Is LA "the nastiest city in the world?" Really? (San Francisco: smog, gated)

[Clinton167]

I've been reading some of the threads and I'm starting to get this image of L.A where I'm jumped by a gangster two or three times a day, my car is broken into weekly and then eventually stolen, and there are homeless people sleeping outside my apartment (a tiny box that I'm paying >$1200 for) and in between the awful dry heat and mudslides and earthquakes, I'm also having to deal with some of the rudest people I'll ever meet!

When I write this, I'm sort of laughing, but also genuinely wondering if it's true....I live in London, which also has a reputation of being wayyy overpriced ($6.50 for a Starbucks), dirty and crime ridden (NB the recent knife crime craziness.) But I manage just fine here. It's pleasant.

I know there's already a "what do love you about LA" thread, but what about a "myth vs reality" thread? I'm just intrigued to know how bad it really is...I sort of want to last longer than a few weeks before I give up and move back to Oregon

[timelesschild]

LOL! I know exactly what you are talking about. I read a few of these threads before moving here and about had a panic attack.

It is as nice - or as nasty - as anywhere else in the world. There is SO much of LA - it's absolutely enormous - and the variety is staggering. The nice parts are like heaven on earth. The nasty parts are heartbreaking and dangerous. You're a smart girl, you know which areas to stay out of.

My dad used to tell me to "stick with the happy people", and I think that's good advice to anyone.

We are LOVING LA. There is enormous possibility, job potentials, vast resources, and contrary to popular belief, not everything is super-expensive; just housing. We are not wealthy people; that is not necessary to having a good life here as some would have you to believe. Just stay out of the troubled areas - you'll know them by the graffiti.

[cottonwood2420]

Just stay out of the bad areas and you will be fine.

[Fontucky]

There's nothing awful about dry heat..... it's quite comfortable actually.
Dry heat allows one to sweat and cool oneself.

[LASam]

Come check it out! That's the best way to see fact v fiction. I love it out here, like many people. Many also hate it though. Everyone is going to have a different viewpoint, so you have to see it for yourself!

[Caliguy2007]

L.A is not for everyone,but it is not the nastiest place in the World.

L.A is Huge and has Millions of People,so it has it's problems just like in every city in the World,but in my opinion the Positives outweigh the Negatives in L.A.

I used to live in L.A and had a wonderful time,and I still continue to visit the place and still have a great time

I Love L.A !

[stickybit]

It seems true that LA is so huge that there is a very high degree of variability in types of places to live and play. This video (YouTube - LA or MEXICO? Take a Guess. Muds bean Muds.) will make you think LA is all gang land, but it isn't--people say this is only true in south central and east LA. There are plenty of nice areas, some even affordable.

LA, though, only slightly beats New York and San Francisco in value you get for dollars earned (which will be less than those cities).

And, in 2007, LA was the most polluted city, across all metrics. This year (2008), Philadelphia beat it as the most polluted by short-term particle pollution. LA is still #1 Most Polluted by long-term particle pollution (PM2.5) and smog (ground-level ozone). This is mitigated somewhat near the coast by off-shore breezes 10 or 11 months out of the year. But if you look at the graphs and maps available, it's still not insignificant, I think, just because of the volume of vehicles...

As of 2005, the concentration of benzene was at least 0.3 ppb in almost all sites in the entire LA basin. The 8-sample-station annual average of benzene was 0.57 ppb. The WHO's acceptable level is 0. (Benzene causes cancer.) PM2.5 particle pollution (diesel exhaust, carbon, and arsenic and other metals) is the worst while you're driving in a car, according to studies. And air conditioners filter very little (2 to 15%) of the worst kind (PM @ 1 micrometer). So if you commute (average commute is, I believe, 22 minutes and up), you'll get the worst of the pollution. PM2.5 or smaller is associated with respiratory problems, and weakens your body's ability to deal with bacteria and infections.

Surprisingly, perhaps, it ranks average for sprawl (there are quite a few mini-city-centers).

So it's not the nastiest because of crime (and maybe gangs), but it IS generally the nastiest in terms of air quality and associated health effects. It's shear size might mean it has the nastiest central city core, too.

Oh, and no U.S.A. city has made the Top 25 in the 2 recent lists I've seen of the world's most livable cities (with the exception of Honolulu at #12 or so in one of them). If I were you, I'd move to Paris, or Zurich, or Munich, or Sydney, or Tokyo or ... you get the idea

[gypsystar]

Originally Posted by timelesschild

LOL! I know exactly what you are talking about. I read a few of these threads before moving here and about had a panic attack.

It is as nice - or as nasty - as anywhere else in the world. There is SO much of LA - it's absolutely enormous - and the variety is staggering. The nice parts are like heaven on earth. The nasty parts are heartbreaking and dangerous. You're a smart girl, you know which areas to stay out of.

My dad used to tell me to "stick with the happy people", and I think that's good advice to anyone.

We are LOVING LA. There is enormous possibility, job potentials, vast resources, and contrary to popular belief, not everything is super-expensive; just housing. We are not wealthy people; that is not necessary to having a good life here as some would have you to believe. Just stay out of the troubled areas - you'll know them by the graffiti.

Yes, there are a lot of great things about L.A. (we might even move back eventually) but I HAVE to say that this graffiti comment is pretty ignorant. I saw graffiti in Woodland Hills all the time, and even a few places in Malibu. Sadly, it seems to be spreading all over L.A. - no place, good or bad, is immune to this.

I think if you have lived in any other major city and have survived, you will be fine in L.A. You just need to have some street smarts and know when to mind your own business.

One myth that I found didn't hold true was that the people are rude, snobby, etc. I met some of the nicest people I have ever known in L.A.

[matt345]

Originally Posted by gypsystar

One myth that I found didn't hold true was that the people are rude, snobby, etc. I met some of the nicest people I have ever known in L.A.

I think the impression of LA people being rude comes from the fact that so many of us are always stuck in our cars and let's face it, LA drivers can get really impatient. But I find that once you get those people out of their vehicles, they're no more rude than people in any other big city.

[MIKEETC]

No