December 18, 2025 • 8 mins
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A heartbreaking Wall Street Journal report from McDowell County, West Virginia exposes the limits—and unintended consequences—of decades of anti-poverty programs. Billions in federal spending, from welfare to Medicare and Medicaid, have failed to revive a county that’s lost nearly 70% of its population. Instead, dependency has replaced aspiration, and entire towns are fading away. In this episode, Chris revisits Appalachia, the legacy of LBJ’s Great Society, and the harsh reality of economic decline. Drawing on Joseph Schumpeter’s “creative destruction” and a blunt insight from comedian Sam Kinison, we ask the uncomfortable question: would it be better to help people move to opportunity rather than endlessly pouring money into places with no future—and even return some areas to nature?
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/watchdog-on-wall-street-with-chris-markowski/id570687608
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2PtgPvJvqc2gkpGIkNMR5i
WATCH and SUBSCRIBE on:
https://www.youtube.com/@WatchdogOnWallstreet/featured
A heartbreaking Wall Street Journal report from McDowell County, West Virginia exposes the limits—and unintended consequences—of decades of anti-poverty programs. Billions in federal spending, from welfare to Medicare and Medicaid, have failed to revive a county that’s lost nearly 70% of its population. Instead, dependency has replaced aspiration, and entire towns are fading away. In this episode, Chris revisits Appalachia, the legacy of LBJ’s Great Society, and the harsh reality of economic decline. Drawing on Joseph Schumpeter’s “creative destruction” and a blunt insight from comedian Sam Kinison, we ask the uncomfortable question: would it be better to help people move to opportunity rather than endlessly pouring money into places with no future—and even return some areas to nature?
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Watchdog on Wall Street podcast explaining the news coming
out of the complex worlds of finance, economics, and politics
and the impact it we'll have on everyday Americans. Author,
investment banker, consumer advocate, analyst, and trader Chris Markowski.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
The War on Poverty and U Halls. It was a
really it was actually a sad story. It really was.
Wall Street Journal did an entire piece on certain areas
in the state of West Virginia. There was a county
it's called McDowell County and talked about a lady nine
(00:38):
years old when she became one of the first Americans
to get food stamps in that area. It was actually
when John F. Kennedy went on his tour when he's
running for president, and he was appalled by the poverty
in Appalachia, and it's when he started the food stamp program. LBJ.
(01:00):
Obviously his War on Poverty with Great Society, he took
that entire thing and he put it on steroids. I've
written extensively about it, and actually his whole War on
Poverty and the Great Society. He actually the pictures were taken.
It was on a porch and Appalachia that's how they
(01:22):
pitched it and I this is going back years ago,
did an entire piece on this and I don't remember
exactly where in West Virginia, but the addiction to handouts
and giveaways is real. It's real. And the principal at
the school they were interviewing and say, you know, kids
(01:43):
are just talking about and looking forward to their aspirations
in life were to get a government check. No way, no,
by any stretch of the imagination. This one county, and
particularly talk about McDowell County. Government's poured three point six
billion dollars into it in the economic trying to stimulate
(02:09):
the economy there, and that doesn't include the thirteen billion
they've spent in Medicare and Medicaid payments. And you look
at these areas the lengthy article, some of the things
that they're trying to do, some people trying to teach
others how to farm in the hills where they are there.
(02:30):
A lot of the land is still owned by various
different corporations that left. Coal mining in that region used
to be, you know, one of the top jobs that
went away actually a long long time ago when it
became more mechanized than you know, many of those mines
(02:51):
have been shut down. They're actually talking about in this
one area, the walmart shutdown, and it shows how many people.
Itself lost sixty seven percent of its residence, which was
the largest drop in West Virginia population, going from fifty
one thousand down to seventeen thousand. And they got little
(03:11):
towns there that just have a couple hundred in them,
and it you know, they talk about, well, what can
the government do? How can the government fix this? The
area where this is located, it's really very difficult to
get to not someplace where people are going to come
(03:32):
and look to go ahead and develop. This is another
And again I don't want to sound flippant by any
stretch of the imagination. I've talked about the economist Joseph Schumpeter,
where we talk about creative destruction, and you know, somebody's
idea will come in. It'll be better build a better
(03:54):
mouse trap, destroy a company, and inventure whatever it may be,
and then and you know, life goes on. The same
thing holds true for cities and towns. And I know
I've talked about this before and I got some people
tick thought, well, are your families that have been there
for generations so so, I mean I had you know,
(04:22):
my family wasn't didn't you know, going back to my grandpa,
they came to this country for a reason. They moved
to where there was opportunity. They moved to where the
food is. And again I'm quoting one of the great
Sam Kinnison, one of the great all time great stand
(04:43):
up comedians, and that classic stand up routine where he
was making fun of all the aid that we continued
to send to Africa. This was in the nineteen eighties,
and his thing was, don't send them money, don't send
them food, send them U hauls, move them to where
the food is. Why continue to spend And it's got
(05:08):
a point here. Wouldn't did the billions of dollars in that,
wouldn't it be better to help them move out? It's okay,
it's okay to turn certain areas of the country, the
world back to nature. There's nothing wrong with that. Just
because there once was a city there, that doesn't mean
(05:30):
there always going to be a city there. That's what
you know, archaeologists do all time. They dig up all
the cities for crying out loud, the areas where there
you know there were people. Now there's not down there.
Sometimes it's due to war. Sometimes it's due to you know, well,
famine again example right there, I guess you want to
(05:51):
call it a famine, right, you know, I don't pick
it on just West Virginia. Bringing this point up on
the show, you know, a long long time ago, because
I'm from upstate New York. You go through certain parts
of upstate New York and areas that are just extraordinarily blight,
(06:15):
extraa and people. You don't blame it all. You know,
companies moved to China. This is that. Then it's ound
Hold on, a second, hold on, you know, yeah, that
has happened, without a doubt in certain areas, There's no
doubt about that. But also technology has changed. I mean
the state of New York. State in New York built
(06:36):
this thing called the Erie Canal. They built the Erie Canal,
and again you could get goods and services from New York.
You can get them all the way to the Great
Lakes and then can get them to Chicago. You move
everything out west. And there was very successful and wealthy
towns and different spots built along the Erie Canal and
(06:57):
these waterways. Guess what, not using that anymore? And still
some of these areas, these blooded towns, they still exist. Yeah,
I'm not telling people, you know, to kick people out,
(07:18):
But how about buying their land up and turning it
back to nature and giving them a fresh start somewhere else.
I'm thinking out loud here, people, Okay, wouldn't it be better?
Wouldn't it be better? You got these are you this area?
You know where you're you know, seventeen thousand people are
(07:38):
still living there. Wouldn't it be better? I don't know.
You're in the hills of West Virginia. I don't turn
it into a national park, turn it back to nature.
It's okay, buy the people out and have them move
somewhere else, rather than to continue to spend good money
after bed. Yeah, it's gonna be a one time investment.
(07:59):
But why not you know, you get all of these
different things. We need this help. We know you're not
gonna You're not gonna do anything there. There's nothing moving
there anytime soon. Again, Sam Kinnison was on to something.
Let's just leave it at that. Plus he was a
pretty funny guy. Again, Buy their property, send them you
(08:21):
U hauls and give them a shot somewhere else. Watch
Dog on Wall Street dot com
The Watchdog on Wall Street podcast explaining the news coming
out of the complex worlds of finance, economics, and politics
and the impact it we'll have on everyday Americans. Author,
investment banker, consumer advocate, analyst, and trader Chris Markowski.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
The War on Poverty and U Halls. It was a
really it was actually a sad story. It really was.
Wall Street Journal did an entire piece on certain areas
in the state of West Virginia. There was a county
it's called McDowell County and talked about a lady nine
(00:38):
years old when she became one of the first Americans
to get food stamps in that area. It was actually
when John F. Kennedy went on his tour when he's
running for president, and he was appalled by the poverty
in Appalachia, and it's when he started the food stamp program. LBJ.
(01:00):
Obviously his War on Poverty with Great Society, he took
that entire thing and he put it on steroids. I've
written extensively about it, and actually his whole War on
Poverty and the Great Society. He actually the pictures were taken.
It was on a porch and Appalachia that's how they
(01:22):
pitched it and I this is going back years ago,
did an entire piece on this and I don't remember
exactly where in West Virginia, but the addiction to handouts
and giveaways is real. It's real. And the principal at
the school they were interviewing and say, you know, kids
(01:43):
are just talking about and looking forward to their aspirations
in life were to get a government check. No way, no,
by any stretch of the imagination. This one county, and
particularly talk about McDowell County. Government's poured three point six
billion dollars into it in the economic trying to stimulate
(02:09):
the economy there, and that doesn't include the thirteen billion
they've spent in Medicare and Medicaid payments. And you look
at these areas the lengthy article, some of the things
that they're trying to do, some people trying to teach
others how to farm in the hills where they are there.
(02:30):
A lot of the land is still owned by various
different corporations that left. Coal mining in that region used
to be, you know, one of the top jobs that
went away actually a long long time ago when it
became more mechanized than you know, many of those mines
(02:51):
have been shut down. They're actually talking about in this
one area, the walmart shutdown, and it shows how many people.
Itself lost sixty seven percent of its residence, which was
the largest drop in West Virginia population, going from fifty
one thousand down to seventeen thousand. And they got little
(03:11):
towns there that just have a couple hundred in them,
and it you know, they talk about, well, what can
the government do? How can the government fix this? The
area where this is located, it's really very difficult to
get to not someplace where people are going to come
(03:32):
and look to go ahead and develop. This is another
And again I don't want to sound flippant by any
stretch of the imagination. I've talked about the economist Joseph Schumpeter,
where we talk about creative destruction, and you know, somebody's
idea will come in. It'll be better build a better
(03:54):
mouse trap, destroy a company, and inventure whatever it may be,
and then and you know, life goes on. The same
thing holds true for cities and towns. And I know
I've talked about this before and I got some people
tick thought, well, are your families that have been there
for generations so so, I mean I had you know,
(04:22):
my family wasn't didn't you know, going back to my grandpa,
they came to this country for a reason. They moved
to where there was opportunity. They moved to where the
food is. And again I'm quoting one of the great
Sam Kinnison, one of the great all time great stand
(04:43):
up comedians, and that classic stand up routine where he
was making fun of all the aid that we continued
to send to Africa. This was in the nineteen eighties,
and his thing was, don't send them money, don't send
them food, send them U hauls, move them to where
the food is. Why continue to spend And it's got
(05:08):
a point here. Wouldn't did the billions of dollars in that,
wouldn't it be better to help them move out? It's okay,
it's okay to turn certain areas of the country, the
world back to nature. There's nothing wrong with that. Just
because there once was a city there, that doesn't mean
(05:30):
there always going to be a city there. That's what
you know, archaeologists do all time. They dig up all
the cities for crying out loud, the areas where there
you know there were people. Now there's not down there.
Sometimes it's due to war. Sometimes it's due to you know, well,
famine again example right there, I guess you want to
(05:51):
call it a famine, right, you know, I don't pick
it on just West Virginia. Bringing this point up on
the show, you know, a long long time ago, because
I'm from upstate New York. You go through certain parts
of upstate New York and areas that are just extraordinarily blight,
(06:15):
extraa and people. You don't blame it all. You know,
companies moved to China. This is that. Then it's ound
Hold on, a second, hold on, you know, yeah, that
has happened, without a doubt in certain areas, There's no
doubt about that. But also technology has changed. I mean
the state of New York. State in New York built
(06:36):
this thing called the Erie Canal. They built the Erie Canal,
and again you could get goods and services from New York.
You can get them all the way to the Great
Lakes and then can get them to Chicago. You move
everything out west. And there was very successful and wealthy
towns and different spots built along the Erie Canal and
(06:57):
these waterways. Guess what, not using that anymore? And still
some of these areas, these blooded towns, they still exist. Yeah,
I'm not telling people, you know, to kick people out,
(07:18):
But how about buying their land up and turning it
back to nature and giving them a fresh start somewhere else.
I'm thinking out loud here, people, Okay, wouldn't it be better?
Wouldn't it be better? You got these are you this area?
You know where you're you know, seventeen thousand people are
(07:38):
still living there. Wouldn't it be better? I don't know.
You're in the hills of West Virginia. I don't turn
it into a national park, turn it back to nature.
It's okay, buy the people out and have them move
somewhere else, rather than to continue to spend good money
after bed. Yeah, it's gonna be a one time investment.
(07:59):
But why not you know, you get all of these
different things. We need this help. We know you're not
gonna You're not gonna do anything there. There's nothing moving
there anytime soon. Again, Sam Kinnison was on to something.
Let's just leave it at that. Plus he was a
pretty funny guy. Again, Buy their property, send them you
(08:21):
U hauls and give them a shot somewhere else. Watch
Dog on Wall Street dot com
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