First Image You See When You Think of Each State (downtown, climates)

[WanderingImport]

Originally Posted by ASM

South Carolina- Schizophrenia

Huh? I'm not understanding this one...

[*Sweetkisses*]

This thread convinces me that as a whole, Americans are not very smart and only go by perception. tsk tsk

[tommyc_37]

I have to say I'm amused (but mostly offended) by people's perceptions of states, particularly of NJ, which is home. These are some of the common "first thoughts" for NJ that I've seen so far on this thread.

- Urban (exactly the opposite is true ... NJ is overwhelmingly suburban. Probably the MOST suburban state in the US, actually).

- Big hair (I have not seen anybody with big hair in NJ since the late 80's, when people had big hair in, umm, EVERY state)

- Jersey accents (NJ people actually speak pretty normally. It's the "New Yawkas" who have the accents!)

- Refineries (there is literally just a few square miles of refineries/industrial wasteland in NJ...just outside of NYC. This is the case when you look just outside *most* large cities in the world. I think it's a shame that people actually think the entire state of NJ looks like that. I guess because Newark Airport is in the middle of the industrial area, and that is what people see. Shame.)

- Polluted waters (a real head scratcher. Actually, NJ's waters are among the cleanest in the US...yup, look it up)

- Crime-filled (another head scratcher. NJ is one of the safest states in the country in terms of violent crime. I think it's Top 10).

So, yeah...apparently NJ needs a really good PR campaign. Just thought I'd educate.

[66nexus]

Originally Posted by tommyc_37

I have to say I'm amused (but mostly offended) by people's perceptions of states, particularly of NJ, which is home. These are some of the common "first thoughts" for NJ that I've seen so far on this thread.

- Urban (exactly the opposite is true ... NJ is overwhelmingly suburban. Probably the MOST suburban state in the US, actually).

- Big hair (I have not seen anybody with big hair in NJ since the late 80's, when people had big hair in, umm, EVERY state)

- Jersey accents (NJ people actually speak pretty normally. It's the "New Yawkas" who have the accents!)

- Refineries (there is literally just a few square miles of refineries/industrial wasteland in NJ...just outside of NYC. This is the case when you look just outside *most* large cities in the world. I think it's a shame that people actually think the entire state of NJ looks like that. I guess because Newark Airport is in the middle of the industrial area, and that is what people see. Shame.)

- Polluted waters (a real head scratcher. Actually, NJ's waters are among the cleanest in the US...yup, look it up)

- Crime-filled (another head scratcher. NJ is one of the safest states in the country in terms of violent crime. I think it's Top 10).

So, yeah...apparently NJ needs a really good PR campaign. Just thought I'd educate.

You know that so many folks land at Newark Airport and would swear on their mothers that they 'know' NJ. But when you throw them stats i.e. one of safest states, richest states and yadda yadda...they only gawk. Who knows...

[JennyJenn]

Originally Posted by 66nexus

You know that so many folks land at Newark Airport and would swear on their mothers that they 'know' NJ. But when you throw them stats i.e. one of safest states, richest states and yadda yadda...they only gawk. Who knows...

Not to mention the best public education system and highest average individual education level per person.

[WanderingImport]

New Jersey: Suburbia, rugged inner cities, huge million dollar houses on a hill, Atlantic City.

Well, I didn't completely fall in to the stereotypical thought of NJ.... except maybe for the "rugged inner cities" part.. and in that case, I was thinking of Paterson and cities close to New York.

[green_mariner]

AL: college football, rural, pickup trucks and confederate flags
AK: Cold, wild, adventureland
AZ: cactus, adobe houses with Spanish tiles, desert
AR: rural, Little Rock
CA: sunshine, beaches, dry weather, good looks, maryjane
CO: mountains, bicycles, fresh clean air, Denver
CT: Gilmore Girls type of town
DE : the ocean
FL : beaches, swamps, Miami, the elderly, Cuban-Americans, oranges
GA: coca-cola, peaches, Atlanta
HI: paradise, expensive living
ID: potato farms, mountains, rapids
IL: brown prairies, Chicago
IN: farms, Indianapolis, Michael Jackson(may his soul rest in peace)
IA: corn farms, John Deere tractors
KS: wheat farms, crop dusters, Wichita
KY: bluegrass, Appalachia, Louisville, KFC
LA: swamps, Cajun culture, New Orleans, corruption, Creole cooking, pollution, Katrina
ME: moose, forests, French-Canadian people, lobster
MD: Baltimore, crabs, Chesapeake Bay
MA: Boston, Martha's Vineyard, "chowdah", chips
MI: The Great Lakes, Detroit, automobiles, Stevie Wonder, crime, snow
MN: Mpls, snow, Garrison Keillor, Scandinavian culture, growing Hmong and African-American population, land o'lakes
MS: Mississippi Alluvial Plain(aka MS delta), blues, poverty, racism, cotton, small towns, juke joints, Biloxi
MO: Branson, St. Louis, Kansas City, the Ozarks
MT: mountains, buffalo, cowboys, remote, cold, sheep
NE: wheat farms, Omaha, Cornhuskers football, sandy outlands west of Lincoln,
NV: casions, Vegas and Reno, most remote corner of the contiguous USA, desert
NH: granite, White Mountains, Mt. Washington
NJ: Newark, diners, Atlantic City, the movie "Lean On Me", The Sopranos, The Karate Kid
NM: desert, mountains, adobe homes, Native American and Spanish culture, Roswell
NY: NYC, Buffalo, Long Island
NC: Piedmont Triad, Charlotte, Outer Banks, Asheville
ND: cold weather, farms, ranchers, nice people, Fargo, Scandinavian culture
OH: suburban areas, Cleveland, Ohio State University at Columbus, steel
OK: Oil, cowboys, The musical "Oklahoma", Will Rogers, Native American culture,
OR: trees, Portland, rain, rocky shore line, hippies
PA: Amish, Philly and Pgh, Scranton, The Office
RI: ocean, beaches, small place, corruption
SC: pickup trucks, college football, confederate flags, Charleston, palmettos
SD: prairies,farms, Black Hills, Mount Rushmore
TN: country music, the blues, Memphis, Elvis, Chattanooga, Nashville, "Rocky Top"
TX: cowboys, armadilllos, Longhorns, friendly people, diverse people, football, oil, rockets, Austin, DFW metroplex, El Paso, San Antonio, Houston
UT: desert, Mormons, skiing, Great Salt Lake, Bonneville Flats
VT: Green Moutains, Ben and Jerry's, ultraliberals
VA: Tidewater, NoVa, Robert E. Lee, Naval Bases
WA: trees, the Cascades, rain, Seattle, Microsoft, Boeing
WV: Appalachia, poverty, resilient people, coal, pollution
WI: cheese, milk, beer, cold weather, Happy Days, Leave It To Beaver, malted milk, motorcycles, German culture
WY: cowboys, mining, sheep, desert, cold, mountains, fresh air, libertarian

[tallydude02]

I guess West Virginia's reputation of poverty is ingrained on this board. The old Newsweek articles from the 1970's (which always depicted the poorest of the poor) will never die.

[Granny Sue]

I can't belive how many people are taking this stuff so personal.
Heck I live in the south and deal with stupid stereotypes all day on these boards.

You have to realize that some people are so childish that they have to use these types of thread to "get back" at some percieved insult.

Look at the title of the thread again.....It doesn't say that all someone knows about a state it says what the 1st thing you think of.

Quit being so sensitive.

[Jimrob1]

Originally Posted by GottaHerdOn

Apparently all we have in WV is coal and rednecks... lol a lot of you people are so ignorant.

I agree. Yes there is poverty in WV but not the complete state or all its people. What may shock most people in America is Oregon where I live. Beautiful natural scenery from Mountains, Forests to Coastline. Get beyond that and take a look at many of the people in many parts of the state. Poverty and homelessness, drugs and dependence on agencies to eat and survive. Its social problems are in your face, and, much more prone to have been a chosen lifestyle than anywhere in WV.