Why does most of downstate Illinois not care for Chicago? (Decatur: how much, tax)

[mmcgirk3]

I am still fairly new to Illinois and live about 40 minutes north from Chicago. So far I notice that Chicagoans act like they are their own state. Why is that? Are they ashamed of their midwest roots? Are they just delusional p*****?

[ERS-One]

Chicago is separated geographically and culturally from much of the state. If you look at a map, you'll see it's tucked away in the very northeast corner of the state, a state that covers a lot of territory longitudinally. It has more in common with other great lake cities like Milwaukee-Wisconsin, Cleveland-Ohio, Detroit-Michigan - all which are very Midwestern. People in Chicago have accents and speech patterns more in common with Buffalo, NY than say Decatur. It's only natural

Rarely does a single city account for so much activity of a state, and at the same time so far away from everyone else. Florida, California, Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, North Carolina, etc. all have multiple metropolitan areas within their respective states that make for a more even balance of power and influence of the state's affairs. NY, NY is a city that comes to mind. Maybe Las Vegas, NV. Minneapolis, MN could be mentioned, but even it is much more centrally located than Chicago.

It could be argued that metro East St. Louis, IL has as much as a vested interest in the affairs of the City and County of St. Louis, Missouri as that of the state of Illinois. It only makes sense. It also makes sense that people residing in a once swampy, heavily industrialized transportation and shipping hub don't readily identify with people residing in, for the most part, agricultural and (seemingly) land-locked communities. And vice-versa

You may be new to the area, but I've lived her my whole life, and all other native Chicagoans I know fully consider themselves midwestern. I'll make a very broad generalization and say that anyone in Chicago who dismisses the notion that it's midwestern is either:
a) someone who never, ever left the city
or
b) someone who hated where they are from originally, and "escaped" from a small town somewhere else to move to the glamor and bright lights - whatever.

signed,
A Delusional P**** from Chicago

[mdand3boys]

Chicago consumes more than their fair share of the state's tax money and the rest of the state all knows it.

[ERS-One]

Look at it like this:

est. pop. of Il. July '08 - 12,901,563 Google - public data

est. pop. of Chicago MSA 2008 - 9,569,684. mod cut

I don't know how accurate those figures are, but lets say there are both good ballpark figures. That means that roughly 74% of Illinoisans live in and around Chicago. if 74% of the state's budget goes to Chicagoland, that would be fair. It is shocking, but it very well may be fact. As goes Chicago, apparently so does the state of Illinois

I know if I lived "downstate", I'd be frustrated as well with the attention Chicago and it's suburbs receives. Especially when our $***** governors and U.S. senators are likely to come from a place with a reputation for unsavory politicians. To say that Chicago consumes more than its fair share of state tax money, I'm not so sure though. I don't know how much more than 74% it could get away with consuming. Something to look up another day.

[doll lady]

hmmmmmm.....your title says why doesn't most of downstate care for Chicago ..... yet your words in the topic talk about Chicagoans acting like they are in their own state.

I really didn't understand why you linked your topic to downstate persons not liking Chicago. It has nothing to do with proving downstate person don't like Chicago. Where did your assumption in the title come from anyway? I see very few comments from downstate persons about Chicago....but when false statements are made about us downstate people, we don't like it much at all. We are all Illinoisians and should be proud of our state..... leave it at that.

Signed,
A non-delusional non-P*******

[TootsieWootsie]

Alot of downstate is farm country. That should tell you why people who enjoy farming (and God bless them as we all need their abilities!) would not normally be attracted to the hustle and bustle and pushing and shoving that comes with all crowded major metros. And that's why God invented both chocolate and vanilla!!!

[Maintainschaos]

Originally Posted by ERS-One

Look at it like this:

est. pop. of Il. July '08 - 12,901,563 Google - public data

est. pop. of Chicago MSA 2008 - 9,569,684. mod cut

I don't know how accurate those figures are, but lets say there are both good ballpark figures. That means that roughly 74% of Illinoisans live in and around Chicago. if 74% of the state's budget goes to Chicagoland, that would be fair. It is shocking, but it very well may be fact. As goes Chicago, apparently so does the state of Illinois

This figure might be a bit misleading, as the Chicago MSA includes both parts of Indiana as well as Wisconsin.

[whinniethezen]

I have cousins in Mt. Olive IL and they usually gripe about Chicago giving the rest of the state a bad image. Also they think Chicago gets too far much attention and budget money from the state compared to the rest of Illinois. I don't know. I live in SanDiego and we don't have these issues.

[jwhittak]

I love Chicago. I just don't know how people can afford to live there.

[Scio42]

Originally Posted by mmcgirk3

I am still fairly new to Illinois and live about 40 minutes north from Chicago. So far I notice that Chicagoans act like they are their own state. Why is that? Are they ashamed of their midwest roots? Are they just delusional p*****?

I've noticed that attitude stems more from ignorance of the rest of the state than anything. You can find just about anything you want in Chicagoland (never mind the price) so many residents don't see much of a reason to venture outside of Chicagoland (other than brief getaways). Plus, when you live in an MSA of 8-9 million people, most everything else naturally looks rinky dink by comparision.