What do you dislike about Denver? (Boulder, Parker: mall, stats, bars)

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

The bold is assuming that the two things in bold go hand-in-hand.

When looking at election results, it appears that Denver itself is readily blue, the exurbs (Douglas, Elbert) are readily red, and the two more "average" inner-ring counties (Arapahoe, Jefferson) are bellwethers. The one exception of note is Adams, which given it's more working-class population (in comparison to Arapahoe and Jefferson) seems to be readily blue as well.

I don't know what the East Coast has to do with CO here, but you really can't expect CO to be like the East. Although in the last election, Staten Island managed to be red, along with some suburban counties in NJ.....

I agree. Not all Democrats are what you would call "forward thinking". Pittsburgh is an example of a Democratic city that is very much set in its ways. Its suburbs went Democratic, too, but I can guarantee you my entire life savings that my home county, Beaver, is not forward thinking. Not by a long shot.

And David is right; this is not the east coast. Also not by a long shot.

[Shino306]

I believe this was a post about things we disliked about Denver. I grew up in one of the more red areas of the Denver metro area. Of course Denver proper is going to vote Democrat, that's a by-gone conclusion. I was talking about the suburbs, most notably the ones I know.

[cory81]

Things that suck about Denver:

• long winters (first snow in October, last snow in April = sucks). Anyone from the east coast who didn't already like winter is going to dislike it even more here (probably true for Californians too). Only people from crappy midwest areas seem to think it's nice weather here and that's because they don't know anything other than completely awful weather. Sure it's sunny, but cold and sunny ain't exactly paradise. Denver's lows get really low during the winter, which is even lower than places as far north as Boston and it also gets 20" more annual snowfall than Boston. The overnight low is more important than daytime highs because the overnight low affects your commute every single day and freezes the hell out of you every morning going to work. This is in the supposedly sunny, nice West. Sunny maybe.
• Approximately 92% of the landscape looks like Kansas. No trees whatsoever, the grass is very yellow (although I admit Denver was very lucky this summer getting greener). Basically, if you live in Denver or in the Denver metro region, you live in Kansas with a lot more people and some mountains out there in the distance that you drive to every now and then.

• No diversity whatsoever. Some people may quietly like this. Whitest major metro area in the U.S. that I can think of off the top of my head. Actually, there's a sizable Latino population too. If you're a black or Asian person living in the metro area though, you probably have to act like a white guy to really fit in here. If you're true to your cultural roots, you'll have to move to some pretty undesirable places.
• A very rural attitude/demeanor/approach to life, which I've always thought indicates a lack of exposure to other cultures, competition and other things than just make people better.

• Skiing is the #2 favorite sport in Colorado, trailing significantly by Running Red Lights, Denver's #1 pastime. The first time I don't see 2 or 3 cars pass by my intersection while mine just turned green will probably be the first.
• The drivers in the left lane on the highway don't know what it's for and won't get out of your way like they're supposed to because they are of a rural, backwards mindset.
• Lack of a great college in the state. If your kid lives in Colorado and you want to go cheap by keeping them in state, you'd be better off in the mid-Atlantic, northeast or west coast. Not to say the colleges are bad, but there's not a great school here, or a number of great schools for that matter, to choose from like you find in other major metro areas.

[BarryK123]

TV primetime is 7-10, rather than 8-11, as it is in the eastern and western time zones.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by cory81

Things that suck about Denver:

• long winters (first snow in October, last snow in April = sucks). Anyone from the east coast who didn't already like winter is going to dislike it even more here (probably true for Californians too). Only people from crappy midwest areas seem to think it's nice weather here and that's because they don't know anything other than completely awful weather. Sure it's sunny, but cold and sunny ain't exactly paradise. Denver's lows get really low during the winter, which is even lower than places as far north as Boston and it also gets 20" more annual snowfall than Boston. The overnight low is more important than daytime highs because the overnight low affects your commute every single day and freezes the hell out of you every morning going to work. This is in the supposedly sunny, nice West. Sunny maybe.
• Approximately 92% of the landscape looks like Kansas. No trees whatsoever, the grass is very yellow (although I admit Denver was very lucky this summer getting greener). Basically, if you live in Denver or in the Denver metro region, you live in Kansas with a lot more people and some mountains out there in the distance that you drive to every now and then.

• No diversity whatsoever. Some people may quietly like this. Whitest major metro area in the U.S. that I can think of off the top of my head. Actually, there's a sizable Latino population too. If you're a black or Asian person living in the metro area though, you probably have to act like a white guy to really fit in here. If you're true to your cultural roots, you'll have to move to some pretty undesirable places.
• A very rural attitude/demeanor/approach to life, which I've always thought indicates a lack of exposure to other cultures, competition and other things than just make people better.

• Skiing is the #2 favorite sport in Colorado, trailing significantly by Running Red Lights, Denver's #1 pastime. The first time I don't see 2 or 3 cars pass by my intersection while mine just turned green will probably be the first.
• The drivers in the left lane on the highway don't know what it's for and won't get out of your way like they're supposed to because they are of a rural, backwards mindset.
• Lack of a great college in the state. If your kid lives in Colorado and you want to go cheap by keeping them in state, you'd be better off in the mid-Atlantic, northeast or west coast. Not to say the colleges are bad, but there's not a great school here, or a number of great schools for that matter, to choose from like you find in other major metro areas.

Winters here aren't that bad.

You obviously have never lived in a rural area. There is nothing remotely rural about metro Denver, in attitudes or otherwise. I think there is a bit of "I'm better than you, I'm too busy for you" snobbishness, but that could never be defined as rural.

However, people pulling over (for cops or otherwise) on the left side of the freeway (or in the middle of an arterial road) is quite a backwards thing to do, which I see here a lot.

There's plenty of "diversity" in Aurora and the eastern parts of Denver. As if being (or not being) white (or any other color) is a bad thing.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by cory81

Things that suck about Denver:

[list][*] long winters (first snow in October, last snow in April = sucks). Anyone from the east coast who didn't already like winter is going to dislike it even more here (probably true for Californians too). Only people from crappy midwest areas seem to think it's nice weather here and that's because they don't know anything other than completely awful weather. Sure it's sunny, but cold and sunny ain't exactly paradise. Denver's lows get really low during the winter, which is even lower than places as far north as Boston and it also gets 20" more annual snowfall than Boston. The overnight low is more important than daytime highs because the overnight low affects your commute every single day and freezes the hell out of you every morning going to work. This is in the supposedly sunny, nice West. Sunny maybe.

• No diversity whatsoever. Some people may quietly like this. Whitest major metro area in the U.S. that I can think of off the top of my head. Actually, there's a sizable Latino population too. If you're a black or Asian person living in the metro area though, you probably have to act like a white guy to really fit in here. If you're true to your cultural roots, you'll have to move to some pretty undesirable places.
  
• Lack of a great college in the state. If your kid lives in Colorado and you want to go cheap by keeping them in state, you'd be better off in the mid-Atlantic, northeast or west coast. Not to say the colleges are bad, but there's not a great school here, or a number of great schools for that matter, to choose from like you find in other major metro areas.

Ever spent a winter in Pittsburgh or that general area? Gray, gloom all day long. Light-activated street lights on all day. Similar temperature fluctuations, but way less sun.

Re: diversity-

Minorities a majority in Denver - The Denver Post

Denver proper is a majority-minority city, as others have said FWIW. Go look up Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, and Pittsburgh for some examples of less diverse cities all over the country.

CU is highly ranked and currently has three Nobel Prize winners on its faculty. Compare to Penn State, where no faculty member has ever won a Nobel; no faculty member has ever won a Nobel somewhere else after leaving Penn State, and no one with an advanced degree from Penn State has ever won a Nobel Prize.

[BarryK123]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Ever spent a winter in Pittsburgh or that general area? Gray, gloom all day long.

Three, actually, and I agree 100%

Originally Posted by Katiana

CU is highly ranked and currently has three Nobel Prize winners on its faculty. Compare to Penn State, where no faculty member has ever won a Nobel; no faculty member has ever won a Nobel somewhere else after leaving Penn State, and no one with an advanced degree from Penn State has ever won a Nobel Prize.

Here, I disagree. Having faculty who are Nobel winners doesn't mean anything from an educational perspective. Do you think they are going to teach undergraduate courses? Even if they do, I was taught by a Nobel prize winner in a Chemistry class. He was a terrible teacher.

One of my kids transferred from Penn State to CU-Boulder this year. Penn State's admission requirements (other than for the football team) are significantly more difficult.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by BarryK123

Here, I disagree. Having faculty who are Nobel winners doesn't mean anything from an educational perspective. Do you think they are going to teach undergraduate courses? Even if they do, I was taught by a Nobel prize winner in a Chemistry class. He was a terrible teacher.

One of my kids transferred from Penn State to CU-Boulder this year. Penn State's admission requirements (other than for the football team) are significantly more difficult.

For one thing, the Nobel Prize winners are an indication of the school's committment to research, which, though ridiculed by many (not saying you), is important in a university. I agree they can be lousy teachers. So can many other faculty.

How are Penn State's admission requirements significantly more difficult? I thought just about anyone could get in to a Commonwealth Campus (branch campus to the rest of you), then transfer to the main campus.

[las vegas drunk]

The Pit Bull ban.

[BarryK123]

Originally Posted by Katiana

How are Penn State's admission requirements significantly more difficult? I thought just about anyone could get in to a Commonwealth Campus (branch campus to the rest of you), then transfer to the main campus.

I'm talking main campus in State College. I don't recall the exact numbers but IIRC, SATs of 1300 and GPA > 3.2 are the necessary for a good shot. If you're talking branch campuses, yes, they are much less competitive.