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For conversation sake, we compare our major cities to other world powers like London, Paris and Toronto. NY, Chicago and LA generally win. My question to you all, would Seattle, Miami or Houston bode well against other world powers? IMHO, not at all. So now, let's look at Philadelphia, DC, Boston and San Francisco, how would they compare? Most likely much better.
My thing it's hard to compare our 2nd tier cities against each other but when you pit them vs other world powers it puts it in a different perspective.
Now, If something happened to all of the aforementioned cities except DC, our country would still go on. If a blackout occurs in DC, or something even worse happens as in 9/11, only NY would suffer as great or greater of an impact nationally. Whether we think DC is pretty, picturesque, dense, urban, diverse or cultural is for another thread. But to honestly not include it as the 1st or 2nd ,most influential place in this country is being obstenent.
I mean, what actually is going on in Houston that would make people want to move there or visit there besides jobs and a low cost of loving. Both Austin and New Orleans are more popular nationally and half the size and flank it to the East and West... There has to be a reason...
I say this as somebody who hasn't visited the experience... and feel free to use me as national perception of the place, b/c right now I have no interest in visiting. I get the feeling that it is kind of a sterile, corporate place, maybe like a really big Indianapolis.
I mean, what actually is going on in Houston that would make people want to move there besides jobs and a low cost of loving. Both Austin and New Orleans are more popular nationally and half the size and flank it to the East and West... There has to be a reason...
I suggest you find out for yourself instead of listening to internet know it alls who have never been there
DC due to its economic output and being the capital
SF/Bay Area due to its wealth, economic output, and social/cultural/technological influence
Boston as a bit more of a stretch, but arguable due to the importance of its educational and research institutions (collectively first in the world in nearly every category)
IMO the most important things are the money and the people, bigger cities dont mean more important otherwise a place like Dhaka would be more important than Paris and London but at the same instance the size really does help. What a place like Dhaka lacks is the money, its economy is miniature in size and therefore its not ranked in the leagues of London and Paris. Size + GDP are the best combinations although even then they dont tell the full tale but still work the best to give close visuals of reality IMO.
For that reason alone, the SF Bay has a larger economy than Chicago while smaller in population its a tricky situation but overall I give the nod to Chicago but will easily say SF Bay is 4th in the U.S. Boston while only slightly larger has a smaller economy so it places next and for the same reason as the Chicago/SF Bay I give Boston the nod above DC. Boston is easily the larger area while the economy is similarly sized to DC its still larger and deserves the nod until DC starts closing the gap in metro population. Houston and Dallas are again similar, one with the slightly larger population while the other with the slightly larger economy, for this purpose since they are close in both I went ahead and gave the nod to Houston but they are practically tied IMO.
IMO if you're not big and your not wealthy then you have no reason to be mentioned here. Reasons dating back 500 years from now are about as worthless as the casserole your wife threw out last night
doubt people outside the respective field know where those field capitals are.
Do you mean for NYC, LA, and the Bay Area? If so, I don't agree at all. Wall Street, Hollywood, and Silicon Valley are world famous. I think that Houston is pretty famous for oil as well, but not nearly on that level. As far as Houston and "energy" I'm not sure how many are familiar with that. Personally I never heard of it before city data. No offense intended to Houston, but it's not a city that I hear much about for it being the 4th largest city in the country. I think that in LA we hear more about Dallas. But I've become interested and I really want to visit Houston now. It sounds a lot like LA only Texas/Southern.
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The general Public generally doesn't know much and Energy is not something that is on the tip of everyone's tongues.
Maybe in part because many people think of the oil industry as the oil industry and not the "energy" industry. It could be that to most people energy is power plants, nuclear reactors and stuff like that. That's what I think of anyway. And maybe that's included in Houston's title. I really don't know.
I suggest you find out for yourself instead of listening to internet know it alls who have never been there
I am just talking about travel sites, media advertising. From a national perspective, I see stuff from Austin and New Orleans all the time. I see it in travel magazines... I see it in the press. I NEVER see anything about Houston though, I'm just wondering why? Is it a big secret? Or is the relatively small chatter because there isn't much going on?
Maybe in part because many people think of the oil industry as the oil industry and not the "energy" industry. It could be that to most people energy is power plants, nuclear reactors and stuff like that. That's what I think of anyway. And maybe that's included in Houston's title. I really don't know.
They say energy because Oil is just a fraction of the Industry. The Energy industry involves Petroleum mining, refining, chemical involved in extraction purification, etc, Coal, Nuclear Energy, Wind Energy, Renewable sources, Electrical power distribution, Natural Gas, electricity generation, electrical sales....
if you think the energy industry is just having a head quarters to a big f500 company you are solidly mistaken.
4-tied Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia, SF
5-tied Detroit, Miami, Seattle Atlanta
6-tied Denver, Minneapolis, Seattle
*not written in stone of course, my opinion could change, but at the moment this makes the most sense imHo.
Good list
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Imho
