The BIG 4 - Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin (Center, China: colleges, rich)

[artsyguy]

Well the last time I checked there are lakes and universities in other parts of Texas. lol. Depending on the day you will see college kids doing community activities. Other days you will see hundreds of people enjoying the lakes. It's not exclusive to the all-wonderful Austin,Texass.

Originally Posted by OmShahi

It's not my favorite choice for a University lifestyle either. And I normally dislike the clique nature by certain cultures here, it's like "hey I'm Asian, you're Asian, let stick together and forget the rest of the people here because we have each other!" that same kind of mentality gets old.

The things that I do like is the amount of young people I see at parks, or the amount of people I see Kayaking in the lakes nearby, the amount of young people doing fundraisers. That's my definition of vibrancy- being more actively involved in the community, I highly dislike the typical nature people portray, "young kids in the mall, with their normal clique, young kids at the theater with their normal clique's, etc" don't get me wrong, Austin has a lot of that too, but I see more college kids taking an active part in it's community more than I do in Houston. It's the proactive life style I see in Austin that trumps Houston's. Not physically the amenities offered in each city, other wise of course Houston would PWN Austin there.

Another thing is, I highly dislike protests, and Austin is the ONLY place in Texas that I've seen college kids band together and protest in front of government buildings for whatever reason, that's one thing that sets it back and places it behind Houston, IMHO because whether they like it or not, the outcome isn't in their hands, and protesting won't do anything to change that.

[Trae713]

Originally Posted by artsyguy

Are you kidding me? Houston is a major world class city an hour away from the beach. It makes Austin look like a village in comparison. And UT is nothing but bricks, concrete, traffic, and overrated faculty. Let's be real.

Yeah, this is true.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by artsyguy

Well the last time I checked there are lakes and universities in other parts of Texas. lol. Depending on the day you will see college kids doing community activities. Other days you will see hundreds of people enjoying the lakes. It's not exclusive to the all-wonderful Austin,Texass.

Just the largest University atmosphere though in Texas at least.

[atxcio]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

Another thing is, I highly dislike protests, and Austin is the ONLY place in Texas that I've seen college kids band together and protest in front of government buildings for whatever reason, that's one thing that sets it back and places it behind Houston, IMHO because whether they like it or not, the outcome isn't in their hands, and protesting won't do anything to change that.

Wow, a college student who dislikes protests? Don't knock it til you've tried it. Protests and civil disobedience have a long and rich history in America, and in Austin especially.

Thinking along the lines of "Well, I can't really change anything, so why voice my opinion?" is a very defeatist mentality that will not serve you well in life. Those people you see out on the lakes and parks actually getting out and doing active things? I'd wager those are the same types of personalities that will show up for a protest when it is an issue important to them.

If people stop protesting, we might as well be China.

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by atxcio

Wow, a college student who dislikes protests? Don't knock it til you've tried it. Protests and civil disobedience have a long and rich history in America, and in Austin especially.

Thinking along the lines of "Well, I can't really change anything, so why voice my opinion?" is a very defeatist mentality that will not serve you well in life. Those people you see out on the lakes and parks actually getting out and doing active things? I'd wager those are the same types of personalities that will show up for a protest when it is an issue important to them.

If people stop protesting, we might as well be China.

Never had a reason to protest much, I like the way our state is run, we're obviously doing something right for there to be an influx of people moving in.

I guess I really don't think about more in those terms.

Instead of protesting my take would be insuring that I make the right decision when voting in a congressman, board member, etc that establish my view points better than others, my role would be more of the spread the knowledge about our active leaders. I find protesting a bit different, it's a different strategy, but I personally believe stronger political involvement in your community works better, IMHO.

But that's just me though, not many college kids agree with me and would rather do it the old fashioned way.

[atxcio]

Originally Posted by OmShahi

..my role would be more of the spread the knowledge about our active leaders. I find protesting a bit different, it's a different strategy, but I personally believe stronger political involvement in your community works better, IMHO.

No argument there.

But you will soon find out the two go hand in hand. Pick any political figure (local, state, or federal) and you'll find they are on one side or another of some protest about some issue. Protests are in essence political rallies -- they are ultimately about laws, lawmaking, legislation, and policy. Nothing "old fashioned" about speaking your mind against something you think is wrong. That will never go out of style.

... but bringing this back on topic, though, I'd say that outside of Austin the most politically active of the "Big 4" is unquestionably Houston. Examples: the first openly gay mayor in TX, constant Falun Gong protests on Montrose... and Bill White (hopefully) providing Perry the first real challenge he's had in his 140 years as Texas' governor.

[stoneclaw]

Man this makes me miss being college age. I can't believe 6 years has already passed since i graduated college!

[DANNYY]

Originally Posted by C2H (ComingtoHouston)

Man this makes me miss being college age. I can't believe 6 years has already passed since i graduated college!

I'm going to take it that it was the "best time of your life"?

[bgrn198]

Originally Posted by atxcio

SoCo / South Austin, East Austin, West Campus, Hyde Park, and a number of other iconic neighborhoods. Plus the lakes, parks, greenbelts and the Hill Country all in about a 12 mile radius.

Yeah, Austin doesn't have much to offer other than downtown.

BTW - other than 6th street, there wasn't much going on downtown 10-15 years ago. It's basically a completely new place. Everyone (except tourists) hung out in the other areas for fun.

Plus you have the LBJ library,Blanton Museum,Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center,Laguna Gloria Art Museum,Austin History Center,Texas State History Museum,Elisabet Ney Museum,French Legation Museum,George washington Carver Museum And Cultural Center,Volente Beach Water Park,mexican American Cultural Center,Mexic-Arte Museum,Texas Hill Country Wine And Food Fesival

[buzzpost]

In the following order.

Dallas
San Antonio
Austin