From Robert Whitcomb’s “Digital Diary,’’ on GoLocal2.com

Another study indicates that Blue States are generally much better places to live than Sunbelt Red States (unless you really hate winter). Consider WalletHub’s most recent ranking of the 10 safest  and 10 least safe states in America as measured by 53 indicators. The 10 safest, in order of safety, are: Maine, Vermont, Minnesota, Utah (Red State but with all those civic-minded, charitable and clean-living Mormons), Wyoming (Red State with very low population density), Iowa (Purple State), Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The 10 most dangerous , from worst to less worse: Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida (Purple State) Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.

The most dangerous states have high poverty levels, generally poor public education and very loose guns laws. But the political leaders of these states have tended to be adept at using social issues, including racial tensions, gun rights and abortion, to distract much of the population from policies that hurt them.

This reminds me that in 2004, historian and journalist Tom Frank published an entertaining book called What’s the Matter With Kansas about the art of getting people to vote against their own  economic self-interest through promotion of “populist,’’ “anti-elitist’’ conservatism. This has served to benefit the real American “elite’’: the plutocracy, such as the Kochs, whose leaders are adept at suckering Americans to give the plutos big tax cuts and environmental and other deregulation. Unfortunately, few suckers read the book: They were  too busy watching Fox “News’’ or  listening to Limbaugh.

To read the WalletHub story, please hit this link.