Atlanta: Gets a bad RAP.WHY?! (Decatur, Dallas: fit in, taxes, restaurant)

[TakeAhike]

<remy69 said:>

The hype is over the top to the point where it's downright sad.

I honestly can't imagine what you mean.

I see/hear the Governator and Maria advertising CA as the land where dreams come true but I know the reality of living in CA. I would never move anywhere unless I had visited enough to be certain that I could establish a good life regardless of what others might be doing.

[At1WithNature]

Atlanta is not diverse...at all! That's why it gets a bad rep.

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by At1WithNature

Atlanta is not diverse...at all! That's why it gets a bad rep.

You should start a new thread 'Atlanta is not diverse at all' and discuss this.

I assume you mean that people 'self-segregrate'.

Even if this is 'true' I don't think it is likely that there will radical change in the demographics.

[At1WithNature]

diverse cities such as the big boys (new york, la, etc.) seem to foster growth. atlanta has such a large population of one race that it seems rather boring compared to cities like LA and New York, no offense. i have been to atlanta many, many times and loved it! i'm just saying...besides, ATL is the capital of the South baby! great city it is (in Yoda's voice).

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by At1WithNature

diverse cities such as the big boys (new york, la, etc.) seem to foster growth. atlanta has such a large population of one race that it seems rather boring compared to cities like LA and New York, no offense. i have been to atlanta many, many times and loved it! i'm just saying...besides, ATL is the capital of the South baby! great city it is.

OK. There have been numerous discussions on this and related topics and I conclude that it will be quite some time until Atlanta becomes more like NYC, Chicago, cities of the west coast or southwestern US.

I hope more free-thinkers and independent types move to Atlanta and those who have some solutions for the laundry list of repairs that need to be made.

[WilliamM]

On the issue of "Atlanta is not diverse" I refer to my previous post about the confusion of levels we get into when making comparisons of Atlanta. If you're comparing Atlanta to the average major American city, I would defy you to show me how Atlanta is not "diverse". I've lived in Minneapolis, to take one city as an example, and Atlanta's diversity without question compares favorably to what you find there. I haven't visited Denver, but from what I hear you could say the same about that comparison. Houson or Dallas? Not so much. Those cities are Atlanta's direct peers in terms of size and inflow and thus have comparable immigrant communities, but over and above that also have an advantage of Atlanta of having proximity to the border and a much longer history and higher volume of Hispanic immigration than Atlanta.

So the question is, what are you talking about when you say this, from what perspective?

The other issue - which I also mentioned in my earlier post - has to do with problems of definition which are inevitable when making judgments about Atlanta due to its enormous sprawl and its historically lower levels of population density. For example, if you include Gwinnett county in Atlanta, which any reasonable definition of Atlanta must (though popular perceptions of Atlanta tend to leave this out) there is NO WAY you can tell me that Atlanta is not "diverse", as the Gwinnett/Chamblee corridor has one of the largest Korean populations outside of Korea, just by way of example, and the percentage of foreign born up in that area, while granted it's lower somewhat than NYC or LA, is still vastly above the national average for a city/county. But of course, to repeat, someone who spends all their time in downtown or near Vinings and never gets out from there might conclude that Atlanta is a 'white-black' town (a common perception, which in my opinion is a misperception).

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by TakeAhike

.... I conclude that it will be quite some time until Atlanta becomes more like NYC, Chicago, cities of the west coast or southwestern US.

And again here, I refer to my previous post on how it just depends on what you're comparing Atlanta with. The earlier statement had to do with whether Atlanta is "diverse", but you're going further and making a statement about whether it's in the same category as NYC or Chicago, which I don't think any reasonable observer woud claim.

Is Atlanta diverse? By any reasonable measure, YES (see above).

Is Atlanta as cosmopolitan as NYC or Chicago. No way. Give it another 30-40 years of growth like it's seen in this decade, and who knows.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by TakeAhike

I hope more free-thinkers and independent types move to Atlanta ...

Talk about a great idea for a possible new discussion thread. Supposing polls are borne out on election day and Virginia and North Carolina go "progressive" (blue), but Georgia stays reliably red, that raises some really interesting questions as to why Georgia would lose out to these other states, that is, why these other states would get all the glory in ushering in a real "New South" given the massive influx of educated people to Atlanta from all over the country and world over the last several decades, but esp. in the years since the Olympics.

Granted Northern Virginia has a virtually unparalleled mix of affluence and education levels, and North Carolina's Research Triangle is famous for it's PhDs per capita, but still. Why wouldn't Atlanta's massive growth also be acting to bring about a similar shift here in Georgia?

Now THAT is a mystery that has me scratching my head.

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

And again here, I refer to my previous post on how it just depends on what you're comparing Atlanta with. The earlier statement had to do with whether Atlanta is "diverse", but you're going further and making a statement about whether it's in the same category as NYC or Chicago, which I don't think any reasonable observer woud claim.

Is Atlanta diverse? By any reasonable measure, YES (see above).

Is Atlanta as cosmopolitan as NYC or Chicago. No way. Give it another 30-40 years of growth like it's seen in this decade, and who knows.

I was responding to another poster ?? Atl??something. There have been so many threads on 'Diversity' that my eyes almost bleed when I see the word.

Atlanta certainly seems to be a desirable regional headquarters for Mexican drug cartels--there have been several major busts this year. That aspect of diversity is not something I want to prosper. After hearing what Texans, Arizonans and others in the Southwest say about being close to the border I realize that Georgia needs to be proactive.

'God willing and the crick don't rise', when the housing market takes an upward turn and the economy stabilizes the gentrification of areas of Atlanta that were on the decline will continue. I am glad Buford Hwy/Doraville has been aggressive with such improvements.

[Saintmarks]

Originally Posted by WilliamM

Talk about a great idea for a possible new discussion thread. Supposing polls are borne out on election day and Virginia and North Carolina go "progressive" (blue), but Georgia stays reliably red, that raises some really interesting questions as to why Georgia would lose out to these other states, that is, why these other states would get all the glory in ushering in a real "New South" given the massive influx of educated people to Atlanta from all over the country and world over the last several decades, but esp. in the years since the Olympics.

Granted Northern Virginia has a virtually unparalleled mix of affluence and education levels, and North Carolina's Research Triangle is famous for it's PhDs per capita, but still. Why wouldn't Atlanta's massive growth also be acting to bring about a similar shift here in Georgia?

Now THAT is a mystery that has me scratching my head.

Can't see that voting for a democratic ticket automatically makes one a free thinker. Seems to be a lot of kool-aid drinkers on either side of the red/blue divide.

Atlanta has prospered the last several decades with a liberal center and a conservative suburban donut surrounding it within an even more conservative state. Can't think how this argument has any validity.