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Birmingham's problem is a lack of jobs and also not being a state a capital. It's essentially the south's equivalent of Detroit.
Nashville at least has the benefit of being the state of Tennessee and the tourism / music industry, while Charlotte has finance.
Not being a state capital isn't a hindrance; there are too many examples that prove this.
First and foremost, Birmingham has an image problem (not quite as much today as in years past but it's still there); it hasn't really been known for anything nationally since the Civil Rights era so that dark chapter in the city's history is what stands out for most people when they think of the city. The image problem is compounded by its location in Alabama even though the city is pretty much on the opposite end of the state politically/ideologically (a fact that many are unaware of). Economically, it could have been much further along had the city/state not been resting on its laurels while Charlotte blew by it to become the regional banking center of the South and eventually one of the nation's largest banking centers. In recent years the city has really appeared to find its groove and there's an unprecedented development boom occurring downtown, plus the city recently elected a young, progressive mayor who really seems committed to promoting the city and taking it to the next level. If it continues on the path it's on and builds on its natural assets (e.g., its geographical location), it could really go to the next level as a city. I'm hoping that happens.
Not being a state capital isn't a hindrance; there are too many examples that prove this.
Not being a state capital may not necessarily hurt, but being a state capital would definitely help with all else being equal (and there are too many examples proving this as well), which was my point.
Not being a state capital may not necessarily hurt, but being a state capital would definitely help with all else being equal (and there are too many examples proving this as well), which was my point.
Sure it can help, but not being the capital isn't a hindrance--which is what you imply when you say it is among Birmingham's problems. If you were to add Montgomery's metro population to Birmingham's, it would only be around 1.5 million--not much larger than it is now. And Montgomery has a little more going on besides state government so all of its population isn't even attributable to its status as the state capital.
Do you think Birmingham's image issues haven't been among its problems? That goes a much longer way towards describing its slow growth over the years than not being the state capital.
A lot of this sounds extremely outdated. You hear much of the same about Charleston, which is pretty ridiculous in 2018. At the most, this would probably describe an extremely small subset of the overall population that is White, affluent, and 65+ years old.
I know plenty of younger members of these 'old families' that very enthusiastically carry on the old ways. Outsiders simply aren't privy to it.
I know plenty of younger members of these 'old families' that very enthusiastically carry on the old ways. Outsiders simply aren't privy to it.
And they do so within their very tight, small circles while the other 99.2% of the city goes about its regular business in a 21st century way. The very fact that outsiders aren't privy to these ways mean they hardly define the city as a whole so how could they be labeled as quintessentially Southern from that perspective?
And they do so within their very tight, small circles while the other 99.2% of the city goes about its regular business in a 21st century way.
Oh, so you admit it does exist? And if it didn't, it would be hard to explain the continued existence of:
Country Clubs
Junior League
Fraternities
Sororities
Cotillions
Debutante Balls
Their circles are small and tight because they want them that way. Tribalism is a large part of the Southern Way.
My mother could always identify a woman's neighborhood by the way she dressed. The women there all seemed to shop the same labels; not doing so invited controversy.
I never see such a thing transpire up north.
Oh, so you admit it does exist? And if it didn't, it would be hard to explain the continued existence of:
Country Clubs
Junior League
Fraternities
Sororities
Cotillions
Debutante Balls
Their circles are small and tight because they want them that way. Tribalism is a large part of the Southern Way.
My mother could always identify a woman's neighborhood by the way she dressed. The women there all seemed to shop the same labels; not doing so invited controversy.
I never see such a thing transpire up north.
Wasn't aware that those things were uniquely southern. Interesting.
Tell a womans neighborhood by her clothes?
Oh, so you admit it does exist? And if it didn't, it would be hard to explain the continued existence of:
Country Clubs
Junior League
Fraternities
Sororities
Cotillions
Debutante Balls
Their circles are small and tight because they want them that way. Tribalism is a large part of the Southern Way.
My mother could always identify a woman's neighborhood by the way she dressed. The women there all seemed to shop the same labels; not doing so invited controversy.
I never see such a thing transpire up north.
I'm not admitting anything; after all, I'm not from Richmond nor have I ever lived there (just a semi-frequent visitor) so I'm an outsider. I'm merely taking your word for it, assuming you're an insider of sorts.
All of the things you just mentioned aren't exclusively or even predominantly Southern entities. Historically they were more associated with the aristocratic class of Eastern cities.
I try to tell people all the time. Folks sleep on Birmingham as if it’s some stuck in the 1950s, backwoods city. Alabama’s center of gravity is an impressive example of what was and what is. If there were no Atlanta, I’d more than likely be in Birmingham. No offense, but y’all can have Nashville and Charlotte.
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