From the Charlotte Observer:

First, the good news. A new Gallup/Knight Foundation poll shows Charlotte area residents proud to live here and ready to recommend it to others. It shows residents enraptured by the area's beauty and openness to newcomers.

Still, trouble is evident: Most polled were pessimistic - 53 percent - about the area's outlook for the future. The bleak economy figures into that. Seventy-six percent said the economy is bad, and 68 percent said it is getting worse.

But there's also this: An astounding 70 percent give low marks to the quality of leadership in this community, and more than half don't see this as a place where "other people care about each other."