State capitals

[dfrankiswork at netscape.net]

On the main list, Amy posted:

>But capitals are located where they are through odd convolutions of 
Muggle history; they are frequently not the biggest city in the 
state, nor centrally located; they became the capitals because there 
was something convenient or politically expedient about them at the 
time they were founded (a lot have changed, BTW).

I sense one of those endless threads...

I had always imagined that state capitals were deliberately chosen 
for their obscurity, on the rather vague philosophy that Big Cities 
are Bad Things, and that Government is also a Bad Thing, so to allow 
the two to get together would be a Historical Mistake.

Unfortunately, the strategy tends to be a long term failure, as 
people tend to go where the government is ('I am an outsider, so vote 
for me so I can be an insider' 'OK, so long as you give me a job'), 
so you just end up with big cities in places where there is no good 
reason for a city to be.

See also Brasilia, Canberra, Islamabad, etc.

David