What are the people like in Wisconsin?

[erasure]

Originally Posted by yo vanilla

we are cold. we are all cold and desperately wanting spring!!!!

well really we're just like any other place; with a mix of a few great people and a bunch of idiots, ha. no one pays any attention when they are driving, but for the most part people are mild mannered

Lol, agree about the driving part.
As for the rest - I find people in Wisconsin to be warm and friendly, and as it has been already said here - "loud, and straight to the point."
One of the particular local brands of beer in WI is exceptionally good (and so are the local bratwursts) and I haven't heard so many German names since I was in Germany, lol.

PS. Now about that "cold" - it's not COMPLETELY true. There are four seasons in Wisconsin after all, and here they are;
Winter
Winter
Winter
Road Construction.

[JoshB]

Originally Posted by erasure

Lol, agree about the driving part.
As for the rest - I find people in Wisconsin to be warm and friendly, and as it has been already said here - "loud, and straight to the point."
One of the particular local brands of beer in WI is exceptionally good (and so are the local bratwursts) and I haven't heard so many German names since I was in Germany, lol.

PS. Now about that "cold" - it's not COMPLETELY true. There are four seasons in Wisconsin after all, and here they are;
Winter
Winter
Winter
Road Construction.

So true, but lets not scare away any potential newcomers to the state. We are very blessed by lots of natural beauty and friendly people. A great combination!

[atomz]

People here are kind of like surfers in CA. If you say hi, they'll say hey. You could talk about anything. Not as liberal by any means. A lot are pro life. People here do like to think they have money, when so many are really poor. It's okay to be poor in this state with nothing too much to do. Many have children early. The kind of people that you run into depends on education level here.

In most areas you don't have to be afraid of gangs or shootings. That's laughable here. (Besides madison and milwaukee)

[crazyme4878]

Originally Posted by MidwesternBookWorm

Of course, everyone knows about Wisconsin's cheese, and certainly dairy-based foods are big here...

Hahahaha!! My husband and I both grew up in WI...some time after we moved away, we realized that the stereotype of cheesehead had something going for it, as we realized our penchance for saying (when a meal didn't turn out too well), "Just put some cheese on it"!!! Come on, think about it Wisconsinites--how many times in the last year did you say it?!! Now its a joke between us.

As for people, realize that the overall anaylsis is correct for the entire state--the "Minnesota Nice" is actually "Minnesota and Wisconsin Nice." But subtelties depend on where you are. Southeast WI is more Germanic, while NW is more Scandinavian. Diehard Packer fans are everywhere (one fan accidently chased a movie star (in town for shooting a movie) out of a bar because he came in the door where a giant cardboard cut-out of Brett Farve was standing), but around the Green Bay area, people will actually call in sick the day after a Packer loss. People in the northern half might be a little more racist, although probably unknowingly, basically because it's what they grew up with, which they grew up with because there are/were so few minorities that the whole cultural revolution of the 1960s/70s sort of passed them by. In the heavily tourist areas, locals may be a little slower in making friends with you, because they are tired of dealing with snobby tourists. But the thing about Wisconsin, whether people are unknowingly racist, or classist, or anything like that, they are very open to getting to know people and are not stuck fast to stereotypes.

Sorry, I just wanted to make sure we weren't painting too rosy of a picture! I love Wisconsin and the entire Northern Midwest and hope to move back (okay, I've only been gone from the UP for 5 months) and think its a hidden gem....overall the people are wonderful!

A job opened in Eagle River, please hope for us that my husband gets it!

[JoshB]

Originally Posted by crazyme4878

Hahahaha!! My husband and I both grew up in WI...some time after we moved away, we realized that the stereotype of cheesehead had something going for it, as we realized our penchance for saying (when a meal didn't turn out too well), "Just put some cheese on it"!!! Come on, think about it Wisconsinites--how many times in the last year did you say it?!! Now its a joke between us.

As for people, realize that the overall anaylsis is correct for the entire state--the "Minnesota Nice" is actually "Minnesota and Wisconsin Nice." But subtelties depend on where you are. Southeast WI is more Germanic, while NW is more Scandinavian. Diehard Packer fans are everywhere (one fan accidently chased a movie star (in town for shooting a movie) out of a bar because he came in the door where a giant cardboard cut-out of Brett Farve was standing), but around the Green Bay area, people will actually call in sick the day after a Packer loss. People in the northern half might be a little more racist, although probably unknowingly, basically because it's what they grew up with, which they grew up with because there are/were so few minorities that the whole cultural revolution of the 1960s/70s sort of passed them by. In the heavily tourist areas, locals may be a little slower in making friends with you, because they are tired of dealing with snobby tourists. But the thing about Wisconsin, whether people are unknowingly racist, or classist, or anything like that, they are very open to getting to know people and are not stuck fast to stereotypes.

Sorry, I just wanted to make sure we weren't painting too rosy of a picture! I love Wisconsin and the entire Northern Midwest and hope to move back (okay, I've only been gone from the UP for 5 months) and think its a hidden gem....overall the people are wonderful!

A job opened in Eagle River, please hope for us that my husband gets it!

Great Post!

[brewers_fan]

we are friendly, food-lovers, un pretentious

[susancruzs]

Crazyme you really sum it up very well, great insight about Wisconsin and the upper midwest in general.

[Dea13]

Here's an example of what WI people are like: While on vacation in a another state my husband suffered heat stroke, went into a seizure and passed out. We had just set up camp and got the grill going. Trying to keep my young daughter in sight, call for an ambulance and take care of my husband was frightening! Another family rushed over and called 911. Then because the hospital was over an hour away, they helped break camp. Found out when I was getting ready to drive away that they lived within 10 miles of us. I was very proud of my fellow statesmen for coming to my aid when so many looked the other way.

Dea

[Alt Dach]

People in the Upper Midwest are generally polite,orderly and law-abiding.
They are also good about helping people in distress.
They are NOT however particuly friendly. Why should they be,they still have all their
friends from 2nd grade and 76 relatives within 20 miles and have no need of your companionship.(unless youre rich or young +good looking)
No disparagement intended,just human nature 101.

[notmuch69]

The small town & country people are simple, friendly, helpful and generally happy even if they don't have much money. They enjoy all seasons for what they have to offer. They greet you when they see you in the store, wave at you when driving by, help each other out when in trouble, and don't have snobby attitudes.
The city people seem to be like most city people. Kind of grumpy, maybe becasue of the daily city hustle and bustle, traffic, crouds, etc. They seem to be much less tollerable of the winters, probably because they aren't outdoors people or can't enjoy it when trapped in the middle of the city.