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Sure, due to jobs/economy. Decades ago, southerners moved north. We're talking about weather here, not economy. There will be another northern or eastern migration before we die. You can already see issues developing out west, and nowhere in the country treats the "common worker" worse than the south.
There are no jobs in Florida, there is just a desire for midwesterners to escape your climate and live in Florida. So much so there is even a term for it: "sunshine tax" because most of those midwesterners find jobs that pay far less in Florida than they do back home.
Texas is a bit of a different story of course, it has a strong job market. However, so does Minneapolis and Minneapolis is anemic. Hiring people in Minneapolis is hard because all the talent leaves Minneapolis, wages go up, but it's still very hard to attract anyone from out of the midwest to that city. Why? Because of the weather. Texas doesn't have that problem.
For someone who lived in Houston for 1 year, I don't get all the votes for Houston. I'm fairly sure most people who are voting for it have never been there, or at least never experienced the other cities on the list, cough cough Minneapolis.
LOL I have been unfortunate enough to be in Houston for 27 years and it is the worst weather for me. Anything humid....and anything hot is pretty much death for me. I thrive in a dry climate, fresh air, and cooler temps.
There is a massive relocation going on in the USA from cold weather states to warm weather states. Places like Minneapolis have trouble attracting people even though they have a healthy economy and the city is fairly 'nice.' Places like Florida attract too many people despite having a poor economy.
Just recently Florida overtook New York state as the third largest state in the USA. Its growth is primarily driven by people from midwestern states, Wisconsin being one of them, and northeastern states, New York State being one of them.
For someone who lived in Houston for 1 year, I don't get all the votes for Houston. I'm fairly sure most people who are voting for it have never been there, or at least never experienced the other cities on the list, cough cough Minneapolis.
I lived in Houston and could not stand the weather, too hot and humid for too long.
I also lived in Minneapolis and enjoyed the weather there, yes even the winters.
I voted for Minneapolis because of the winters. If not for Minneapolis being included, I would have voted for Phoenix. I am from Houston and currently live there, but previously lived in Phoenix for several years. Humidity or not, it's much too hot in the summers in Phoenix. I don't think people (especially on these boards) truly comprehend just how hot it gets. Not only does it get hot, everything else heats up. Getting into the car, you can burn your hands on the steering wheels, seatbelts, shifter, buttons, etc. I remember feeling lightheaded stepping into the car, to the point where I had to run the air conditioning for several minutes driving away. Supposedly, it's hot enough to fry an egg on your dashboard. I became somewhat nocturnal during the summers when I lived there. Although it would still be over 100 degrees at midnight. I also remember how when you'd turn on faucets in the summer, hot water would come out of the cold tap. The only relief was during monsoon season, where humidity went up to Houston levels while the temperature still stayed over 100 (no dry heat there). That was much more tolerable for me, although everybody complained and said dry season was better.
Compared to that, our summers here in Houston are a cakewalk. They are typically not overly hot, just very moist. I don't find humidity painful, but I found Phoenix summers to be literally painful. On top of it, humidity is actually healthier for you. It helps your skin stay moisturized and keeps your body from dehydrating. Our winters here are quite comparable to Phoenix though (maybe warmer because the winter nights don't get as cold as Phoenix). As someone that loves mild winters, I was disappointed by the fact that Phoenix not only has hot summers, but the winters can still hit freezing temperatures. It got both extremes which is ultimately why I left.
I don't find humidity painful, but I found Phoenix summers to be literally painful. On top of it, humidity is actually healthier for you. It helps your skin stay moisturized and keeps your body from dehydrating.
It probably is for people with normal skin and not so many allergies, I have oily skin and the humidity reeks havoc on my face. It also makes it hard for me to breathe.
I have not been to Phoenix, but have been to Vegas (not gambling, but hiking) during the 4th of July timeframe and yes that heat is very, very hot. But the dryness made it a little easier on me personally. Plus being dry made me actually drink water. Here in Houston, I have a hard time wanting to even drink water.
I have said it quite a few times on forums, but good thing everyone likes different things, or everyone would live in the same place. Though I am living in one of the last places I want to, maybe one day I will be able to find a job where I want to be, or will be able to retire there. =)
I voted Oklahoma City because of the tornado risk. If tornadoes weren't a factor, I would say Minneapolis. I don't mind hot weather but cannot stand brutally cold temperatures.
Well...true about snow/clouds, but Minneapolis gets significantly more temperature extremes. Pick your poison. Or, if you like snow (I do), it's yet another reason why I'd go Great Lakes vs MN through the Plains, at least in terms of weather.
With only 10 votes for the one cold-weather city and the rest (around 40) for the hot-weather cities, it's obvious that the majority disagree with you. 4 times as many people say the extreme heat bothers them more than the extreme cold.
Irrelevant. 50 city-data "enthusiasts" voting on an unrepresentative sample set is completely unscientific, if that is what you are getting at. We can hypothesize, however, and I will hypothesize that defensive people generally try and justify the crappy weather they endure through passive-aggressive means - sort of a choice-supportive bias via a silly online poll. On a whole, people vote with their feet, and generally leave cold weather for warm weather.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cheese plate
There are more people living with snowy winters in this country than consistently hot areas, so I'm not sure what your 100+ million Americans statement was supposed to prove
It means that there remains a tremendous net migration away from cold weather to warm weather. The census bureau itself stated that in the next 30 years, 90% of US population growth will occur in the "sun belt" states, and a large component of that remains net migration (sorry, can't dump that one on immigrants). The Rust Belt will continue to lose population, even though plenty of warm weather locations have lesser economies. Nobody really wants to live in crappy weather unless they have to, and for most people, cold weather and cloudiness is crappy weather.
Everyone has an opinion - I just found the list rather odd and not conforming to any particular characterization. How can you have a discussion on "worst overall weather in the US" and almost completely leave out the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard, but include San Diego, San Francisco (with the "cold summers") and Phoenix? It is a self-serving list, even for a Bostonian such as myself.
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