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Some really conservative places in the bible belt feel like they are 100 years behind culturally. Nothing wrong with that, it doesn't bother me but it might be tough fitting in.
Certain liberal cities i.e the West Coast Cities Seattle, Portland, SF, LA these progressive, lets just be honest most are straight up intolerant. God forbid you don't agree with them, it's just insufferable. Liberal is not really the word because it's not that anymore.
What are some cities that you feel are pretty even keeled? (or as best as you can hope for)
I think this is a more complicated question than it seems.
Do you want to live in a city, exurb, or suburb? And if its a suburb, do you want something more new, sprawling, with the amenities being places like Walmart? Do you want an older, inner-ring suburb that is still walkable? Or do you want to live in the city?
I think this is important because increasingly, politics is connected to lifestyle. People who like dense, walkable, vibrant urban environments or inner-ring tree-lined suburbs tend to be pretty democratic. People who like new housing in sprawling suburbs or small towns that have a lot of development tend to be much more conservative.
The only places like break this trend tend to be very conservative ethnically based neighborhoods where there are a lot of Chassidic Jewish people or Cubans, like Borough Park or Little Havana. And large portions of the suburbs and small towns around places like Boston, DC or Madison, WI tend to be pretty liberal in general.
I think it would be hard to find purple cities or inner-ring suburbs pretty much everywhere on the West Coast, Northeast, and the majority of the cities in the midwest.
Some really conservative places in the bible belt feel like they are 100 years behind culturally. Nothing wrong with that, it doesn't bother me but it might be tough fitting in.
Certain liberal cities i.e the West Coast Cities Seattle, Portland, SF, LA these progressive, lets just be honest most are straight up intolerant. God forbid you don't agree with them, it's just insufferable. Liberal is not really the word because it's not that anymore.
What are some cities that you feel are pretty even keeled? (or as best as you can hope for)
With all due respect, "intolerance" is in the eye of the beholder.
And "being behind 100 years culturally" can also represent some of the most horrifically intolerant aspects of American laws and society.
I think this type of discussion belongs in the Politics section, not Cities.
With all due respect, "intolerance" is in the eye of the beholder.
And "being behind 100 years culturally" can also represent some of the most horrifically intolerant aspects of American laws and society.
I think this type of discussion belongs in the Politics section, not Cities.
Amen. Liberals do not have the market on intolerance cornered. I grew up in a small, lily-white, staunchly-conservative town. People were friendly on the exterior, but get them behind closed doors and put a couple beers in them and the bigotry and homophobia would come out. I left 30 years ago, and sadly nothing has changed. It's still a closed-minded backwater.
Last edited by bluescreen73; 10-20-2021 at 11:00 PM..
Boise, Omaha, Oklahoma City, and Colorado Springs all seem to be pretty close to the political center (CO Springs has historically leaned more conservative, but I think the county will be purple/swing fairly soon). The OKC metro is probably the closest to a 50/50 split in 2021. Per bluescreen's comment about homophobia, as a gay person I can feel mildly comfortable being myself in those cities, whereas my partner and I feel uncomfortable in places to the right of them...aka most of Oklahoma. For whatever that barometer is worth.
As far as big cities go, I'd agree with Phoenix (more libertarian) and throw in San Antonio.
Last edited by boomtown boi; 10-21-2021 at 10:00 AM..
Amen. Liberals do not have the market on intolerance cornered. I grew up in a small, lily-white, staunchly-conservative town. People were friendly on the exterior, but get them behind closed doors and put a couple beers in them and the bigotry and homophobia would come out. I left 30 years ago, and sadly nothing has changed. It's still a closed-minded backwater.
Where I live Lynchburg, VA was historically conservative, but has definitely become pretty much balanced 50/50 (slight left lean). My first four years here it was 4 Republicans and 3 Democrats on City Council. It has transitioned slightly to the left over the past five years and has switched to 4 Democrats and 3 Republicans on City Council since about 2016. With more transplants moving in for work, the city has moved to a near 50/50 split in recent elections. 2018 the city went for Senator Kaine (Democrat) by a 51% to 46% vote and went for Biden in a 50% to 47% vote against Trump in 2020 (first time a Democrat presidential candidate won the city since 1948 actually). Obama lost in 2008 against McCain by about a 4 point difference. The general rule is the closer to downtown/historic urban core/5th Street/Rivermont Avenue areas the more liberal the electorate is and becomes more conservative the further you go out towards Liberty University/Wards Road/Timberlake at the fringe of the city limits. I pretty much stick exclusively to downtown where I live for this reason lol...
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