Resource issues in West Virginia

Coal never took very good care of the people of rural West Virginia, but now that it's gone it sounds like they really have nothing. 47% of income in McDowell County is from Federal programs like Social Security, disability, and food stamps. Just 1/3 of the population is in the labor force, which, if they're using the term properly, includes people working or looking for work: the rest are unable to work or not looking for some other reason. People turn to drugs, and that's just not a good long-term solution. Grim.