Is CO as full of self-centered jerks like CA? (Denver: friendly, best)

[SEAandATL]

Originally Posted by Rawlings

Lisa Girr wrote a book a while back called, "Suburban Warrior: Rise of the New American Right." In it she uses Orange County as an example of the new conservatism in America. She argues that it was middle American, midwestern transplants that transported a 'capitalist religious morality' to the coast and supplanted the traditional, progressive coastal ethos.

What's ironic is that there's a reverse trend going on now. Now it's those very same transplants and conservative California natives who are returning the favor to the midwest by moving into the middle of 'red america' and fortifying the socially--and fiscally--conservative values that are pervasive there.

Some folks rail against Californians in Colorado because of their "hollywood values." The reality is that Californian immigration to Colorado probably made us more--not less--conservative. Conservative Californians saw Colorado--quite rightly--as a cheaper, equally attractive environment where people shared their religious and economic values. Remember, James Dobson moved Focus on the Family from SoCal to Colorado Springs and he brought a whole lot of his followers into the state in the 90s.

The moral of the story is that Coloradans should be a whole lot more welcoming to Californians. The state went 45% for Bush--meaning that it is a statistical probability that at least for every liberal granola-crunching Californian that comes here there's another conservative, evangelical OC family riding in on their trusty steed looking for a cheaper living. But that's not quite accurate either because a lot of those tofu-mashers would probably look to liberal states like Oregon and Washington and not conservative ones like Colorado and Texas to move. That means that the majority of Californians that Colorado is fielding are probably mostly conservative.

Anyway, I think Douglas County--and really the entire metro area plus the Springs--could be the next Orange County and the next subject of a book on American conservatism. David Brooks of the New York Times wrote an article you can find online called "The New Red Diaper Babies." In it he uses Douglas County specifically to highlight a new trend in red states like Colorado: nativism. Politically conservative and morally traditional--but high income--families in the suburbs are opting for a lifestyle of huge families where the mom stays home and even homeschools on religious values. That's makes newer suburban counties grow into mammoth metro areas.

Not coincidentally Douglas County, for a time in the early 2000s, was the fastest growing county in America. Colorado has one of the highest birth rates in the nation and is famous for its celebration of homeschooling.

I know a lot of Denverites who moved to Orange County. A friend of mine is a big syndicatd conservative radio talk host in Orange County and he's always waxing on about how much he loves it here. In Orange County it's a morally and fiscally conservative bubble in a blue state. In Colorado the metro area blends in much better with its red surroundings--though there are interesting blue pockets in the state like Boulder and elsewhere.

So, I encourage you to visit here. My guess is that you'll love it. The weather, the people, the politics, the affordability--all of it is leaning your way.

So the Denver area is predominately conservative? It's no surprise since Colorado is a red state, and Denver has a lot of transplants from Texas. However, I've also heard about Denver having a lot of hippie types living there, but maybe they're mostly in Boulder. From what I saw of Denver, it appears to have a Seattle or Portland atmosphere, at least from the outside, but I've never really interacted with Denverites. I also have the impression that Denver is an environmentally friendly city, and that it's not as conservative as CO Springs.

[tfox]

Originally Posted by SEAandATL

So the Denver area is predominately conservative? It's no surprise since Colorado is a red state, and Denver has a lot of transplants from Texas. However, I've also heard about Denver having a lot of hippie types living there, but maybe they're mostly in Boulder. From what I saw of Denver, it appears to have a Seattle or Portland atmosphere, at least from the outside, but I've never really interacted with Denverites. I also have the impression that Denver is an environmentally friendly city, and that it's not as conservative as CO Springs.

I know Rawlings keeps saying so, but it's not really true that the Denver area is predominantly conservative. Parts of the metro area are conservative, that's true. But parts are also liberal. Most of it is fairly moderate. Rawlings lives in Lakewood and he's represented by a suburban district that voted in a Democrat by double digits. Hard-core Republicans can certainly flock to their designated bright red area in Douglas County, but outside of that, we're colored purple with a few spots of bright blue.

[Rawlings]

Originally Posted by SEAandATL

So the Denver area is predominately conservative? It's no surprise since Colorado is a red state, and Denver has a lot of transplants from Texas. However, I've also heard about Denver having a lot of hippie types living there, but maybe they're mostly in Boulder. From what I saw of Denver, it appears to have a Seattle or Portland atmosphere, at least from the outside, but I've never really interacted with Denverites. I also have the impression that Denver is an environmentally friendly city, and that it's not as conservative as CO Springs.

Here's the low down:

The Denver metro area is 2.5 million people. The city of Denver is about 1/5 of that--half a million. The city of Denver is probably not as liberal as Portland and Seattle--but it is solidly Democratic and leans left. Outside of that the metro area leans to the right--some areas more so than others. But, generally speaking, it would be accurate to say that the metro area is center-right (which means different things in different parts of the country, of course). So if you add it all up metro Denver is conservative, votes more Republican than not (Bush won the metro area 53-47). But, as other posters have noted, there are all kinds of different people here.

I lived in Portland for a while and I can tell you that Denver is not even comparable. A moderate in Denver is a flaming Bible-thumper in Portland. The culture, the attitudes, the politics, the religion--it's all VERY different.

[Mike from back east]

This thread needs to stop it with the politics and red/blue crap and get back to the issue of the original post, else I'll close it and issue infractions.

s/Mike from back east

[canontiger]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

I've never lived outside of Orange County (SoCal) so I don't have anything to compare it to. But it seems that the older I get (33 now) the more frustrated I get with all the a-holes that act like they're the center of the universe, nobody else matters, and the rules don't apply to them. For example, the guy in the big lifted truck with the balls hanging off the trailer hitch that rides everyone's bumper and parks across 2 spaces all with a cell phone on his ear. Or the guy that constantly breaks appointments because he's soooo busy but expects you to drop everything when he calls.

Doesn't anyone have any consideration for others anymore? Or is this just the way America is in the 21st century?

Graduated from CU, Boulder. My friend and I thought we were prepared for the rude, self centered, liberal etc type that we were not raised to be or had even been raised with. We really thought it could not get worse than some we had to rub shoulders with in Boulder, and the big city of Denver and I25. I stayed in here, he went to Calif. He said we were not prepared. That as bad as some were here it was worse there. One man's opinion. There it is.

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by Mike from back east

This thread needs to stop it with the politics and red/blue crap and get back to the issue of the original post, else I'll close it and issue infractions.

s/Mike from back east

Thank you. I for one, appreciate being able to talk about something else once in a while.

[Mike from back east]

Pittnurse, thanks for the kind words.

I'm sure there are self-centered jerks everywhere, but coming from the DC area (gets my vote as the mother lode of self-centered / self-important and arrogant jerks) this state is just marvelous. Despite some aggressive driving in the Denver area and on I-25, most drivers here are pretty darn nice and show very good manners and civility.

When I happen to cross paths with such people here, and its very few, I just smile and ignore them. The best revenge is to let them live with themselves.

s/Mike

[GraniteStater]

It does seem like Colorado continues to be a big state for in-migration from other parts of the country. The suburban counties in the Front Range are some of the fastest growing percentage wise in the entire country as well. This uncontrolled suburban sprawl is affecting eastern areas of Colorado. Denver is semi-arid and only gets 10-15 inches of precipitation a year. Denver and Aurora continue to buy up water rights from rural ranchers and farmers to continue to support the highly consumptive suburban lifestyles of the Front Range. The real estate developers cater to these out of state buyers and act like their is an endless supply of water, and even more development in the semi-arid plains is good. I do not think any new development should have large amounts of bluegrass lawn when the annual precipitatoin amounts are so low. Water conservation needs to be taken much more seriously in Colorado considering the massive amounts of population growth and limited water supply.
It also seems like the areas that the most conservative areas in the country also have the greatest number of sunny days. This applies to states like Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Texas, Kansas and the bible-belt areas of the southeast.

[Rawlings]

Originally Posted by Plains10

It does seem like Colorado continues to be a big state for in-migration from other parts of the country. The suburban counties in the Front Range are some of the fastest growing percentage wise in the entire country as well. This uncontrolled suburban sprawl is affecting eastern areas of Colorado. Denver is semi-arid and only gets 10-15 inches of precipitation a year. Denver and Aurora continue to buy up water rights from rural ranchers and farmers to continue to support the highly consumptive suburban lifestyles of the Front Range. The real estate developers cater to these out of state buyers and act like their is an endless supply of water, and even more development in the semi-arid plains is good. I do not think any new development should have large amounts of bluegrass lawn when the annual precipitatoin amounts are so low. Water conservation needs to be taken much more seriously in Colorado considering the massive amounts of population growth and limited water supply.
It also seems like the areas that the most conservative areas in the country also have the greatest number of sunny days. This applies to states like Colorado, Utah, Arizona, Texas, Kansas and the bible-belt areas of the southeast.

I heard that Denver is even sunnier than San Diego and Miami. Wow.

You're right, water rights are a major deal in Colorado. I never really understood the urgency of it--but it's tops on political agendas and ranching concerns across the state.

[formercalifornian]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

For example, the guy in the big lifted truck with the balls hanging off the trailer hitch that rides everyone's bumper and parks across 2 spaces all with a cell phone on his ear.

I think that guy lives down the street from me!