[Alt Dach]

[quote=Northman;5358138]Sure aint conservative up here in Petoskey. I never heard so much hatred and ignorance spewed about conservatism in my life. This area is packed with Bush/McCain/Palin hating, Obama loving lemmings. Of course, none of them can tell you exactly WHY they like Obama so much, other than he just happens to be the democratic candidate on the tail end of the Bush presidency....

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Nice to know there are areas of the US where folks inherently intelligent !
Thanks, Northman.

[supermom0204]

Originally Posted by Rawlings

I'm looking to relocate with my family--wife and young children--to MI. We're evangelicals and active Republicans so we want a pretty conservative part of the state. But we also want the ammenities of the big city we're coming from. I've heard that Grand Rapids is a good bet...any other suggestions?

You can pretty much say that the West side of the state is conservative. The other posters are right on with those cities. GR area is pretty diverse, yet has a strong conservative base. The western suburbs and surrounding cities are highly conservative (Hudsonville, Grandville, Zeeland, Holland). Byron Center, just south of GR is very nice, as is Caledonia.

[Michigansnowflake]

Just a short shot down 31 from Petoskey to Charlevoix, things turn McCain/Palin pretty fast. I still havent made up my mind who to vote for yet, but here and East Jordan seem to be deciedly Republican

[Bluefly]

Oakland County, parts like Bloomfield Hills and the like. (Hate to say it, but more wealthy areas.)

Oakland County trends Republican, but it's more of a highly educated fiscal conservatism than the social conservatism in the sense of believing one religion has the answers and one party is sanctioned by God.

So, I wouldn't recommend Oakland for them.

[Brie85]

If you are looking for a conservative town in southeast Michigan, Northville and Plymouth are good bets. They are fairly wealthy areas, good schools, and lots of churches - including Northridge, a huge conservative church with four services a week and many activities. I grew up in Plymouth and my family was one of only a handful of Democrats, it's overwhelmingly Republican and conservative.

[borborygmi]

I'm surprised no one's mentioned Midland yet. Outside of metro Grand Rapids, that's got to be the largest solidly conservative community in the state.

[deslok]

I'd say that Western Michigan has a mix of conservative and liberal areas. Grand Rapids to me depends on the part of town, and sadly the racial makeup. It certainly is not diverse in that respect, and has many liberal and conservative parts of town.

[GoGators1]

A Jewish friend of mine had a saying when he lived in the area "if you ain't Dutch, you ain't much" because of the conservative, christian culture in the area. (And he/his family weren't christian/conservative, so it was hard for them to fit in to the culture there) But the Dutch are good people, just tight-knit.

My boyfriend grew up in Holland and we visit frequently. "If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much" is a saying often used by his Dutch friends themselves. To the OP: From my impressions Holland would be absolutely perfect for you.

[Bydand]

What a load! Grew up in West Michigan and have many friends who are Dutch, as well as being half Dutch myself (Portinga on one side). I have NEVER heard anyone say "If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much." My own last name isn't Dutch at all, it is Scottish, and frankly other than somebodies last name being a give away of Dutch heritage, nobody really cares. And yes I have been around Holland area for quite some time. This is a stereotype that may have been true many decades ago, it sure hasn't been correct the 45 years I have been on Earth. Being born and raised in West Michigan I can assure you it is a long lived, totally false stereotype.

[GoGators1]

Originally Posted by Bydand

What a load! Grew up in West Michigan and have many friends who are Dutch, as well as being half Dutch myself (Portinga on one side). I have NEVER heard anyone say "If you ain't Dutch, you ain't much." My own last name isn't Dutch at all, it is Scottish, and frankly other than somebodies last name being a give away of Dutch heritage, nobody really cares. And yes I have been around Holland area for quite some time. This is a stereotype that may have been true many decades ago, it sure hasn't been correct the 45 years I have been on Earth. Being born and raised in West Michigan I can assure you it is a long lived, totally false stereotype.

There are some Facebook groups with thousands of members that would state otherwise. If you have Facebook, check it out. Just search the phrase. I wasn't saying it was a bad thing, I've just heard that term thrown about among his Dutch friends. Somewhat jokingly of course, but I've heard it among them specifically. That's all I was saying.