Alabama Vs Tennessee (home, unemployment rate, private schools)
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I did an online test of which state I should live in and came up with these two. Since they've never really been compared it seems, I decided to learn more about them. Compare in:
Economy
Weather
Amount of tornados, put the one that has fewer tornados
Cities
Asian culture, like restaurants, how many Asians live there, etc.
Tolerance of non-protestants
Things to do
Natural beauty
Education, very important
Anything else
I did an online test of which state I should live in and came up with these two. Since they've never really been compared it seems, I decided to learn more about them. Compare in:
Economy Alabama
Weather Alabama simply for the sake of milder winters
Amount of tornados, put the one that has fewer tornados Believe it or not, probably Alabama
Cities Tennessee, although some of Alabama's cities have redeeming qualities
Asian culture, like restaurants, how many Asians live there, etc. Hmmmmm...Tennessee, barely
Tolerance of non-protestants The South is, believe it or not, a rather tolerant area of the country. I'd rather live near five church-going families in Nashville than five "peace loving" families in the Bay Area. Both states tied here.
Things to do Tennessee
Natural beauty Personal preference here, but Alabama
Education, very important While Tennessee has Vanderbilt, its overall public university system isn't very impressive. Alabama has Samford and Tuskegee which are great but aren't as prestigious as Vandy, yet it has great public Us in Alabama and Auburn. Vote: Alabama.
Anything else General friendliness of people: slight nod to Alabama Diversity of scenery: Alabama
More central location to large, important cities: Tennessee
My vote here is for Alabama. Explanations in bold.
If you live in some rural-most towns, you might receive some passive-aggressive comments about the Mormon faith.
If you stay in Huntsville, Madison, Athens, Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Montgomery (probably), Auburn/Opeleika, Mobile, and Baldwin County, no one will give a hoot. And if someone did, I would be genuinely surprised.
If you live in some rural-most towns, you might receive some passive-aggressive comments about the Mormon faith.
If you stay in Huntsville, Madison, Athens, Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Montgomery (probably), Auburn/Opeleika, Mobile, and Baldwin County, no one will give a hoot. And if someone did, I would be genuinely surprised.
Great news. When I visited a very rural area in Missouri, they weren't quite that tolerant, so I wanted to ask. As long as it's ok in the cities, that's fine. The south actually sounds pretty nice.
I am from Tennessee and have relatives in Alabama. For starters, it would be inaccurate to say that these two states are not more conservative- both socially and politically. That isn't to say that ALL people there are conservative. But these are indeed fairly rural states with smaller cities. I grew up in rural East TN and the difference between rural areas and the cities is pronounced. Go to Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga and so on and a person from San Francisco probably wouldn't be all that out of place- especially if you're anywhere near universities. The cities are fairly small though. Both of these states are getting an influx of people from all over and that in turn is changing the demographics.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that at least from my experience growing up there and then moving to San Francisco I never felt like there was much of a problem living there. On the other hand when I come home its pretty obvious that the area leans more conservative. It seemed like that for the most part people minded their business. Most people I found were just fine with who you were.
Both states have their pros and cons. Tennessee has very distinct regions- mountains, a plateau, and the Mississippi river delta. Its big 3 cities- Knoxville, Nashville, and Memphis are very distinct. Nashville and Memphis are cultural icons and a significant contributor to American music. Nashville actually produces more music than any other US city besides NYC. Alabama has muscle shoals and beach access. Huntsville is a major engineering and aeronautics research hub. Both states have their own unique cuisine you aren't going to find anywhere else. You do have to look a bit harder for Mom-n-pop joints as so many restaurants are of the chain variety. A lot of cities in both states have been undergoing major redevelopments and you can now find a surprising number of very high quality places to eat along with some good micro brews. Fine cuisine has been catching on in these areas. You'll pay a LOT less for the food you get too.
In summary, both of these states- along with a lot of the rest of the South- are changing perhaps faster than any other part of the country. There are a lot of new people and businesses moving in. Just be aware that its going to be different. As with anywhere its probably a good idea to visit first and see what its all about. Good luck.
I voted for Alabama. I actually prefer Tenn. cities esp. Chattanooga but if I had to live in one I'd pick living on the beach in Southern Alabama rather than another land-locked state (I've lived in several).
I did an online test of which state I should live in and came up with these two. Since they've never really been compared it seems, I decided to learn more about them. Compare in:
Economy
Weather
Amount of tornados, put the one that has fewer tornados
Cities
Asian culture, like restaurants, how many Asians live there, etc.
Tolerance of non-protestants
Things to do
Natural beauty
Education, very important
Anything else
Economy - push - Tennessee's is bigger overall, and bigger per capita...but Alabama has a slightly lower unemployment rate right now. Overall, pretty similar...although the Tennessee cities are bigger and the state is larger and growing faster.
Weather - Six of one, half dozen of the other. Alabama is slightly hotter in the summer. Tennessee is slightly colder in the winter. It's humid as all hell in both. For the majority of the year, the weather patterns will be similar. The only exception is coastal Alabama, which doesn't get nearly as cold.
Amount of tornadoes...from 1950 to 2006 - Alabama had 1,579 tornadoes reported, Tennessee had 892. I'm not knocking Alabama, especially in the wake of the awful tragedy they had their recently, but Alabama has a worse history overall of tornadoes than Tennessee. More deaths, more killer (F5) tornadoes. More area of the state susceptible to severe weather and tornadoes.
Cities - Nashville/Memphis/Knoxville/Chattanooga vs. Birmingham/Mobile/Huntsville/Montgomery...the Tennessee group wins in a landslide. Nothing against the Bama cities, either. I like them. The Tennessee cities are bigger and have more going on in comparison.
Asian culture...I'm not sure. Which Asian culture? Indian? Chinese? Japanese? Vietnamese? Middle Eastern? I'd stick to the larger cities (Memphis, Nashville, Birmingham) or the college towns if that is a huge concern.
Tolerance of non-Protestants - as far as tolerance, outside of the smallest of communities (where everyone attends the same church), religious "tolerance" isn't really an issue. Acceptance? Understanding? Probably will vary from place to place. It shouldn't be an issue in a sizable community in either state.
Things to do - really subjective. Both states have a ton to do, depending on what you like. Once again, Tennessee has the bigger cities...but Alabama neutralizes some of that advantage with its small section of coastline on the Gulf.
Natural beauty - once again, pretty subjective. Both states are beautiful in the eye of the beholder. Personally, I prefer Tennessee, due to the more impressive mountains, and the diversity of landscape from east to west.
Education - both states struggle with their primary and secondary public education, but there are some decent private schools in both. Universities are better than the lower schools in both. Edge to Alabama in public institutions of higher learning, edge to Tennessee in private institutions.
Anything else - Tennessee doesn't have an personal income tax.
Asian culture...I'm not sure. Which Asian culture? Indian? Chinese? Japanese? Vietnamese? Middle Eastern? I'd stick to the larger cities (Memphis, Nashville, Birmingham) or the college towns if that is a huge concern.
Sorry, Chinese. It's not a huge concern, I've lived in Utah for my whole life, so I don't really need a strong Asian presence. It was kind of a tie-breaker between the two states.
Sorry, Chinese. It's not a huge concern, I've lived in Utah for my whole life, so I don't really need a strong Asian presence. It was kind of a tie-breaker between the two states.
Probably pretty similar -- larger populations in the larger cities and university towns...but nothing major in either.
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