Best City in Iowa (Des Moines, Cedar Rapids: school district, living, safe)

[zz4guy]

Originally Posted by scimitar12

I do not doubt you that DM has a high homicide and violent crime rate, but per capita is DM higher that Waterloo or Davenport? I am sure all three towns are probably in the tops in the state.

I live in D.C.; Iowa does not have any rush hour issues. I guess it depends on what you are used to.

Of course it does. I'm just saying DM traffic is bad compared to say, Waterloo or Dubuque. Just like DC traffic is probably cake compared to Chicago traffic.

[scimitar12]

Originally Posted by scimitar12

Born and raised in Iowa. Been all over the state. My top five cities (and towns) are:

Des Moines
Iowa City
Dubuque
Cedar Rapids
Washington (traditionally voted one of the top small towns to live in the U.S.)

Bottom five (boy, I could easily list more):

Waterloo
Council Bluffs
Fort Dodge
Davenport
Bedford

OMG, I forgot Clinton. Clinton is by far number 1. I used to live in Davenport many years ago, and our family would drive up to Clinton a couple of times a year to visit some relatives. The place, especailly the area around some corn starch producing plant, looked like something Archie Bunker would like. I know it sounds weird, but every time we drove up there the skys would cloud up and our time in Clinton was always grey and dreary. Anyone remember "Marreid with Children"? There was an episode where the Bundy's visited England to see their relatives. One set lived in a town that was in perpetual darkness becasue of some curse. The other town they visited wasn't plagued like that. The Bundy's would go from light to dark when they visited these towns. That's what I remember about Clinton; crossing some line east of Dewitt or north of Commanche(sp) and you were thrust in some dark, grey place.

[El Rhino]

Originally Posted by scimitar12

. The place, especailly the area around some corn starch producing plant, looked like something Archie Bunker would like. I.

Sounds like my kind of place!

[Stevie]

Originally Posted by zz4guy

Of course it does. I'm just saying DM traffic is bad compared to say, Waterloo or Dubuque. Just like DC traffic is probably cake compared to Chicago traffic.

It's true that Des Moines would have more traffic but the freeway has just been rebuilt and newly designed. Plus when you're driving on say, 380 in Cedar Rapids you have to drive on that overpass downtown, which is a little scary. It's quite curvy and I don't think I'd want to drive on it when there's ice.

BTW, DC has some of the worst traffic in the nation.

[El Rhino]

Originally Posted by Stevie

It's true that Des Moines would have more traffic but the freeway has just been rebuilt and newly designed. Plus when you're driving on say, 380 in Cedar Rapids you have to drive on that overpass downtown, which is a little scary. It's quite curvy and I don't think I'd want to drive on it when there's ice.

BTW, DC has some of the worst traffic in the nation.

One of the scariest moments of my life was a cab ride on the beltway in DC. Yikes!

[ruralboy]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

East: 81.8%
Hoover: 93.4%
Lincoln: 90.0%
North: 90.2%
Roosevelt: 94.0%

so , you actually believe the "inflated graduation rates" given by the Des Moines school board????
oh by the way, did you see the u.s. news and world report about the best schools in America???? i see no Des Moines schools or even suburban schools [including johnston] did not make the list.

[Stevie]

Why would the Des Moines public schools have to be some of the best in America just so they aren't bad schools?

[Stevie]

BTW, I never said I was a graduate of a Des Moines public school. I said I went to grade school in Des Moines, not high school.

And no, I don't work for McDonald's. Oh wait, I spelled that wrong, I meant Mac Donald's.

[El Rhino]

Originally Posted by Stevie

Why would the Des Moines public schools have to be some of the best in America just so they aren't bad schools?

Really. Think of the many school districts in the US and especially all of the affluent suburbs that every major city has and you expect to see Des Moines on some newsclip?


I think we can all agree that Ruralboy needs to go sit in the corner for a while.

[ruralboy]

Originally Posted by El Rhino

Really. Think of the many school districts in the US and especially all of the affluent suburbs that every major city has and you expect to see Des Moines on some newsclip?


I think we can all agree that Ruralboy needs to go sit in the corner for a while.

let me see, i am just looking at the website that tells about the "dropout factories". the research is done by John Hopkins University.
des moines {lincoln, east and north] high schools have graduations rates of 51, 56, and 53 %. and you des moines people think you have good schools?
again? how many des moines area schools made the u.s. and world report list of the "Best High Schools in America'???