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I wouldn't say it gets ragged on the most but probably because many people don't think it significant enough to rag on. The US is very fortunate to have vast landscapes and truth be told, the Midwest got the short end of the stick on that minus the Great Lakes. But there's always two sides to every story as they were blessed with a lot of flat and fertile land to grow crops.
Outside of that, the people are the nicest and most down to earth in the country. And I say that having lived in the midwest and currently living in the south. That probably contributes to not being as outspoken and proud of where they live. I've never heard of 'Midwest pride' like I've heard of southern, west coast, or east coast pride.
The Midwest is generally a place that grows on you and definitely isn't appreciated by most of the country. People say that Chicago makes it great and it's true but really Chicago is kind of the opposite of most Midwest cities. Let the Midwest continue to fly under the radar, that's part of what makes it great.
Location: Appalachian New York, Formerly Louisiana
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I'm gonna be flat out honest here; the people I have witnessed complain about the Midwest the most are Midwesterners. :V
Michiganders, Ohioans, and Illinoisans in particular.
In fact, removing the whole Midwest/Northeast divide, the great lakes region as a whole (including upstate NY and western PA) is perhaps the most self deprecating.
I wouldn't say it gets ragged on the most but probably because many people don't think it significant enough to rag on. The US is very fortunate to have vast landscapes and truth be told, the Midwest got the short end of the stick on that minus the Great Lakes. But there's always two sides to every story as they were blessed with a lot of flat and fertile land to grow crops.
I mean the areas around the Great Lakes are obviously good but the good nature in the midwest extends far beyond just the areas right next to the Great Lakes.
Don't forget about areas like The Badlands in SW South Dakota:
Location: Appalachian New York, Formerly Louisiana
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Quote:
Originally Posted by marothisu
I mean the areas around the Great Lakes are obviously good but the good nature in the midwest extends far beyond just the areas right next to the Great Lakes.
Don't forget about areas like The Badlands in SW South Dakota:
Oh yeah there are plenty of amazing natural areas in the Midwest.
The Driftless region is another beauty.
The Sandhills of Nebraska.
Ohio has a share of the Allegheny plateau, glaciated AND unglaciated.
Illinois' "Garden of the gods" in the Little Egypt region.
The thick lakeland forestry of Minnesota is underappreciated.
Technically the northern Ozarks are in the Midwest as well (depends on how you view southern Missouri).
I think a lot of it gets undeserved hate. Now, don't get me wrong, there ARE a bunch of boring flat areas with almost nothing in them in states like Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, and Nebraska but there's also a lot of great nature in states like Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, etc. Chicago is anything but fly over and smaller cities like Minneapolis, St. Paul, Madison, and Ann Arbor are pretty underrated places. They punch well above their weight. I think Milwaukee is a little underrated as well and Detroit is not bad depending on where.
Living in NYC lately has made me aware of the ignorance though. A lot of people think they know a lot about the world but they don't know much about a lot of parts of the country - Midwest included.
Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, and Nebraska all have beautiful, rugged places with great nature in them as well.
You have the Sandhills/Pine Ridge in Nebraska, Driftless Area and Loess Hills in Iowa, 1/3rd of Ohio is basically the foothills of the Appalachians, the Illinois Ozarks/Shawnee Forest areas are beautiful, and Indiana has Brown County/Hoosier National Forest.
None of these places are flat or heavily developed.
I wouldn't say it gets ragged on the most but probably because many people don't think it significant enough to rag on. The US is very fortunate to have vast landscapes and truth be told, the Midwest got the short end of the stick on that minus the Great Lakes. But there's always two sides to every story as they were blessed with a lot of flat and fertile land to grow crops.
Outside of that, the people are the nicest and most down to earth in the country. And I say that having lived in the midwest and currently living in the south. That probably contributes to not being as outspoken and proud of where they live. I've never heard of 'Midwest pride' like I've heard of southern, west coast, or east coast pride.
The Midwest is generally a place that grows on you and definitely isn't appreciated by most of the country. People say that Chicago makes it great and it's true but really Chicago is kind of the opposite of most Midwest cities. Let the Midwest continue to fly under the radar, that's part of what makes it great.
A lot of parts are the Midwest are extremely proud, but modesty is very much a part of the culture here. You keep the vocalization of your pride to yourself, because no one likes a braggart. It's very different from Texas where they have to slap little outlines of the state on Bud Light cans just to convince the market that it's a special version for them, or whatever.
Pride in the Midwest is expressed in the care that's taken of the small towns (even the dead/dying ones are well maintained compared to anywhere else in the country), the way people tend to support their neighbors and communities, and you're eventually starting to see more of an outward expression of it. I see lots of folks in Iowa and Minnesota taking an expressed pride in their state and the region. Minnesotans have really been embracing the "Northern" thing and Iowans the "Midwest" thing with shirts, bumper stickers, etc. I've seen similar deals in Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Missouri as well.
Hate is a bad word. They just don't get any love. People like mountains and beaches. Period and MOST people do not like all the negatives that the cold brings. Also travel is harder with less Hubs for the most part outside of Chicago and MSP. Also many companies for whatever reason have not decided to set up major operations in the midwest especially not IT, tech, pharma, big finance, etc.
But as the south is priced out.. the midwest shall rise again I think despite the subpar location and potentially adverse weather. Afterall several decades ago St. Louis and Kansas City were much bigger cities than they are now.
But as the south is priced out.. the midwest shall rise again I think despite the subpar location and potentially adverse weather. Afterall several decades ago St. Louis and Kansas City were much bigger cities than they are now.
I assume you're talking about city proper?
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