Blue Ridge, GA - Progressive? (Decatur, Blairsville: to live in, moving, rich)

[fmors]

I now know why there are so many houses for sales in North Georgia.

[mike7586]

Originally Posted by irishvanguard

Well, that is quite a distortion. Utah is by far the reddest state in the union. Furthermore, I don't know how you can overlook the 2 million Democratic voters who grade out in a 95% monolithic voting bloc. Ha ha! Time for a trip to the optometrist..........or shrink.

Oklahoma is actually the reddest state in the nation. If you look at the election map, it is the only state where every single county voted for John McCain. Not one blue county in the entire state. Overall, Georgia, like the rest of the South, is a conservative state but it could be a lot worse.

What you are looking for, you will not find in the North GA mountains. For example, Helen, GA is the most redneck German town I've ever seen. The only progressive part of GA is the Atlanta area. There's a reason the rest of GA hasn't seen as much as growth as Atlanta. Your description fits Asheville perfectly but if you want to be close to Atlanta check out Chattanooga, TN.

[MayorOfMacon2019]

The Blue Ridge Mountians are beautiful, it seems so distant from the hustle and bustle that many people have come to know Georgia for particularly Atlanta. Its great beautiful, nice and easy.

[itsajourney]

Originally Posted by fmors

I now know why there are so many houses for sales in North Georgia.

Thanks for that insight! Sounds like people are fleeing or trying to flee those Georgia hills to save their life or their sanity. Obviously, there must be something to it then--which is just a shame for such a beautiful area.

I see you are in western North Carolina. I lived in North Carolina for about a year and I absolutely loved it! Not once did I encounter the kinds of attitudes that I am seeing expressed here in the Georgia forum. Not to say they don't exist, but they don't seem to be nearly as hostile about it. So yep, I'm just going to bypass the state that harbors sooooooo much hostility towards "outsiders" for more friendly environs.

Let these local GA mountain folk get back to their banjo pickin'; teeth pickin'; tobacco spittin'; drivin' those big pick-em-up trucks with rebel flags flyin' off all sides; hatin' outsiders; actin' like a Christian for the 1 hour they sit in church; and all that other real important stuff now before they forget where they left off. ooooohhh & ouch!

Tryin' to explain to one of the above posters that I'm not a true "Floridian" would be fruitless cause such a small mind won't be able to grasp the whole picture here, but I'll give it a shot.

I am a Florida resident at the current time, but I am not a Floridian--and true Floridians--those born and raised in Florida and having family that goes back for generations in Floirida--would be very offended by your thoughtless remarks.

I was born and raised in Illinois. Spent most of my life there. Therefore, I will always consider myself an Illinoisian. Now, some of you may know that Illinois had boys that fought the Civil War for the north and they also had boys that fought for the south. Therefore, our state often found brother fighting against brother--literally.

I have also lived in Pennsylvania & North Carolina. Being a resident of those states does not make me a true Pennsylvanian or North Carolinian--tho I admit, I like both of those states better than Illinois.

Now, not to complicate things too much for you, but my geneological roots go back to Virginia and to a Governor of the great state (Commonwealth) of Virginia. You know that red-haired, big-mouth colonist whom is credited with saying the "give me liberty or give me death" thing (which by all historical accounts may be somewhat embellished). Of course that was 100 years or so before it became North VS South--at that time, we were trying to become THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

In the end, I guess I am just a confused descendant of a rebel colonist with a cause, trying to figure out if I am a Confederate Yankee or a Yankee Confederate. Well, just not going to wear myself out pondering that today. Just as Scarlett O'Hara said, "Tomorrow is another day"

C'mon y'all--start pickin' those banjos--somebody bring some hooch too...

[LovinDecatur]

Originally Posted by fmors

I now know why there are so many houses for sales in North Georgia.

Yes, and things change magically for the better when you cross the NC state line.
This thread has officially entered the Twilight Zone.

[fmors]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

Yes, and things change magically for the better when you cross the NC state line.
This thread has officially entered the Twilight Zone.

I live in Burnsville, NC, which is about 45 minutes north of Asheville. We moved here from the Raleigh area and quite frankly we have never experienced the kind of hostility by locals as is expressed in this forum. Now that is not to say we haven’t heard the term “Floridiots” before, but it was more a tongue in cheek expression.

In my line of work as a software developer I can pretty much live anywhere and work from home as long as I have high speed internet access. I was considering relocating to the North Georgia Mountains to take advantage of the Georgia Hope Scholarship program for my son, but after reading this forum I am not sue if that would be a good idea.

[Georgia]

Originally Posted by fmors

I live in Burnsville, NC, which is about 45 minutes north of Asheville. We moved here from the Raleigh area and quite frankly we have never experienced the kind of hostility by locals as is expressed in this forum. Now that is not to say we haven’t heard the term “Floridiots” before, but it was more a tongue in cheek expression.

In my line of work as a software developer I can pretty much live anywhere and work from home as long as I have high speed internet access. I was considering relocating to the North Georgia Mountains to take advantage of the Georgia Hope Scholarship program for my son, but after reading this forum I am not sue if that would be a good idea.

I have to ask, is your son young or a teen. The reason I ask is the above comment. If he is a teenager in high school my question would be your doubts about one poster blasting North Georgia, yet you are considering taking advantage of paid college for your child by the current taxpayers the previous poster bashes. If not, then please accept my apology beforehand.

To be frank, I have yet to see any hostility what so ever in N. Georgia. I spend many a weekend from Blue Ridge to McCaysville, and all over everyone likes to talk, say hello, etc., etc.,
Why are there homes for sale? Well, that is the economy and like everywhere else, even in the W.NC Mountains from Boone south, the overbuilding boom has came to a bust. Though mountain homes are for sale in N.Georgia, you will not see to much of a reduction in price, thus again the economy slowdown. Once items pick up again, you will see this area boom once more as an Atanta getaway.

As far as the Florida comments. Well, Georgia has been under invasion lately. Even in the Atlanta area it seem that 7 out of 10 cars coming in have Florida tags. Like everywhere else you find good and bad eggs. Can be Florida, NY, CA, and native folks. It's all what you make it. Some people are not nice and some are too nice. Happiness is found from within and how you accept life, not how you feel that your perceived by others.

In short, Blue Ridge is a nice place I enjoy it. It is a mountain getaway. And what is a getaway? Something different that allows you to escape the nutty pace of a city. So if Blue Ridge does not want to change then good for them.

[fmors]

Originally Posted by Georgia

I have to ask, is your son young or a teen. The reason I ask is the above comment. If he is a teenager in high school my question would be your doubts about one poster blasting North Georgia, yet you are considering taking advantage of paid college for your child by the current taxpayers the previous poster bashes. If not, then please accept my apology beforehand.

My son is 12 and is currently homeschooled. If we did move to N GA we would continue to home school him. It was my understanding that the Hope Scholarship was paid for with lottery earnings, not tax dollars, but either way it is a good program for Georgia residents.

I am familiar with Georgia. I grew up in Savannah. My parents moved from Milwaukee, WI to Savannah, GA in the early seventies. Savannah is a great city, but too hot and humid for my liking. After college I moved to Richmond, VA. While working in Richmond my company was bought out by an Atlanta company and relocated me to Atlanta. As we had a horse we needed acreage and bought a place in Dallas, GA and I commuted into Atlanta. I did experience first hand some of that local hostility while living in Dallas, GA but after a few years we were accepted by the locals. We eventually left the Atlanta area and moved to Raleigh and now Burnsville. I feel that if we did move to N. Georgia we would eventually be accepted, but it would take time. The only other concern I have is the distance from Blue Ridge to a larger city for amentias.

I believe the real moral to this story is anyone considering relocating to a rural area should do their research and make certain it will be a good fit for them and don't try and change the place to what they just left, but accept it for what it is. Also, the locals should be more tolerant of new people and new ideas, as change is inevitable.

[afonega1]

Originally Posted by itsajourney

Johnatl--Whatever....I am a really happy person. I am capable of seeing all sides of something. I've spent way too many of my younger years trying to fight for this, that and the other. In the end, I've simply adjusted to the fact that I don't need to waste my time fighting with anyone.

What I find amazing is that neither you nor lovin decatur jumped in to defend all of the good people of your state. Therefore, it appears that you seem to "accept" the attitudes expressed by those who would be most unwelcoming & unfriendly. You both jumped in to criticize me because I expressed my opinion about all of those who carry such negtive attitudes. Therefore, it seems as if what I had to say is far worse for you than those who make your state look bad. I'm just simply stating that if so many Georgians don't like us Floridians or yankees, then we should all just bypass you for other places--of which there are many.

SINCE YOU FEEL THE NEED TO BAIT ME, I WON'T BE BOTHERING TO REPLY TO ANY FURTHER CRITICISMS YOU FEEL YOU NEED TO AIM TOWARD ME. Everyone deserves a response to their criticisms and comments--so that is what you got. There is no need for me to further expound on anything else you might have to say. That is TOLERANCE! You had your say.

By the way, you and lovindecatur are missing the fact that this thread is no where near the only thread on the Georgia forum where these kinds of attitudes have been expressed. This just happened to be the last straw for me. As a female, with Florida tags, who always travels alone, I don't think I want to get caught by someone with these types of attitudes up thar in those them hills.

And yes, it is a shame--I have truely had wonderful trips up there. People were extremely kind to me. Helped me when I locked myself out of my car, had good conversations with me, etc. But I guess if I have to hide where I am from or where I currently live, somewhere along the line the welcome mat will smack me in the face.

I guess I was extremely naive in believing that your people enjoyed my company for who I was and not where "home" might be.

Wait a minute.You are not being fair at all.Your in ability to grasp that some of these negative attitudes do exist everywhere.Sometimes they manifest in different ways.While it is encouraging that you have such against such apathetic behavior of the social issues in the area,you are not solving the problem by depriving and secluding yourself from it.In fact you are allowing it to manifest and grow.

Im a young black male and in the past I admit I have had a somewhat bad experience near that particular part of Georgia.I had a friend visit from Quebec.He is also black,but very light skin in complextion.At one place people were kind and friendly,but not from that place as we stopped to take in some of the views,we had at least a couple of people give us very mean looks.Then we stopped at a very small "country" store.I went in and came back to the car as I waited on my friend to make it through the line.He came out and got in the car and i cranked it up and proceeded to drive down the road.I then noticed that my friend was "red faced" and visibly disturbed.I asked him what what wrong?He said he did not wanna talk about it,but I pressed the issue because the mood had changed from us loving our trip and laughing to him now quiet and reserved.He finally preceded to tell me what the problem was.He said upon leaving the store,he heard the cashier tell the customer behind him that she was "sick of all these half-breeds everywhere." I was like are you sure?"He said without a doubt that was what he heard.He said the lady had an attitude and looked at him very nasty.My heart hit the floor,because I took this good friend to a place that I loved to go and unwind and this happens?I was mortified.What was so funny,my friends parents are both black!

As mad as we both were.We shook it off because we knew we belonged.He and I both refused to let that lady win.That was a new experience for my Canadian friend.One that he had only read about in the South.He never imagined it would be true.However on his trip he met the most kindest people from all over that after a while it just seem to have been a "life experience" more than a "life changer".

My point is that there is too much good out here to let those "evil doers" win.The world needs people like you,LovinDec,and Johnatl(two people that in my opinion are some of the most fair and open minded people on C-D).You can decide to let people run you away from a place that you love,but why would you not let the people who made the place pleasantly memorable keep you coming back?negativity only grows like mold.It slowly causes problems.I say get some of that positivity that is like "bleach" and spray it all over so it cannot effect any other areas.

The incident I had was 10 years ago.I have since been back more than a few times.I can honestly say that things have definitely gotten better as those types of things have lessened.

[COUNTRYFRIED]

Originally Posted by Georgia

I have to ask, is your son young or a teen. The reason I ask is the above comment. If he is a teenager in high school my question would be your doubts about one poster blasting North Georgia, yet you are considering taking advantage of paid college for your child by the current taxpayers the previous poster bashes. If not, then please accept my apology beforehand.

To be frank, I have yet to see any hostility what so ever in N. Georgia. I spend many a weekend from Blue Ridge to McCaysville, and all over everyone likes to talk, say hello, etc., etc.,
Why are there homes for sale? Well, that is the economy and like everywhere else, even in the W.NC Mountains from Boone south, the overbuilding boom has came to a bust. Though mountain homes are for sale in N.Georgia, you will not see to much of a reduction in price, thus again the economy slowdown. Once items pick up again, you will see this area boom once more as an Atanta getaway.

As far as the Florida comments. Well, Georgia has been under invasion lately. Even in the Atlanta area it seem that 7 out of 10 cars coming in have Florida tags. Like everywhere else you find good and bad eggs. Can be Florida, NY, CA, and native folks. It's all what you make it. Some people are not nice and some are too nice. Happiness is found from within and how you accept life, not how you feel that your perceived by others.

In short, Blue Ridge is a nice place I enjoy it. It is a mountain getaway. And what is a getaway? Something different that allows you to escape the nutty pace of a city. So if Blue Ridge does not want to change then good for them.

Hopefully the area never booms again. Hopefully it wont continue to grow and become Atlanatas and Floridas "playground" as we refer to it as. I especially hope the subdivision developments continue to go under. The only people who buy into those awful subdivisions are folks from Atlanta and much worse Florida.