Much of the jacksonville population is hostile (low income, crime)

[bobsim]

" What i'm suggesting is that everything from consumer services, to many local neighbors and just people you meet on the street is littered with a more hostile personality in that there is a lot more rudeness, rejection, objection, and political bias in so much of everything."

I will go as far as to admit that southern hospitality in general is in decline. I see major changes in attitude in the 30 (or so) years I've lived here. My gut feeling is the pressure most folks have been living in just to make ends meet these past few years is having an effect. I hesitate to use the word hostile though, I don't feel it in my interactions with folks anyway.

"Political bias" ? Here in Florida? Thanks for the chuckle.

On a more optimistic note I have to say the most ugly and negative thing I noticed when moving here from Co was the racism. Up front and in your face all day and every day. My take is every time someone moves here with an open mind the stagnant gene pool is diluted a little more.

I work in the construction industry and live in historic (old) Arlington, my social circle is completely blue collar. Most of the people I know are working as hard as they can and sacrificing more than ever just to keep a roof over their families and some food in the house. They're tired, feeling betrayed by their government and the last thing on their mind is being polite.

Good thread!

[Scorp1026]

Interesting, I have had the opposite reaction since moving here a year ago from Atlanta. My experiences have been very positive from the exceptional customer service to my neighbors, coworkers etc. Everyone here seems very friendly and laid back. It's one of my favorite things about living here actually.

[williamwebb1986]

Originally Posted by Uprise

It doesn't matter where you have lived if you dont even live in jacksonville. FYI, ponte vedra is not part of Jacksonville and is actually very, very different. Happy to hear you had pleasant experiences on your visits to whatever select parts of Jacksonville you came to, but i'd prefer to discuss this topic more deeply with people who are current residents of the city.

If you looked at it form a technical perspective, ponte vedra is part of the jacksonville "area" but i lived for 4 years in the part of jacksonville that meets with ponte vedra, and ponte vedra is very different and is more so home to people with a lot of money. It would be like using the strip of las vegas to assess the population of the entire city.

I never said I lived in Jacksonville, all I did was ask a question in my post. You then asked me where I lived and have previously lived and I replied. Then I get the above demented diatribe in reply. So I feel I must agree with Florida 2014's opinion ...

Originally Posted by Florida2014

Here's my opinion - if you have lived somewhere for that long and have interacted with hundreds or even thousands of local residents and your only impression is to lump them all into one negative category......well my friend, I hate to break the news to you but YOU are the problem, not everyone else.

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by Scorp1026

Interesting, I have had the opposite reaction since moving here a year ago from Atlanta. My experiences have been very positive from the exceptional customer service to my neighbors, coworkers etc. Everyone here seems very friendly and laid back. It's one of my favorite things about living here actually.

I too live in Ponte Vedra Beach - but my father lives in JAX (so did my late FIL). Senior seniors. And they both remark/remarked how polite people in JAX were to the elderly. Especially my father - who moved here from south Florida about 8 years ago. He spent 40+ years in south Florida - and is still amazed how people do polite things here - like holding doors open for him. Guess it all depends on one's frame of reference. Robyn

[fsquid]

My in-laws mention how nice people are every time they come down to visit. Small sample size, but its all I got.

[JimRom]

Originally Posted by Uprise

Im glad to have finally found a place to post my thoughts on the city, im a bit of a forum dweller and like to hear the thoughtful opinions of others as well as facts.

Let me pre-face this by saying i have lived in several different states as well as traveled. I can honestly say the people of jacksonville (and perhaps much of east florida). Are different than much of the nation.

Hostility

When i say hostile, you probably think something along the lines of people fighting and killing each other, or perhaps just people being mean. I mean neither.

What i'm suggesting is that everything from consumer services, to many local neighbors and just people you meet on the street is littered with a more hostile personality in that there is a lot more rudeness, rejection, objection, and political bias in so much of everything.

In contrast, other places i have been, the midwest in particular. People in consumer services typically treat consumers like kings and queens, people on the street were often happy to converse, heck, maybe even invite you inside for some conversation. Granted, the people of the midwest in general (from my point of view) were not as witty, nor as competent as many people in jacksonville, and theft was much, much higher.

BUT

There is also another type of hostility, which i like to refer to as "dumb" hostility. Particularly on the northside, a lot of people who cant even look you in the eye as they ramble on about god knows what as they string words together with slang and incorrect adverb agreements so to make you believe they are crazy or perhaps they just dont know how to talk straight. In many cases people dont even mind cursing at a relative over the phone in public, like this woman i rode with on the bus the other day who practically made death threats to her brother loud enough for everyone on board to hear.

Just my thoughts. This doesn't go for all of jacksonville, but for many people here, if you have nothing to financially contribute to a conversation, its like talking to a brick wall.

What an odd observation.

I've lived in Florida, Missouri, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas, and (briefly) Iowa. I've also visited every other state except for Hawaii. Jacksonville is possibly the least hostile place that I've ever lived. I haven't had one neighbor in Jacksonville who wasn't willing to stop and say hello or exchange pleasantries. Customer service, overall, is similar to the Midwestern attitude. People are generally friendly and helpful, and most will talk your ear off if you give them the chance.

I guess you and I have different expectations. Either that, or your definition of hostility is a lot different from what mine is.

[Robyn55]

I don't know beans about the OP. But have observed in the past that things are generally more civil/less racist/less whatever in areas that are more affluent. The lower you go on the income scale - the worse things are in a lot of ways. Like crime. Could be the same in terms of things like being polite too. I'm certainly not the best person to ask how things are in the poor areas in metro JAX. Robyn

[Ruger20]

Originally Posted by Scorp1026

Interesting, I have had the opposite reaction since moving here a year ago from Atlanta. My experiences have been very positive from the exceptional customer service to my neighbors, coworkers etc. Everyone here seems very friendly and laid back. It's one of my favorite things about living here actually.

I second this. I moved from Minnesota and have found people in Jacksonville to be much more friendly than back in the North. Random conversations with servers, store clerks, service providers, construction workers, etc have never left me with a sense of feeling hostility.

I'm not sure if our area is considered "upper middle class" or not (Durbin Crossing) but everyone I see waves and says hello and have been very welcoming when out for walks with my family or driving by.

[CaryNC]

Could not agree more with the OP. Lived in Boston, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Gainesville, and some parts of North Carolina. It's agreed upon that Jacksonville does not have the most intelligent or cultured population, it's one that is soaked in religion and a belief that their-way-of-living is best.

But in the larger picture it's also because of how the racial attitudes of the last 5 decades now shape people's personas. If you're white, upper/middle class and have grown up in Jacksonville, you've likely been socially conditioned to be skeptical of black people, and it's programmed into you there are 'scary' parts of the city that you avoid. If you're white and lower class, you're more tolerant because chances are you're in an area where you live and work with another race.

[NoleFanHSV]

Living in Jacksonville and moving to a more southern city, I can agree a little. I think the difference is that its more honest in Jacksonville. Where I live now, much of the "southern hospitality" is quite fake and not genuine at all. I always thought that that the folks at the beach were a little more laid back and less rude than in Jacksonville city proper. I think much of that though is whatever Northeast influence is left in Jacksonville.