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.
The best cities are the ones that suit the individual the best.
Very well stated.
I think that right there^^ is what people lose sight of the most. Most people move to places because it's the trendy new "it city" to live in, and they'll sound so much "cooler" when they get to tell everybody "Oh, I live in _____, my **** doesn't stink now". In reality, they're probably miserable from barely being able to afford to keep their electricity turned on, but they'll post in these forums telling everybody about how they make 7 figures, so the world is basically their playground. I can smell the foul stench of their lies even through the interwebs. It's amusing though.
Hopefully these people can some day grow up and get over themselves enough to be comfortable in their own skin no matter where they are, without having to live in a place just because that's the "cool place to live". No matter where you go, you bring your baggage with you.
I think that right there^^ is what people lose sight of the most. Most people move to places because it's the trendy new "it city" to live in, and they'll sound so much "cooler" when they get to tell everybody "Oh, I live in _____, my **** doesn't stink now". In reality, they're probably miserable from barely being able to afford to keep their electricity turned on, but they'll post in these forums telling everybody about how they make 7 figures, so the world is basically their playground. I can smell the foul stench of their lies even through the interwebs. It's amusing.
Exactly. None of the places I've lived would be considered "Cool" by most posters. Why did I live there? My career. Not to be hip and vibe with the in-crowd. I enjoy a comfortable life and don't have to grind my fingers to the bone being a minimum wage drone. If living somewhere "lame" is the price for financial security, then so be it.
People have to keep in mind that cities change over the decades. Nothing is static. What was once not cool now may now be and vice versa. It's happening everywhere. The city people bash today can be the cool city they will want to live in tomorrow. It is very superficial. That's why it's best to choose a city that suits your needs and not one that everyone is flocking to because it sounds like it's the place to be.
Besides, living in a "cool" city never made anyone cool. Although there are mainly who believe that to be true.
No one should ever come to this site for real discussion
I think I'm finally getting to this point, as even when concrete evidence/information is presented, people still do not want to believe it or have trouble interpreting/understanding it. After a while, you realize that things just get silly and end up being a joke.
I've long though that many of the people on here aren't even living in the respective areas they post on or even the country, to be honest.
I always get a kick out of the extremely open ended "which city should I live in?" threads...
If you need pointers here and there, cool... But at the end of the day, if you need someone else to decide for you, just stay home and don't operate heavy machinery.
We are all into different things... Love the OP's point in that what average Bob finds amazing, average Joe might loathe.
I think I'm finally getting to this point, as even when concrete evidence/information is presented, people still do not want to believe it or have trouble interpreting/understanding it. After a while, you realize that things just get silly and end up being a joke.
I've long though that many of the people on here aren't even living in the respective areas they post on or even the country, to be honest.
Yes you are absolutely right a thousand times over. When I was first on CD I got into an argument with someone who continually posted on the city's forum giving information that was not always accurate. I looked up her profile and realized she lived elsewhere. It turns out she wanted to move to my city and had researched it so therefore felt she knew enough about it to give advice based solely on information she had gleaned from that research. She had never even visited my city.
Since then I discovered others who have done that on other city forums when I was looking to relocate. I made it a rule that if they weren't living or hadn't ever lived in the city I was asking about I wasn't going to give their advice any crediblity. I certanily wasn't going to go by anyone's bashing a city just because it didn't live up to today's standard's of what's trendy or cool.
I also found that on the General Forum a lot of information was given as absolute when it was simply hearsay gleaned from Social Media or other sources rather than first hand information. Often people who do this really think what they are saying is absolute fact because they read it on the Internet or saw it on Face Book and it never crosses their minds that what they are reading might be incorrect.
It just boggles my mind how people will accept just about anything they read. I have seen people who have never even been near the city where I used to live and/or the city where I live now swear it's such-and-such or so-and-so but living in these places I know it is simply not true.
Having said all that, I do think that anyone looking for facts on CD or anywhere else on the Internet can find them here but they have to really, really pay attention to who is giving the information.
I agree with the OP the city bashing is getting old, but come on, Atlanta?
The problem American cities like New York, Chicago and others have is that the downtowns are usually nice but everything around looks horrible for miles and only in the far out suburbs does it start to get nice again. So for every city there will always be something to bash about. Also, every city in the US has really dilapidated parts which increases the likelyhood to get bashed even more. All that in addition to the general decline the US finds itself in which will not have a positive effect on how cities look, just think of the whole rust belt.
Well from the perspective of the Netherlands I can understand your comment. I visited the Netherlands. Amsterdam makes American cities, even the nicer parts, look very poor and dilapidated. Americans by and large hate taxes and the result is what you see. The public transit agency in my city is always struggling to find funding from the state, but the people in my state hate the city and don't want their money going into it. They view the city as a cesspool of liberals, and the city dwellers view the rural people of PA as knuckle dragging conservatives. A no win situation, and pretty much replicated throughout the entire US. Most red state folks hate the Fed Govt. Funny I didn't notice any hatred toward the govt in the Netherlands. Going by the views of some Americans towards the govt here, you would think they live in North Korea lol. America will just continue to decline including the cities.
I've been hanging around on this forum for a while and while its often great for getting information on cities, the city bashing drives me insane!
Most people here obviously favor the big cities: Austin, Atlanta, Nashville, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, Portland, etc and that's fine. You like what you like. But it's really stupid that people associate conservative with being backwards rednecks, or bashing cities that aren't "cultured" enough because those cities don't have enough ethnic cuisine or a hundred art museums.
Have you ever thought not everyone wants those things? Like me for example. I am a young adult but I have no desire to visit art galleries or night clubs. But I don't complain about cities that have those things.
I mean I like zoos, shopping, restaurants, sports and beaches. I'm not boring, I just have a different idea of fun. For example, I was looking at states like South Carolina and Arkansas because I'm interesting in moving to a warmer, more southern state. I was shocked at what I saw about some cities in those states.
Little Rock was called a boring backwards hillbilly town and the people who live there consider a Willie Nelson concert culture. Oh gosh, they like something other than art museums, coffee and Indian food! Quick, call them uneducated rednecks because they don't have the same interests as you!
Charleston had a few supporters but most bashed it because according to them, Charlotte and really North Carolina as a whole had more cities. To them bigger = better. Well not everyone is interested living in crowded, noisy cities with a million people and a bunch of traffic.
I've never been to Arkansas but after reading about it, it sounds pretty cool. I like the whole "floating on the river on a nice summer day" thing. And interested in the hot springs and mountains. I've been in Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, not Charleston, but I love the awesome coastal city/beach scene. Also interested in Louisville/Lexington but even those are outshined by Nashville because Nashville has more, more, more.
I'm just saying don't look down upon those people who don't want "more, more, more". Don't look upon those people who are perfectly content spending the day at the river, at a horse race, a country/rock concert, or canoeing and would rather do those things than go to a international ballet show or something like that.
What you're describing is the typical blue state, big city liberal attitude. Just sayin'. Those are the areas that thought process comes from mostly. They see themselves as superior beings to people that live in red states, small cities, rural areas, etc. It's very easy to spot just by following the media. Take a guy like Jon Stewart for example.
I try to give an honest opinion about places I have experience with. I tell it like it is, the good and the bad. That's really what people come here for. To get insider information from people with firsthand experience.
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.
