[Alt Dach]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

I think class is all a state of mind.

Better check if its switch is on-wish I could park you in a ghetto for a couple years.

[Nanny Goat]

Ya, fighting to survive or just barely surviving has a way of pre-empting out anything else!

[flu189]

I have run across a few of the so called noble natives who grumble about "flatlanders" blaming all the ills of the state on them. It's kind of funny though, the ones where I work at least, when I ask them what actions over the years they have taken to thwart these negative changes, for example VOTE, they just shrug their shoulders and exclaim "what good will it do." Well, the so called "flatlanders" that have transformed Vermont into what many believe to be a socialist nanny state which through taxes and fees are choking a good part of the population into literal fiscal death did not just arrive in mass overnight and implement their version of "my way or the highway" philosophy. Being originally from NYC myself and having served and lived all across different parts of the country I actually hold even a stronger disdain for the way certain aspects of life and politics are regulated here. So, despite being a flatlander by birth and upbringing (but, I did live in Alaska for almost 22 years, so do those mountains count?) I can comfortably say that what ails so many here is a product of their own doing or rather their inaction. I realize that what Vermont is what it is and also know that when it becomes too hard to stomach certain aspects then I do have the freedom to sell and get out. My deepest concern and sympathy though rests with those who have spent their lives here, worked hard, been active in civics by voting, and combined with the financial crush and lack of resources do not have the option to leave if they so desire. Then again, it is hard to leave a place where you have established long lasting roots, but in fact several folks that are life long Vermonters have told me they feel the need to leave, almost equating it to being refugees of a sort.

[radioclown]

Originally Posted by FormerSouthShore

Not so fast....take a look around at the Florida boards and every so often a native Floridian will bemoan the loss of 'Old Florida'. For the most part, Floridia (especially the stretch from JAX to St Aug) seems overrun by people from the northern US and Canada.

Of course it is over run by people from the Northeast and Canada; we are smart enough to get out of the cold!!!

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by radioclown

Of course it is over run by people from the Northeast and Canada; we are smart enough to get out of the cold!!!

How are things looking with Hanna? My folks are just south of you, so far no great shakes.

I'm still loving the cold -- I can't take the summer heat in FL. I've tried it several times and I melt.

[radioclown]

Originally Posted by OhBeeHave

How are things looking with Hanna? My folks are just south of you, so far no great shakes.

I'm still loving the cold -- I can't take the summer heat in FL. I've tried it several times and I melt.

Hanna is being a bit strange at the moment. Now that Gustav has hit land, Hanna is now moving towards Florida. They are projecting we will get hit on Thursday morning, but that could change.

I still hate the cold.

[OhBeeHave]

Good luck -- hopefully it will skim past. My folks are there 12 years and they have only had to evacuate once. That storm didn't do much at all.

[joe moving]

So... what makes a flatlander? What allows an outsider to integrate without resistance? I would think it matters very much where you end up moving and I would guess vast differences between different areas within VT.

[flu189]

Originally Posted by joe moving

So... what makes a flatlander? What allows an outsider to integrate without resistance? I would think it matters very much where you end up moving and I would guess vast differences between different areas within VT.

I would not worry about it. Yes, the more rural areas are more prone to have certain folks resenting outsiders and their influence, but in general the ones who disparage "flatlanders" are pretty docile. I have, however, run across a few younger folks who are from here and due to economic conditions being what they are they can be quite critical of outsiders, but more so of the ones that already came here and created their enclaves.

[925mine]

If you are intrusive, and try to make a community different to suit yourself, then yes, there is a LOT of tension. Depends on the size of the community, and population. Near Burlington, there are mostly people who have transplanted, but move out to the more rural areas, and you have to work harder to fit in. If you choose an area that best fits what you are looking for, you shouldn't have any problems, but if you go into an area and try to change it to suit you, then forget it.