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What type of "outdoorsy" activities take pace in New England?
For one, not all of new England is cities. In fact the only major city of new England is Boston. Then Hartford, providence and Bridgeport. After that its a bunch of cities less then 120,000 people. You have miles of coastline, Appalachian trails, forests and so many other things.
New England probably has a better small town identity because many towns in new england are fairly old and compact and retain a certain hertiage of their past ancestry and culture. Also many seem to have more pride in their town then their state. New England probably wins this. Midwestern towns seem to be closely knit communities but they identify with a region or state or politics
When it comes to traditional white protestant culture, which of these two regions has a more traditional culture when it comes to "small town" culture?
Attributes
-family
-outdoor activities
-safety
-patriotism
Using the above criteria and also having lived in both New England and the Midwest for 20+ years each there is a slight edge to the Midwest. It is a VERY close call though and depending on where you are comparing in each region could easily swing the answer the other way. Both areas have a strong sense of family, plenty of outdoor activities, are safe, and display Patriotism. It is more dependent on the small towns you are comparing within each region than the regions themselves overall.
I think both the Midwest and New England small towns have plenty of ties to family, safety and patriotism. Maybe (?) some New England small towns have more things to door outdoors, but those are probably the ones near more mountainous areas in NH or VT; there are plenty of outdoor activities in the Midwest...
I voted in this poll and then wished I hadn't after I read the OP. What does small-town life have to do with patriotism? Since when is white protestant the only "traditional"way of life in america.. (In New Orleans/Louisiana, traditional means eating red beans and rice on mondays or speaking french). Why do you assume that white protestant small-town equals "traditional, patriotic" etc. You can be a "minority" living on the border of mexico and still be more patriotic than sommeone who is white and protestant and lives a "traditional" way of life.
I voted in this poll and then wished I hadn't after I read the OP. What does small-town life have to do with patriotism? Since when is white protestant the only "traditional"way of life in america.. (In New Orleans/Louisiana, traditional means eating red beans and rice on mondays or speaking french). Why do you assume that white protestant small-town equals "traditional, patriotic" etc. You can be a "minority" living on the border of mexico and still be more patriotic than sommeone who is white and protestant and lives a "traditional" way of life.
It's not a myth that American patriotism is often associated with rural America. How many homes do you see the American flag posted up in urban America.
I know where you are coming from, but you can't be in denial though.
Easy. New England by a long shot. I grew up in the MidWest, and live in New England (small town Vermont). There are some parts that are more urbanized and self-centric (ahem, Southern New Hampshire!) but overall New England is full of amazing small town communities. I have never felt so part of a town "family" as I have here.
To the person that said New England has a lot of big cities ... there is only one large city in New England, and that is Boston. No other cities in New England even break 100,000 people. I'm from Ohio, a single state with more people in it than all of New England combined. There are more 100,000+ cities in Ohio than there are 25,000+ cities in New England. There are more people in my home city of Cincinnati than there are in my adopted home state, Vermont.
Well reading the title of the thread and voting, I went for New England, since they have always had the cliched images of what a perfect small American town should be. After reading your post with these select attributes, and being protestant and safety, I would say midwestern. The Midwest states are far more conservative than New England. The only think making Illinois a blue state is Chicago, the only thing making Ohio a swing state is its large metro areas and industrial heritage. New England has only a couple of large metro areas and yet even the small states like Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont are all blue when it comes to politics.
Based off of your criteria I would say the midwest.
Based off of the general public's idea I would say New England. Both are very safe areas.
I voted in this poll and then wished I hadn't after I read the OP. What does small-town life have to do with patriotism? Since when is white protestant the only "traditional"way of life in america.. (In New Orleans/Louisiana, traditional means eating red beans and rice on mondays or speaking french). Why do you assume that white protestant small-town equals "traditional, patriotic" etc. You can be a "minority" living on the border of mexico and still be more patriotic than sommeone who is white and protestant and lives a "traditional" way of life.
I feel the same way, I voted before I read the OP's statements.
Easy. New England by a long shot. I grew up in the MidWest, and live in New England (small town Vermont). There are some parts that are more urbanized and self-centric (ahem, Southern New Hampshire!) but overall New England is full of amazing small town communities. I have never felt so part of a town "family" as I have here.
To the person that said New England has a lot of big cities ... there is only one large city in New England, and that is Boston. No other cities in New England even break 100,000 people. I'm from Ohio, a single state with more people in it than all of New England combined. There are more 100,000+ cities in Ohio than there are 25,000+ cities in New England. There are more people in my home city of Cincinnati than there are in my adopted home state, Vermont.
Really? Providence? Bridgeport? New Haven? Springfield? None of them break 100,000? Then you have Portland Maine, city itself is only 66,000, but the metro is 505,000. Boston is the only big city (over 100,000) in New England?
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