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Nothing besides the 96 Olympics in Atlanta is a unique attribute for any of those cities...just sayin'
A place doesn't have to have a whole bunch of unique attributes to have soul though. That's the major point of contention I have with the narrowness of the definition.
Nothing besides the 96 Olympics in Atlanta is a unique attribute for any of those cities...just sayin'
I've never been to Denver, but I read mixed reviews about it. In pictures, Denver is gorgeous, but it seems like a city that residents either love or absolutely hate.
You're kidding, right? All those things I listed may not be your idea of unique, but those are some of the things that define those cities. It's their "soul." Being unique and having soul are 2 very different things. Just because the culture of these places isn't in your face (like NYC, SF, or NOLA) doesn't mean it's not there. Sadly, I don't think people will ever learn this.
There are mixed reviews on EVERY city, just like Denver. Have you actually spent any time in either of these places though?
You're kidding, right? All those thing I listed may not be your idea of unique, but those are some of the things that define those cities. It's their "soul."
There are mixed reviews on EVERY city. Have you actually spent any time in either of these places though?
Nope, not kidding. We're not talking about some broad example of a city's description. For example, we all know that Dallas has "cowboy culture", and according to you, so does Denver. I can name several other cities that have the exact same sort of "cowboy culture" as Dallas and Denver. This only helps reiterate the point that there is nothing special or that is quintessentially Dallas. No uniqueness, no identity, no character..as many here have agreed. You can't say these things define those cities as soulful if these same mundane attributes are also apart of sooo many other towns and cities...
And yes, I've spent time in every one of these cities except Denver, like I said before. For the record, I look forward to visiting soon!
Nope, not kidding. We're not talking about some broad example of a city's description. For example, we all know that Dallas has "cowboy culture", and according to you, so does Denver. I can name several other cities that have the exact same sort of "cowboy culture" as Dallas and Denver. This only helps reiterate the point that there is nothing special or that is quintessentially Dallas. No uniqueness, no identity, no character..as many here have agreed. You can't say these things define those cities as soulful if these same mundane attributes are also apart of sooo many other towns and cities...
And yes, I've spent time in every one of these cities except Denver, like I said before. For the record, I look forward to visiting soon!
But that`s like saying (for example) that the pizza in Chicago isn't part of what's considered to be the cities soul because many other places have pizza. Lame example, I know, but you get the gist.
All I'm saying is that there's more to cities and their soul than just being unique.
And speaking of Tennessee Williams, the other great writerly quote about soulless cities was Gertrude Stein's memorable put-down of Oakland, California : "There is no there, there." Doubt she could say that about Oakland now!
Gertrude Stein's quote "There is no there, there" was taken out of context. She was referring to her return to Oakland - 45 years later - to find that her childhood home was no longer there - torn down - lost within a developed and burgeoning Oakland.
But that`s like saying (for example) that the pizza in Chicago isn't part of what's considered to be the cities soul because many other places have pizza. Lame example, I know, but you get the gist.
All I'm saying is that there's more to cities and their soul than just being unique.
Precisely. Even if a city has attributes that are found in other cities, you have to consider how all of a cities' attributes interact with each other and how that dynamic contributes to the whole of a city's character and identity.
Nope, not kidding. We're not talking about some broad example of a city's description. For example, we all know that Dallas has "cowboy culture", and according to you, so does Denver. I can name several other cities that have the exact same sort of "cowboy culture" as Dallas and Denver. This only helps reiterate the point that there is nothing special or that is quintessentially Dallas. No uniqueness, no identity, no character..as many here have agreed. You can't say these things define those cities as soulful if these same mundane attributes are also apart of sooo many other towns and cities...
And yes, I've spent time in every one of these cities except Denver, like I said before. For the record, I look forward to visiting soon!
To say Dallas has no soul is an embarrassingly wrong statement. Dallas has soul, you can hear it in the accents of south Dallasites and in their rap. I thought Houston would have no kind of soul but I was wrong, there is a sense of place when you see Cadillacs with elbows jammin DJ Screw, happen to turn the radio to 97.9 on Screw day (RIP) to hear nothing but DJ Screw all day, etc. If Houston has this, I know Dallas does too.
Now compared to New Orleans, no many cities have soul or culture but New Orleans is truly one of a kind.
Orlando has my vote. It is a city which has nothing unique. It's a manufactured environment which exists to plug the most banal forms of commercial tourism such as corporate theme parks or bland cookie cutter HUD-like suburbs. The city has a distinct lack of taste and culture. Young people dress in gaudy faux hip hop styles and talk in strange white suburban ebonics knock off language. The schools are horrible. The sports teams all suck too. The older folk are completely uncultured unwashed Floridian types who can't comprehend anything beyond the Floridian bubble. If they are transplants they are soon absorbed into the soulless culture-less quagmire that is Orlando.
God help you if you run into the wealthy "elite" in Orlando. Their lack of taste is only surpassed by the gaudiness of their gilded plywood walled McEstates.
To say Dallas has no soul is an embarrassingly wrong statement. Dallas has soul, you can hear it in the accents of south Dallasites and in their rap. I thought Houston would have no kind of soul but I was wrong, there is a sense of place when you see Cadillacs with elbows jammin DJ Screw, happen to turn the radio to 97.9 on Screw day (RIP) to hear nothing but DJ Screw all day, etc. If Houston has this, I know Dallas does too.
Now compared to New Orleans, no many cities have soul or culture but New Orleans is truly one of a kind.
Have you been to Dallas lately??? I can assure you that all the culture there is to love about Houston, Dallas shares none of. I can't say that I know of any Dallas rappers, but a country accent surely doesn't equate to soul. I mean hell, Shreveport has the same annoying accent...
Its game time homeboy...
Last edited by Chilly Gentilly; 09-08-2013 at 11:42 AM..
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