It shouldn't surprise you that you "find them still working as a cashier at Walmart". This isn't even a rural/urban issue.
Urban environments are full of people who work retail and never move out of the city. It's the same thing! You'll find plenty of self-destructive culture in our urban environments. If anything, the retail workers are doing better than typical. They at least legally earn a living, which is respectable if not impressive.
It’s a difference in kind. Its not that some stayed, it’s that so very few left, especially when it was obvious 25 years ago that there was no economic base. Even moving 1 hour away to a major city was too much for them.
With the exception of one, even the ones I thought for sure would move didn’t. That’s what makes me shake my head. I just took it for granted their parents gave them a similar talk about having to move away like my mom gave me.
They could move to the city and work retail. Even if that gets them a higher minimum wage, they would still be worse off due to the cost of living. They would also be in an unfamiliar environment without their friends, adding stress and reducing safety.
It was obvious 25 years ago that Detroit had no economic base, at least relative to the population. Lots of people are still there.
Urban environments are full of people who work retail and never move out of the city. It's the same thing! You'll find plenty of self-destructive culture in our urban environments. If anything, the retail workers are doing better than typical. They at least legally earn a living, which is respectable if not impressive.