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Old 06-08-2012, 01:55 PM
 
Location: McLean, VA
448 posts, read 868,167 times
Reputation: 266

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kabluey View Post
I don't know. The self-loathing is in many ways institutionalized; so ingrained I fear that it is intransigent.
I can remember when the Tigers came within seconds of winning the national championship, but Kansas ultimately won in overtime. I can remember calling down to Memphis and some people saying "well, I knew that was too good to happen in Memphis" or "I knew it just wasn't going to happen" and things like that. As if it is fate for Memphis to be on the losing end. Similarly with the Grizzlies playoff run last year "I knew it had to end at some point".

There is definitely a loser's mentality in the air where even when something good is happening, it just can't last for long. However, I feel if that ceiling is finally broken, that would be an excellent start (we're talking national bragging rights here) to breaking the low self esteem. I don't think it is intransigent at all.

 
Old 06-09-2012, 03:38 PM
 
Location: Spokane, WA
67 posts, read 185,290 times
Reputation: 86
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kabluey View Post
Also, you may not realize this, but Cooper Young is home to one of the best music album stores in the country (Goner Records). It just so happens to be a record label as well and hosts a growing but small music festival in the fall with bands from around the world. Or at least I remember a couple of them from Australia one year, lol..
Huh, I wonder how I missed that? That brings to mind Omaha again, with its Saddle Creek label.
 
Old 06-09-2012, 04:18 PM
 
469 posts, read 966,738 times
Reputation: 321
When I was younger and thus less mature I left my home town (Memphis) at the direction of my company and lived in five other cities on the Atlantic Seaboard before returning sixteen years later. The Memphis of that era was far better than the cities in which I worked and lived and I had the urge to look down my nose at things like poorly built and maintained streets scattering out like spiderwebs rather than the wide asphault checkerboard of Memphis. Memphis Intl' was bigger, better and had more destinations than any airport between D.C. and Atlanta and 1,000 miles to the west of that region. More than this I felt that Memphis' personality was clearly better, both the o.a. image as well as the individuals living there than the droll conversation and self image I ran in to at that time. What I found, however was that this change of environment allowed me to express talents and education learned in Memphis in an environment where they weren't common. I began to really like aspects of where I then lived because I could be a more successful me. My friends and associates there had degrees from Georgetown, UVA, Wm & Mary, UNC, Duke, etc. and they accepted and respected my viewpoints and abilities honed at U of M. That degree never stood in the way of my career either; quite the opposite.
As to Memphis itself, it takes time to build a city's success and personality. Many cities grow in achievement of quality of life components and then fade a bit due to bad leadership, the economy or demographic changes. You have to see a bigger stretch of the journey to judge where it's going. The arrogant presumption that you can live in a city for a brief time and make a shallow snapshot judgement about the "hypersensitivity" of those who respond with an explanation of how certain things happened in response to sometimes knee jerk negativity doesn't reflect a lot of effort to understand that city. Maybe some of those who issue such quick reactions can find a couple of areas of need here which call out for just the talent they possess and they can become part of the solution for Memphis.
 
Old 06-11-2012, 02:59 AM
 
405 posts, read 820,552 times
Reputation: 436
Quote:
Originally Posted by Darkseid View Post

I have always theorized that what Memphis needs to bring it out of its low self esteem is a sports championship. It can be either NBA or NCAA. Sports are great at bringing a city together, and a championship brings euphoria. If the Grizzles were to win an NBA title, the esteem demon would finally be exorcised from that city.
I won't lie. A major sports championship would feel nice for Memphis...but only temporarily. After winning a major national championship, then what? The Tigers and Grizzlies could BOTH win national championship titles next year and that STILL wouldn't fix all the pot holes in major streets that haven't been repaved in years, improve the awful local school system, or make the violent crime rate in Memphis drop. Moreover, there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with the psyche of a city when it's residents have to wait until playoff time every year and depend on something as trivial in the larger scheme of things as BASKETBALL to bring them together, especially racially.
 
Old 06-11-2012, 03:10 AM
 
405 posts, read 820,552 times
Reputation: 436
Quote:
Originally Posted by Darkseid View Post
Read your excellent post summarizing the good in Memphis over the past few years. The end of the Herenton regime was huge and is better for the collaboration you mention above. Not having a haughty and arrogant megalomaniac was great for the city. And him not being elected to Congress was even better. The leadership has improved dramatically
How?!? By building dog parks and bike lanes...? See, even when Memphians do try to think progressively, they STILL think too small and are too quick to settle for less. I guess that's just a side effect of living in a city that most of the locals have already accepted as being AT LEAST 20 years behind other US cities of comparable size, and even some quite smaller. People in most other cities would be dissatistied and call that stagnation. But most people in Memphis just smile about it while the city falls even farther behind and call it "charm".
 
Old 06-11-2012, 04:57 AM
 
Location: McLean, VA
448 posts, read 868,167 times
Reputation: 266
^^^if you look at the context of what I said, you will see that I am saying that Mayor Wharton is a dramatic improvement over Herenton, who had become a complete embarrassment by his final 3-4 years.
 
Old 06-11-2012, 06:06 AM
 
Location: Crosstown *****
1,062 posts, read 2,046,730 times
Reputation: 557
Quote:
Originally Posted by ShaunJuan View Post
How?!? By building dog parks and bike lanes...? See, even when Memphians do try to think progressively, they STILL think too small and are too quick to settle for less. I guess that's just a side effect of living in a city that most of the locals have already accepted as being AT LEAST 20 years behind other US cities of comparable size, and even some quite smaller. People in most other cities would be dissatistied and call that stagnation. But most people in Memphis just smile about it while the city falls even farther behind and call it "charm".
You gotta start somewhere from the previous mayor, is he deserves to be called that. He is who you can thank for that.
 
Old 06-12-2012, 09:44 AM
 
268 posts, read 742,291 times
Reputation: 248
Quote:
Originally Posted by ShaunJuan View Post
I won't lie. A major sports championship would feel nice for Memphis...but only temporarily. After winning a major national championship, then what? The Tigers and Grizzlies could BOTH win national championship titles next year and that STILL wouldn't fix all the pot holes in major streets that haven't been repaved in years, improve the awful local school system, or make the violent crime rate in Memphis drop. Moreover, there is something SERIOUSLY wrong with the psyche of a city when it's residents have to wait until playoff time every year and depend on something as trivial in the larger scheme of things as BASKETBALL to bring them together, especially racially.
This is a good comeback to a bad bit of logic. People love to tout sports losses or even wins as being a major
deal to people in a city. WHO? The 15k fans that fit into FEForum. You can't fix a town with sports, but I will
grant you you SURE can't depend on Memphis sports to fix anything. Memphis is a good town with a ton of bad
problems. The saddest thing to me is the constant news stories about people who are having a
bouncy castle/face painting/gospel music fest to "combat violence" in their neighborhood. It's sad that
a group of people has to be so powerless that it's all they can do is stand up to the thugs with a community
block party. You get a lot of that here in Memphis. Why I am still here I don't know. Maybe it's the dirt
cheap utilities. Maybe it's the culture of music and food. Maybe I can't get a better job than the one I have
now. But as much as I curse the idiots on the interstate, the ignorant animals that drop their trash
right where they finish with it, or the stupid crooks running the show, I am still here.
 
Old 06-12-2012, 09:53 AM
 
268 posts, read 742,291 times
Reputation: 248
I have to disagree with one point you make Shaun Juan....YES the city is far behind other cities, but is it a race that I am not aware of?
People who are embarrassed by how backwards it is should probably leave and go to Portland OR. Not sure how a city council coomprised of crooks and kooks
is supposed to advance any kind of agenda. The cops regularly hold government hostage using public safety and ticket writing as weapons. But look at Mississippi.
You'd be hard pressed to find a place considered backwards and behind the times by more people. And yet it is one of the least polluted, most peaceful states
in the US. A good place to raise kids for the most part. Sure, it not only CONTAINS Jackson, but uses it as a capitol. But on the whole, it's not bad at all.
I think far too many people use progress and modernity as some kind of rule book for quality living. Your main point, that it's hopelessly messed up is still valid.
 
Old 06-12-2012, 12:31 PM
 
5 posts, read 7,297 times
Reputation: 13
I'm from the burbs just outside Memphis, where I grew up, but have lived elsewhere in and out of the US. I'm still amazed at how Memphis keeps snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, because the city has a lot of things going in it's favor that other places would die to have. It also has a lot of negatives, but they are mostly human made, which means that they could be solved by humans.

1- Memphis has some of the worst zoning ever seen in a city of it's age. There is nothing that can undo the past, but a unified forward looking development master plan could go a long way to mitigating the damage of past mistakes.
2- Schools seem to be the root of the lack of in-city redevelopment/gentrification. City leadership and stakeholders need to take a long and hard look at restoring neighborhood schools in Memphis. Young families with options buy a home for the schools as much as any other factor and the Memphis Schools have to be fixed for any significant change. I really think fixing the schools issues will draw young families back into the city.
3- Bravo for the new bike lanes on Madison, North Parkway and the Green Line. It's a start, shows the community some of what could be with more investment and could be the start of a trend with follow through.
4- Memphis needs to look hard at replacing the tourist trolleys with real light rail on the existing lines and some extension to make it a viable system for downtown and midtown residents. An extension to Overton Park, Overton Square, the Poplar Main Library, University of Memphis, the Fairgrounds/CBU, Cooper Young and Evergreen would make a huge difference for developers and potential residents. Issue some bonds- I'll buy tomorrow.
5- The city needs a master plan for redevelopment of the blighted areas at the core, near downtown and midtown to draw people and development back to the core of the city.

Last edited by DavGreg; 06-12-2012 at 01:16 PM..
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