city’s social media team taking the news in earnest and not going for the joke.

Worcester Massachusetts: Voted 69th on account of it being a little gross but still pretty cool! It’s not for everyone but if you like it you really like it. A little too much maybe. 

Tell you one thing if you give me the keys to Worcester’s socials I will Make Online Fun Again. 

But Worcester’s public relations team has other priorities. They’re out here issuing press releases about deadly fires that transparently shill for the new toy the cops want to get. 

We’ll also note that sneaking in around the turn behind the second-largest city in New England on the U.S. News and World Report list was none other than Daytona. Yes, the one in Florida, the Let’s Go Brandon capital of America.

Before we start a culture war though, we’ll point out that the makers of this list are the real schmucks, their formula for sizing cities up against each other cheaper than a bro-app algorithm. What good is a formula that puts the largest city in the region, Boston, at number 18?

The average monthly rent for a studio here is more than $3,000.

When you’re getting screwed that hard, 69 sounds like an upgrade.

Be sure to subscribe to Worcester Sucks and I Love It.