Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Sorry, but education isn't even close and Minneapolis wins hands down by a LARGE margin.
1) Public Schools. Minnesota is ranked as the 2nd best public school system by state in the US behind Massachusetts. Arizona is ranked near the bottom of the states.
2) Colleges & Universities. Here are some National universities in each state and their ranking via US News. I'll keep it to the MSAs
#68 - U of Minnesota - Twin Cities
#113 - U of St. Thomas (St. Paul, MN)
#139 - Arizona State University (Tempe)
There's also St. Mary college in Winona, not too far out of the metro area, which is ranked #174
National Liberal Arts Colleges...
#8 - Charlton College (Northfield, MN)
#24 - Macalster College (St. Paul, MN)
#55 - St. Olaf College (Northfield, MN)
There's also St. John's, Gustavus Adolphus, and College of St. Benedict all in the top 100 and not too far outside of Minneapolis. Not to mention a slew of others outside of that (like Concordia).
Sorry, but anyone who thinks the education is even close is severely blinded.
Scenery +1 for Minneapolis - few northern cities have as many good looking women as Minneapolis, it's like Stockholm in America
Culture +1 for Minneapolis, you can go that spot downtown where Mary Tyler Moore threw her hat, there's a statue there!
Scenery +1 for Phoenix - too bad you can't see the girls in Minneapolis 8 months a year because they're wrapped in 10 layers of wool, plus Arizona has palm trees and cacti
Education +1 for Phoenix - don't tell me about Carleton College an hour away being ranked #34 nationally among small liberal arts colleges due to its native Minnesotan Anthropology program, Phoenix is better educated than many realize, even the pro football stadium is named after a University
Nightlife +1 for Minneapolis - beer that would smell like feat in other places goes down smooth when it's -7 before the wind chill and you're down to three functioning taste buds
Sports +1 for Phoenix - never been invited to co-ed naked volleyball in Minneapolis
Tiebreaker - "Twins" makes me think of those two cities in close proximity to one another, "D-backs" makes me think of those two abbreviations in close proximity to one another
Scenery +1 for Minneapolis - few northern cities have as many good looking women as Minneapolis, it's like Stockholm in America
Actually it would be +1 for Phoenix as no city has as many idiotic, plastic women with frail, bleached blonde hair as Phoenix. Quite the scene and very pathetic.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11
Culture +1 for Minneapolis, you can go that spot downtown where Mary Tyler Moore threw her hat, there's a statue there!
Is there a statue of Dick Van Dyke in downtown Phoenix yet?
As far as culture is concerned, Minneapolis has produced the likes of Bob Dylan (got his start in the Dinkytown area of Minneapolis), Prince, The Replacements, Hüsker Dü, Semisonic, Soul Asylum, Information Society, The Trashmen, Jonny Lang, Next, Mint Condition, Morris Day and the Time, Babes in Toyland, the Jets, Atmosphere, Cloud Cult, Brother Ali, Tapes 'n Tapes, P.O.S., Mason Jennings, The Jayhawks, the Castaways, Halloween Alaska, Dillinger Four, Motion City Soundtrack, Eyedea (RIP) & Abilities, Polica, etc..
Phoenix's great cultural scene has produced... Sheriff Joe??
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11
Scenery +1 for Phoenix - too bad you can't see the girls in Minneapolis 8 months a year because they're wrapped in 10 layers of wool, plus Arizona has palm trees and cacti
How... unoriginal.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11
Education +1 for Phoenix - don't tell me about Carleton College an hour away being ranked #34 nationally among small liberal arts colleges due to its native Minnesotan Anthropology program, Phoenix is better educated than many realize, even the pro football stadium is named after a University
LOL!! You can't be serious.
The following colleges / universities are located within the MSP metro area. Note: I've left out 2 year community and tech schools and so-called universities like the University of Phoenix, which only requires a high school diploma or GED. .
University of Minnesota
University of St. Thomas
Hamline University
Bethel University
St. Catherine University
Augsburg College
Northwestern College
St. Olaf College
Concordia University - St. Paul
Macalester College
Carleton College
Metropolitan State University
North Central University
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11
Nightlife +1 for Minneapolis - beer that would smell like feat in other places goes down smooth when it's -7 before the wind chill and you're down to three functioning taste buds
What is feat? Did u get yur degre at the Univeristy of Phoinix?
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11
Sports +1 for Phoenix - never been invited to co-ed naked volleyball in Minneapolis
blah blah. University of Minnesota is ranked #68, while Arizona State is ranked #139. Not even University of Arizona in Tucson is ranked as high as U of Minnesota at #120. It's quite a ways off. On top of the state school system being ranked above Arizona. People are extremely biased.
Why is it always the cold, gray, miserable cities like Minneapolis and Chicago whose residents get so fiercely defensive on these threads?
Look at the difference in tone between the Phoenix defenders and the Minneapolis defenders on this thread. The Phoenix folks are having a good time talking about sunshine, hot chicks, and naked volleyball. The Minneapolis folks are more on-edge than Obama during the second debate when he was trying to redeem himself from his performance in the first.
Anyway, to answer the OP:
Scenery: Phoenix. The surrounding mountains are gorgeous and with 300+ blue sky days per year, you can actually see them clearly on a regular basis.
Culture: Phoenix. The Southwestern vibe is awesome and wins hands down over the elitist, pseudo-intellectual feel of Minneapolis.
Climate: Phoenix HANDS DOWN. I've never shoveled snow before and don't care to learn. I also like it when the chicks wear less clothes as opposed to more. One, I get to see more skin which is awesome, and two, it provides more of an incentive for them to keep their bodies up.
Education: Tie. Neither is Boston or the Bay Area. I'm an educated guy with a Masters from a good school and I've never heard of 90% of the schools the Minneapolis guy posted, so I'm not impressed. I'm sure there are a bunch of no-name colleges around Phoenix, too.
Nightlife: Phoenix by a mile. A chick ranked in the top 10% for hotness in Minneapolis would be average at best in Phoenix (and below average in Scottsdale).
Sports: Tie. Both have the Big 4 pro sports covered, and both have a major conference university that usually ranks in the middle of its respective conference in football and b-ball.
Stadiums: Phoenix. Nothing wrong with the Metrodome, but the University of Phoenix Stadium is second only to the Cowboys Stadium as the most modern, high-tech stadium in the NFL.
Education - both have large state schools, but neither are world class
Downtown - I said that MSP is better, but I consider downtown Scottsdale really the going out place for Phoenix and it is a pretty happening night spot
Transit - Both have light rail systems but not extensive heavy rail or other transit.
Sports stadiums - Phx has very nice new and newer stadiums for all 4 sports.
How is that inaccurate?
1.) U of M is the #9 ranked research institution.....in the WORLD.
2.) Downtown Minneapolis isn't the only place to go out in the Cities. There's Uptown, St. Anthony Main, Cedar Riverside, North Loop, and in St. Paul, Grand Ave, Lowertown, and W 7th Street. If you compare downtown Minneapolis to downtown Phoenix, Minneapolis wins in pretty much every category, imo.
3.) I'll agree that neither has extensive rail yet. But the Twin Cities do have heavy rail (Northstar), a light rail line that is much better designed than Phoenix, a light rail line under construction, BRT lines ready to open, more light rail in planning/preliminary engineering, streetcars proposed, a very extensive bus system, and the country's most extensive bikeshare program. Plus, I think the freeway system in MSP is much better design.
4.) Stadiums I sort of agree with. Target Field is nice. TCF Bank Stadium is about what you'd expect from the Big 10. The Cardinals and Diamondbacks stadiums are as nice as anything in MSP, although the Vikings stadium could change that answer....
Education: Tie. Neither is Boston or the Bay Area. I'm an educated guy with a Masters from a good school and I've never heard of 90% of the schools the Minneapolis guy posted, so I'm not impressed. I'm sure there are a bunch of no-name colleges around Phoenix, too.
If you haven't heard of Macalaster or Carleton, that is more a reflection on you than Minneapolis. Those are two of the best private colleges in the country.
Nobody, NOBODY-- no guidance counselor, teacher, parent who's slaved over college books for two years, etc.-- would recommend a high school senior against going to either of those two, if he or she could get in...
Minneapolis' new football stadium will have a giant movable field surface that they will slide in to place that will be covered by sand, rocks and cactus.
Wouldn't THAT be ironic!!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
. 
