Is there a big "unspoken" reason why a lot of people move to the Seattle area? (Bellevue: top schools, contractors)
Seattle areaSeattle and King County Suburbs
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Actually, a lot of Seattle is just plain intolerant. Badgering, easily annoyed and utterly suggestible if you master their talk. It is a town that thinks it is independent but really just continues to suffer the hangover from the 70's-80's and that times' ideas of freedumb. This is changing as people realize that hippie-dom never was very attractive and mold should always be treated with Lysol.
This will change sooner than not as rents increase and more sophisticated people arrive and, if they endure the ornery throwback locals with terminal politicitis, and the blanket of grey, may get the mass transit built as neighbors Portland, OR and Vancouver, BC have done. Clowns like McGinn will be replaced by less annoying mayors who act like Nickels but do Pilates and can form sentences. All is not lost in Seattle and with the Gates' family and their realtor-developer Mr. Allen, Seattle may one day be the Boston of the West, complete with Big Dig to replace that mushy seawall that may collapse at any time and the old bulk of the Viaduct can be a shining, modern affair. Places like Kirkland will continue to have McMansion's placed side-by-side with single-family ranchers and shiny exclusive palace-pits like Escala will place Seattle as a must-have for the pro-WTO crowd. That is reality. No amount of drama will change this, no amount of hopeful grassroots PR will affect it.
Going Forward in Progress is a good thing Seattle! Just remember who you owe for this great modernization! Purple always wins, if only on-screen.
There are universities in Texas and San Diego, you're selling them short. It has been suggested that creative industries require a more liberal mindset, or that conservatism stifles creativity. Wouldn't it be interesting to prove them wrong? You're saying you only want to be where the jobs already are. Why not work to strengthen tech jobs in places like Texas, San Diego and North Carolina and see if it prospers? See if a conservative environment can successfully grow tech? Attract venture capital? It would be interesting to watch and see how it plays out.
People such as yourself come to these blue areas and complain but the areas were as they are when you got here and the very nature of these environments are what attracted the type of people that would want to come here. When Google, eBay, Facebook, Salesforce, Zynga, etc. all come here from the Bay Area, it is for many reasons, not just Microsoft. They could have chosen other locations but they didn't. Would those companies consider a more conservative location? It would be interesting to find out.
The problem with your argument is there are plenty of conservative type areas that have significant tech sectors. And you try to draw some sort of causation here because Google, Zynga etc. set up facilities here as though it has anything to do with the university or a "liberal mindset" or that it is in some way because Seattle has some similar political views as San Francisco.
Which probably sounds great to you, up until someone points out that they set up here because the economic reasons are better in Washington (lack of state sales tax) and the fact that Seattle is already established as a techie mecca. They set up here because there were already a lot of tech savvy people here as a result of the dot-com boom of the 90's. The area's "liberal mindset" has zero to do with their decisions.
You also fail to realize that I really don't care what whackjobs do in Seattle, as long as they keep it in Seattle. There are reasons why so many companies (including companies you listed such as Google, Salesforce, etc.) are setting up in the eastern suburbs instead of within Seattle itself....and those reasons ARE politically motivated.
BTW, it doesn't matter that there are universities in Texas or San Diego - doesn't mean that they are universities with top tech programs. In the case of Texas, UT is one of the best in the nation for that, which explains why Austin is a tech hotspot. UCSD is not, nor is Houston, SMU, etc.
The problem with your argument is there are plenty of conservative type areas that have significant tech sectors. And you try to draw some sort of causation here because Google, Zynga etc. set up facilities here as though it has anything to do with the university or a "liberal mindset" or that it is in some way because Seattle has some similar political views as San Francisco.
Which probably sounds great to you, up until someone points out that they set up here because the economic reasons are better in Washington (lack of state sales tax) and the fact that Seattle is already established as a techie mecca. They set up here because there were already a lot of tech savvy people here as a result of the dot-com boom of the 90's. The area's "liberal mindset" has zero to do with their decisions.
You also fail to realize that I really don't care what whackjobs do in Seattle, as long as they keep it in Seattle. There are reasons why so many companies (including companies you listed such as Google, Salesforce, etc.) are setting up in the eastern suburbs instead of within Seattle itself....and those reasons ARE politically motivated.
BTW, it doesn't matter that there are universities in Texas or San Diego - doesn't mean that they are universities with top tech programs. In the case of Texas, UT is one of the best in the nation for that, which explains why Austin is a tech hotspot. UCSD is not, nor is Houston, SMU, etc.
It's all King County and only three miles apart. Lake Washington is not a moat. Google has offices in Seattle and the Eastside. Salesforce is in Seattle. I actually took the time to list all the tech companies in Seattle in another post since you didn't want to see for yourself. I don't care which side they're on, it's all King County. I'd like to read an article that says Google and Salesforce are leaving Seattle and moving to the Eastside (the same county) due to political reasons. Link please.
I agree that there are tech sectors in more conservative areas. You should support that effort. You and the poster I was semi-responding to are not limited to here or SV. The tax benefits in Texas are just as good, there's UT and there's Austin. If the tax benefits are equal, the schools are in both locations and the area is established, why not go where you'll be happy instead of posting here every single day as if you're wearing a hair shirt by being here?
King County and several other counties in Washington are hardly "white land" anymore and the state becomes more diverse by the day. I hear many different languages spoken on any given day. Also most of the whites in Seattle are very progressive and liberal so your views might be outside of the norm.
When I lived in CA, the conservative whites who were looking to "escape" diversity weren't even considering Washington State. They were going to places like Idaho, Montana, Texas and the Midwest. If I were you I would consider those places first.
I noticed that Conservatives are moving out of WA in hopes of "escaping" the diversity that it is growing. Within the past few years I hear more and more by the conservative libertarians and repubs that want to move to Idaho or Utah. A lot of them also complain that the "the jobs here are being taken away from WHITE Americans." *rolls eyes* How backwards can you get, good riddance to them, we don't want that mentality here anyways.
On a side not where I live there seems to be a large amount of hicks (I live on one of the peninsulas about 30 mins from Tacoma and a little over an hour from Seattle) and am getting tired of this rural life. The natural scenery is amazing and beautiful, and the outdoor activity is plentiful, it's just these small town backwards people that ruin it. There seems to be more and more conservative minded people here than there used to be. I love both Seattle/Tacoma for their educated, liberal minded, and adventurous populace. I also like the cities closeness to natural recreations while still having an urban, diverse feel.
Being from WA when I was younger, I always wanted to move to Seattle because it's the big city here. There is more to do, more people, more everything. I've never lived there, and now I wont. Way too rainy for me, I'd take one of the other big cities in the country over Seattle, solely because of weather. I think they all have the same types of problems otherwise, just with a different face.
Now if you were on the West Coast, you'd hear how everyone wants to move to NYC or some such place. It's the grass is always greener on the other side syndrome.
Last edited by LacedButterfly; 06-24-2012 at 09:55 AM..
Being from WA when I was younger, I always wanted to move to Seattle because it's the big city here. There is more to do, more people, more everything. I've never lived there, and now I wont. Way too rainy for me, I'd take one of the other big cities in the country over Seattle, solely because of weather. I think they all have the same types of problems otherwise, just with a different face.
Now if you were on the West Coast, you'd hear how everyone wants to move to NYC or some such place. It's the grass is always greener on the other side syndrome.
I agree. I always wanted to move to a big city when I was a teen and did for a little over a year when I was 19/20 to Seattle. I loved it, I had family that let me live with them as I went to college and did a lot of fun things. The city is small and compact, but is great in diversity, food, and entertainment (everything I wanted when I was a teen growing up in a rural setting).
Now that I lived there, I want to explore more cities similar to Seattle but somewhere with different climate and scenery. From what Ive seen San Francisco and Boston look like good cities for Seattleites or WA people looking for a change. They are both very progressive and liberal cities with similar culture. Both have highly educated populations also and are worldly cities.
Although I love Seattle and western WA, I feel like I want to go to the NE region of the country and try it out over there. I still have to finish up my last two years of school and what better way than to spend it in MA or NY somewhere at their prestigious liberal arts colleges. It would be a dream.
I hope you all don't take this the wrong way but on the topic of Universities, why aren't there better Universities in Seattle? UW is ok but it's not Stanfurd, Cal, Cal Tech, etc. As a tech hub, I think it's one of the few without a really top notch school in the area.
When I was up in Seattle last week, we had a relocation specialist drive us around the city and suburbs to explore various areas. She was a nice lady and all but she said that when her son went to college, he got into USC and UW and ended up going to UW because he just likes it in Seattle so much. She said that it was such a hard decision because "USC is such a great school"...
I didn't laugh out loud but down here, USC is sort of seen as a joke. It's not a terrible school by any means but generally, if you're a genius you go to Cal Tech, if you're a smart kid you go up north (Stanfurd or Cal) or stay down here and go to UCLA. The only exception are those who come from a long line of USC alumni so they are very loyal to the school. I'd place UW and USC as similar in terms of prestige and ranking but UW is of course much cheaper so it's a much better choice.
UW is basically a top 40 school...and Seattle deserves to have a top 20 school.
As for Texas, I wouldn't consider UT Austin as top notch although it's respectable (I place it in the same area as Michigan and Illinois) but I would consider Rice University in that top eschelon.
It's all King County and only three miles apart. Lake Washington is not a moat. Google has offices in Seattle and the Eastside. Salesforce is in Seattle. I actually took the time to list all the tech companies in Seattle in another post since you didn't want to see for yourself. I don't care which side they're on, it's all King County. I'd like to read an article that says Google and Salesforce are leaving Seattle and moving to the Eastside (the same county) due to political reasons. Link please.
I agree that there are tech sectors in more conservative areas. You should support that effort. You and the poster I was semi-responding to are not limited to here or SV. The tax benefits in Texas are just as good, there's UT and there's Austin. If the tax benefits are equal, the schools are in both locations and the area is established, why not go where you'll be happy instead of posting here every single day as if you're wearing a hair shirt by being here?
King County yes, but it is like a moat. The "feel" of each area is tangibly different. Everybody sees it (well, most people see it - you probably fail to). The business climate is completely different (Bellevue is considered to be MUCH more business friendly), the priorities of the elected officials is completely different (just look at the roads of the 2 areas for your first taste of that), the political mindset of the residents is completely different.
You like to talk about how "Google has offices in Seattle". Yes, they have a small office there. Their main facility? It's in Kirkland. That's by design. HTC has a small office in Seattle. Their main facility? Bellevue. Facebook planted their datacenter in the Westin in Seattle and has some temp offices set up near Fremont. THe space they're looking to purchase to build a big facility in? Bellevue. On and on it will go that way.
And spare us the "if you aren't an activist like me, then bail!". I'm perfectly content here, I don't complain about how much I hate the area - I hate the ridiculous mindset of people such as yourself, but no town is perfect. I realized early on that living within the boundaries of Seattle itself would drive me insane, but that by simply going over a little bit of water, things balanced out nicely. Didn't see any freeloaders trying to "Occupy Bellevue", I don't see any east side "road diets" going on, no officials over here are rummaging through my garbage to make sure I'm recycling, I can have all the plastic bags I want, I'm not constantly having to dodge self-righteous bicyclists who are wearing entirely too much racing gear on in an effort to show how trendy they are. You guys who have no concept how the world actually works can have your city, those of us who actually like living in an area that's got its priorities in order can have ours.
I hope you all don't take this the wrong way but on the topic of Universities, why aren't there better Universities in Seattle? UW is ok but it's not Stanfurd, Cal, Cal Tech, etc. As a tech hub, I think it's one of the few without a really top notch school in the area.
When I was up in Seattle last week, we had a relocation specialist drive us around the city and suburbs to explore various areas. She was a nice lady and all but she said that when her son went to college, he got into USC and UW and ended up going to UW because he just likes it in Seattle so much. She said that it was such a hard decision because "USC is such a great school"...
I didn't laugh out loud but down here, USC is sort of seen as a joke. It's not a terrible school by any means but generally, if you're a genius you go to Cal Tech, if you're a smart kid you go up north (Stanfurd or Cal) or stay down here and go to UCLA. The only exception are those who come from a long line of USC alumni so they are very loyal to the school. I'd place UW and USC as similar in terms of prestige and ranking but UW is of course much cheaper so it's a much better choice.
UW is basically a top 40 school...and Seattle deserves to have a top 20 school.
As for Texas, I wouldn't consider UT Austin as top notch although it's respectable (I place it in the same area as Michigan and Illinois) but I would consider Rice University in that top eschelon.
It's a topic I was thinking about a few days ago actually. Personally I think that UW is the best college in the PNW, and it's highly ranked both nationally and internationally. It's right there in Seattle and only a short bus ride away from downtown area. Lots of aspiring young people that are open minded, alternative (hippie, hipsters and other similar social groups) and worldly.
Although Whitman is among the top liberal arts college in the country (top 20 best Liberal arts college), it is still not as well known as UW is and is located so far away from Seattle and other big cities that it is looked over a lot. It's kind of a shame. If only it was closer to Seattle...
The other schools in Seattle don't match up imo. Most of the other colleges are spread out around the state from cities to small rural college towns. I wish we did have more top schools in the western WA region but they're only a few (that aren't highly ranked) that are decent.
King County yes, but it is like a moat. The "feel" of each area is tangibly different. Everybody sees it (well, most people see it - you probably fail to). The business climate is completely different (Bellevue is considered to be MUCH more business friendly), the priorities of the elected officials is completely different (just look at the roads of the 2 areas for your first taste of that), the political mindset of the residents is completely different.
You like to talk about how "Google has offices in Seattle". Yes, they have a small office there. Their main facility? It's in Kirkland. That's by design. HTC has a small office in Seattle. Their main facility? Bellevue. Facebook planted their datacenter in the Westin in Seattle and has some temp offices set up near Fremont. THe space they're looking to purchase to build a big facility in? Bellevue. On and on it will go that way.
And spare us the "if you aren't an activist like me, then bail!". I'm perfectly content here, I don't complain about how much I hate the area - I hate the ridiculous mindset of people such as yourself, but no town is perfect. I realized early on that living within the boundaries of Seattle itself would drive me insane, but that by simply going over a little bit of water, things balanced out nicely. Didn't see any freeloaders trying to "Occupy Bellevue", I don't see any east side "road diets" going on, no officials over here are rummaging through my garbage to make sure I'm recycling, I can have all the plastic bags I want, I'm not constantly having to dodge self-righteous bicyclists who are wearing entirely too much racing gear on in an effort to show how trendy they are. You guys who have no concept how the world actually works can have your city, those of us who actually like living in an area that's got its priorities in order can have ours.
If that moat was working, you wouldn't need to write "librul" every single day. I've lived on the Eastside for two decades and it's all King County. As a newcomer though, you're welcome to MI. That moat works both ways though as it can keep you contained. I'm not an activist in the least. I just respond to you because you will take the most mundane topic and throw in politics like you're in constant pain.
Waiting for the link about how these guys are all moving from Seattle to the Eastside due to a more business friendly environment because your proclamations are nothing more than that. They are in Seattle now - today. Show where they're all leaving Seattle based on politics.
You do that while I go King Tut. It's looking like a nice day but parking will be ugly!
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Google has offices in Seattle and the Eastside. Salesforce is in Seattle. I actually took the time to list all the tech companies in Seattle in another post since you didn't want to see for yourself. I don't care which side they're on, it's all King County. I'd like to read an article that says Google and Salesforce are leaving Seattle and moving to the Eastside (the same county) due to political reasons. Link please.
*rolls eyes* How backwards can you get, good riddance to them, we don't want that mentality here anyways. 
That moat works both ways though as it can keep you contained. 
I'm not an activist in the least. I just respond to you because you will take the most mundane topic and throw in politics like you're in constant pain. 
