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Many people live here b/c their jobs are here. Doesn't mean they LIKE it here or would have chosen to be here except that they found employment here.
The trick is to make the best of wherever you live. The downside is . . . if you don't like what a city "has to offer," then you just don't like it, lol. If you prefer Seattle, maybe the weather here is a plus part of the year and the heat/humidity is a minus part of the year. Maybe the politics are a mismatch. Maybe the music scene is a turn off compared to what you grew up with or developed a preference for. It doesn't mean someone is negative - it just means that Charlotte is not the best match but it is a place you earn your living . . . so you have to compromise. That is not always a comfy psychological spot to be in, but most folks do what they have to do to raise their families and put food on the table. They find what works for them and try to dismiss what doesn't.
I grew up here and have never been particularly fond of Charlotte, lol. But I can get to lots of other places I prefer from here and I have family here . . . so . . . it's home, warts and all. Doesn't mean I hate it . . . just doesn't mean I would vote it as best city in America FOR ME. I still have a vested interest in seeing Charlotte grow and prosper.
People are negative, unfortunately. Not just in Charlotte. My personal belief is that most of those people are trying to find happiness is other things (cars, houses, friends, status, the city you live in, etc). Being happy and positive is a choice and something that comes from within.
IMO, most of it has to do with some transplants coming to Charlotte hoping for rainbows, pots of gold and unicorns dancing in fields of flowers and then discovering that it's no different than anywhere else. The problems they were hoping to leave behind also packed their bags here and moved with them. Add to that the different climate, the fact that most natives aren't impressed they moved here from wherever & whatever and have no interested in their customs, and it ends up making for some very sour dispositions.
This doesn't apply to all transplants but only the ones who do a lot of complaining about the area and the people.
Many people live here b/c their jobs are here. Doesn't mean they LIKE it here or would have chosen to be here except that they found employment here.
The trick is to make the best of wherever you live. The downside is . . . if you don't like what a city "has to offer," then you just don't like it, lol. If you prefer Seattle, maybe the weather here is a plus part of the year and the heat/humidity is a minus part of the year. Maybe the politics are a mismatch. Maybe the music scene is a turn off compared to what you grew up with or developed a preference for. It doesn't mean someone is negative - it just means that Charlotte is not the best match but it is a place you earn your living . . . so you have to compromise. That is not always a comfy psychological spot to be in, but most folks do what they have to do to raise their families and put food on the table. They find what works for them and try to dismiss what doesn't.
^THIS. Seriously, this should be posted at the top of every thread about whether or not Charlotte is "boring," or whatever other titles people give to threads where the intent is for people who like Charlotte to argue with people who don't like Charlotte.
Everyone has their own preferences as to what they like. If someone doesn't like yellow mustard, they don't like yellow mustard. If someone doesn't like Charlotte, they don't like Charlotte. Arguing with them isn't going to make them like Charlotte, just like arguing wouldn't make them like yellow mustard. The only reason we hear so many complaints on the Charlotte board is because so many people moved here specifically for a job who wouldn't have moved to a place like Charlotte otherwise. They're going to be unhappy. People who are unhappy tend to complain. Telling people to pick up and move in the worst economy since the 1930s is a bit much.
Best thing to do is just ignore people who are being negative. After all, who cares what some anonymous person on an Internet message board thinks?
We will be permanent transplants to Meckenburg County end of July 2012. We have had a home here since Aug 2007. Vast majority of our neighbors are transplants and everyone is very positive. Whenever there has been a neighborhood event, I have not heard any unhappy people. Maybe they just stay inside and wish they could find someone to listen to them complain.
I love Charlotte as a city. I would like nothing better than to put down roots here, but the economy has me discouraged and unfortunately I've reached a point where I can no longer stay here. I can either live in Charlotte but work a miserable dead-end job that has me trapped and barely financially affloat or move somewhere else and make a better life for myself.
There are so many attributing factors of why "negativity" is very prevalent here in Charlotte. Not only Charlotte but lots of cities. 1. No jobs.- People are stuck in jobs because they cant seem to find better opportunities because of the lack of jobs and resources. 2.Home Sales - People are not able to sell their homes dues to the economy. Home sales are holding a lot of people back to be able to move forward with their lives. Face it-People are frustrated and sometimes they dont know how to move forward so they take their frustrations out on others...Im not saying its right...but that's the only way they know how.
I don't think this is what the OP was getting at. The comments on the Observer's website ALWAYS skew negatively. It's the same for just about any city's online newspaper. Charlotte isn't unique in this regard at all.
The takeaway here is that those commentators are in no way representative of the majority.
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