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.
There are people down south that think New England is a state. Nobody thinks the Intermountain West is a state. It does have a stronger regional identy than almost anywhere in the country.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pikabike
Most people are not quite that ignorant, and most people do view New England as a region.
Most people are not quite that ignorant, and that goes for btownboss4's statement above in bold.
I have heard all kinds of crazy misconceptions about US geography by people from distant parts of the country, some multiple times from different people:
New Jersey is the capital of New York
New Mexico is an English speaking part of Mexico; New Mexico is a Spanish speaking part of the US (maybe part true)
Ohio is Iowa is Idaho is Ohio
Kentucky is the deep south
There is no nature east of the Mississippi; The land east of the Mississippi is flat as a pancake
Palm trees grow as far north as New York City ("I swear, I saw it on TV!")
New York City exists in perpetual winter
New Englanders have British accents
The list goes on... But most people are not so uneducated.
Most people are not quite that ignorant, and most people do view New England as a region.
There have been numerous threads on CD about Idaho and Arizona being "west coast" ststes with many arguing vigorously that they are. I'll find some when I get back to my computer.
There have been numerous threads on CD about Idaho and Arizona being "west coast" ststes with many arguing vigorously that they are. I'll find some when I get back to my computer.
Here's one. I know I've seen others. Can't find one with CD's search engine.
There have been numerous threads on CD about Idaho and Arizona being "west coast" ststes with many arguing vigorously that they are. I'll find some when I get back to my computer.
In the perspective of someone who grew up in Rhode Island, the true divide in New England is east-west, not north-south. People in Western New England are noticeably more demure than people in Eastern New England. Additioanlly, Western New Englanders seem to more fully embody Protestant virtues and mores (e.g., orderliness, civic engagement, proper diction, etc.). People in Boston, Providence, New Bedford, etc. are generally loud, insolent and crude. YMMV.
In the perspective of someone who grew up in Rhode Island, the true divide in New England is east-west, not north-south. People in Western New England are noticeably more demure than people in Eastern New England. Additioanlly, Western New Englanders seem to more fully embody Protestant virtues and mores (e.g., orderliness, civic engagement, proper diction, etc.). People in Boston, Providence, New Bedford, etc. are generally loud, insolent and crude. YMMV.
Yea I would say this is true. People in CT cities and Springfield/Holyoke/Amherst even really ARE more reserved and orderly than the eastern cities. Most of my experience in New England is with cities due to my being African American so I can’t apeak at all on the smaller towns in WNE. But I noticed that myself years ago. Hartford people for all the poverty and blight-are more reserved humble etc than ppl back east. One of the calmest coolest dudes I know lives in New Haven. The package stores and bars close earlier and no one complains.
Location: Appalachian New York, Formerly Louisiana
4,409 posts, read 6,536,583 times
Reputation: 6253
New England states are similar in the same way that the deep south states are. Yeah when you split hairs the differences can seem endless, but altogether they are more alike internally than they are with any other region.
I would not say that Vermont and Rhode Island are exactly the same. That would be crazy. However, they do have more in common with eachother than either would with Arizona or Georgia or California, or even Ohio.
It's all about the big picture game, not the small stuff. That's also why NY state can never escape the black hole of popularity that is NYC.
Parts of rural Colorado and most of New Mexico are "liberal".
I don't know about that, but it's very "traditional". We have some extended fam in MA and they have more traditional ideas than the Coloradans.
The premarital sex thing doesn't fully explain the divorce rates because there is nowhere in the US that I have lived or visited extensively that "frowns upon" premarital sex between adults, particularly those who are over about 20. It's an expectation in a long term relationship. I see Colorado's divorce rate is higher end, though I personally don't know a lot of people who've been divorced, but CO is very libertarian which probably explains some of it.
Why do people focus so much on the presidential elections and not on local politics? No NewEngland state voted for a Republican since 2000? Hasn't MA had several Republican governors and senators? The current MA governor is a Republican. The governor of Maine is a Republican, and Maine has one Republican senator. The governor of NH is a Repub, as is the governor of Vermont. The only NE state with a Democratic governor is Rhode Island. I don't feel like looking up all the senators right now.
You don't know what you don't know about the Midwest.
The GOP governors of MA and VT are very moderate, and would be considered Democrats if they ran in a different part of the country. Susan Collins, a GOP senator from ME, would be in the same boat..
I think it's the Northeast, and it should be it's own state. Having six separate states is antiquaited. It's 2018, not 1718. States matter way less than urban areas. Urban areas are the main drivers of influence. The fact that New England has six different states in what should be one state is a reflection of how exclusive and provincial it was, and traditionally still is. Just like the rest of the Northeast. New York and Philadelphia are no different.
Sincerely,
Someone who grew up an hour from New England.
I'm okay with merging New England if in exchange we can say merge ND/SD/NE/KS, and MT/WY/ID/UT as well.
Of course, practically speaking, it's never going to happen. The only way two states can merge under the Constitution is via consent of the legislatures of both states.
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.
. COUNTRY MUSICIANS KNOW.
