Move to Atlanta. Yay or Nay (Dallas: school, health, areas)

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by KingKanye

Based on the OP's comment I don't think it was Atlanta that was the problem. It was Georgia and all the regressive, far right political stunts that are unattractive. She said that the "State" wouldn't tolerate her, not the city.

Which is a huge overreaction. Just because Kemp was elected and the Republicans are going off the rails with this insane abortion law doesn't mean that the people outside the Metro area are all hostile, knuckle dragging racists. Don't forget how close the vote was for Stacey. It took a lot of white votes to reach those numbers, and I can assure you that those voters don't all live in the Metro.

This recent trend of demonizing the largely wonderful people of this state, along with claiming that the only possible reason people move here is because it's 'cheap' sickens me. It's proof positive of a completely disconnected view of reality in my opinion.

[ATLForr]

Originally Posted by KingKanye

Actually that's not true. Have you been to DC before? For a Chinese-American as you stated, the Asian population is staggeringly high and very diverse and well-integrated.

In many ways DC is the bigger city Atlanta strives to be but just can't because of Georgia politics.

I’ve been to DC it’s great and all. I wouldn’t call the Asian population staggeringly high, staggeringly high is SF Bay Area, Los Angeles, Vancouver). For me however I find DC to be worse than Atlanta in two very huge aspects: the home prices in DC are quite high and the weather gets pretty cold in the winter. Also, I find the amenities for Asians to be equal or even better in Atlanta than DC even though DC has the bigger Asian population. When I say its their loss, what I’m saying is that they have been persuaded to avoid Atlanta by people who don’t really know anything about Atlanta. The state government does not really effect day to day lives in Georgia. The OP should’ve visited Atlanta and DC before making a decision.

Also I would like to make clear that people don’t move to Atlanta just because it’s cheap, there are many other places in the US that are cheap as well. They move to Atlanta because this city attracts jobs, we have a great climate (compared to Northeast and Midwest), the culture is great, there is a diverse population and that it is the ninth largest metro area in the US. People are moving here in droves (Atlanta is the third fastest growing metro area) and I’m pretty most of those people are not moving here just because it’s cheap.

[hunterseat]

Oh wow. DC. That never makes the lists of "best places to live".

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by ATLForr

I agree. Those certain people (we all know who those people are on this forum) may have had bad experiences in Atlanta, such as working under a bad boss or having gone through a bad breakup. It’s sad that they have to take those isolated poor experiences out on this great city and dissuade people from moving here.

Now Atlanta isn’t perfect but it certainly isn’t backwards or racist. I’m second generation Chinese American and lived in Northeast Ohio for eight years and to be honest I’ve seen way more racism in Northeast Ohio than here in Atlanta and the south. The people in the south, especially the rural south are some of the nicest and down to earth people I’ve ever met. Once you get out of metro Atlanta and into North Georgia you can see the big difference in the manners of people. People in the rural areas tend to be much nicer and have better manners.

Atlanta is one of the most diverse metro areas in America, diverse in that people of different races live next to each other unlike Chicago and other northeast, Midwest metro areas where people of different races live segregated in different neighborhoods. I feel like the sun belt cities I have visited and lived in (Atlanta, Dallas, Houston) are more welcoming than anywhere in the Midwest/Northeast. People need to remember that racism can happen anywhere.

You’ll love this article. It reinforces the exact points you make in your post.

The White City
https://www.newgeography.com/content...the-white-city

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by KingKanye

In many ways DC is the bigger city Atlanta strives to be but just can't because of Georgia politics.

LOL! Okay.

Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better about where you wish to be. I much prefer a place where neighbors actually acknowledge each other occasionally.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by hunterseat

Oh wow. DC. That never makes the lists of "best places to live".

For good reason.

Signed,

Former Resident

[Pgs]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

I got a PM from the OP that they are not moving here.

This really boggles the mind.

I NEVER pm’d you? Why would you claim something false? A LIE?

What kind of mind **** is this? Or this another way of bullying and keeping the “others” away?

If that is the case, let me tell you it’s not going to be that easy.

Moving on.....

Sorry folks for a very interesting discussion while I was away, busy with work.

We haven’t made a decision yet. Soon we will make a trip to Charlotte and NoVa area to see if we like those places in summer. Husband has been spending some time in Charlotte for work in fact.

Interestingly from my research, Atlanta scores very well and is comparable to say Dallas/Fairfax county when it comes to economic criterion. Where it looses is on health care services.

It is heartening to hear from non- Christian Indian origin people that they like living in Atlanta. I have heard this IRL as well.

I agree with posters that racism is everywhere. Even in Chicago, and is not limited to the white people.
Without going into details, the one person in my life here so far, who told me to “Go back to your country”, was a black woman.

Even where we are now, a lot of socializing happens around the church even among transplants. Such is life.

Will be back later.

[ATLForr]

Originally Posted by Pgs

This really boggles the mind.

I NEVER pm’d you? Why would you claim something false? A LIE?

What kind of mind **** is this? Or this another way of bullying and keeping the “others” away?

If that is the case, let me tell you it’s not going to be that easy.

Moving on.....

Sorry folks for a very interesting discussion while I was away, busy with work.

We haven’t made a decision yet. Soon we will make a trip to Charlotte and NoVa area to see if we like those places in summer. Husband has been spending some time in Charlotte for work in fact.

Interestingly from my research, Atlanta scores very well and is comparable to say Dallas/Fairfax county when it comes to economic criterion. Where it looses is on health care services.

It is heartening to hear from non- Christian Indian origin people that they like living in Atlanta. I have heard this IRL as well.

I agree with posters that racism is everywhere. Even in Chicago, and is not limited to the white people.
Without going into details, the one person in my life here so far, who told me to “Go back to your country”, was a black woman.

Even where we are now, a lot of socializing happens around the church even among transplants. Such is life.

Will be back later.

Are you going to be visiting Atlanta?

[JayHey]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

I got a PM from the OP that they are not moving here.

Originally Posted by Pgs

This really boggles the mind.

I NEVER pm’d you? Why would you claim something false? A LIE?

What kind of mind **** is this? Or this another way of bullying and keeping the “others” away?

If that is the case, let me tell you it’s not going to be that easy.

Ok that's hilarious.

samiwas. Past tense in the name is perfect because the past tense is exactly where his trustworthiness is.

[JeffDavisCSA]

Atlanta is better than Dallas. I just relocated from Dallas and hope I never step foot in that rotten and pretentious place in my life.

Originally Posted by Pgs

Our small family of 3 is looking for a new place to call home. We have lived in Chicago area for a decade or so and looking to settle down in a warmer place with less brutal winters and where our kid can spend more time outside.

We are looking at several cities including Dallas, Atlanta, Philadelphia and the areas near DC.

The thing is, I like Atlanta, but the husband is not completely sold on it.
A few things. His concern is that Atlanta is still the south. We are of Indian origin and not christian. He wants to be in a place where our non-Christian kid will not feel out of place and would not face either exclusion or subtle or unsubtle attempts to evangelize. So we would like a school with enough Indian population around to offer a peer group my kid can Identify with. To be sure, we are looking for a healthy diverse population, not just Indian.

Two- we are both in white collar jobs. Husband is business consultant and travels weekly, while I work in legal/legal adjacent area. I will be looking for a new job - mostly in a bank or similar institution. Will Atlanta area offer opportunities for me and possibly for husband down the road when he looks to go in-house? The sale of SunTrust kind of threw us off and we are wondering if a trend is underway. We are looking for an area that will continue to thrive economically for the next few years at least.

What we do like about Atlanta - the weather- warmer than Chicago. No 6 month long winters. The greenery and the proximity to ocean.

With these things in mind, does Atlanta make sense for us? I would love to get local input here.