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.
In the interest of fairness, I thought I would jump start this; as seen by an American that is from a major American city, Chicago.
(a disclaimer: I am not English nor have I actually lived in the UK. However, I am a bonefide Anglophile and absolutely love the country)
London is exciting and a mecca for learning. Since it is a very old city, the architecture is fabulous and the history is beyond compare. I love the transportation options and just the energy of being there. I am fully comfortable there travelling alone, I do not worry about being attacked or mugged as I do have the street sense bred into a city person. Compared to Chicago, London is the city without the crime.
London, is, however, dirty and congested. Don't even try to drive there, if the traffic doesn't get to you, the tax on driving within the city limits will. It is expensive, especially the real estate, and it can be overwhelming in it's vastness. Homes are far smaller and compact and there are a lot of adjustments for an American if they were to live there.
next?
Last edited by SunnyKayak; 09-16-2008 at 07:42 PM..
Reason: flaming
Chicago is much safer than London. You are about 10 times more likely to be mugged or assaulted in London than you are in Chicago. I have lived near Chicago, and have friends their now.. all of which prefer it to London.
I know that NY is safer than London so I would have thought Chicago would have been safer but I was amazed at how clean Chicago is, its very very clean and a lovely city.
London... lets see. Anymore when I hear London on the news they are talking about teens being stabbed to death. I think its 22 the last I heard, but that seems to change daily. Add the rest of the UK and its down right scary. Not all are gang related either. After all, one of the actors in Harry potter was stabbed to death. As well as a soap stars little brother.
Anymore I just stay away from the national news. The local news is bad enough.
London... lets see. Anymore when I hear London on the news they are talking about teens being stabbed to death. I think its 22 the last I heard, but that seems to change daily. Add the rest of the UK and its down right scary. Not all are gang related either. After all, one of the actors in Harry potter was stabbed to death. As well as a soap stars little brother.
Anymore I just stay away from the national news. The local news is bad enough.
It went up to 26 last weekend. Add to that other murder roepts about 3 of them that were not youth related over the weekend. Rips your heart out.
Chicago is much safer than London. You are about 10 times more likely to be mugged or assaulted in London than you are in Chicago. I have lived near Chicago, and have friends their now.. all of which prefer it to London.
London Population 7.5 M...Crimes of violence against the person last 12months,,195,296,,,Metropolitan Police Service - Crime Figures
Chicago Population 2.8 M...Crimes of Assault or Battery since June 07,,,129,709..Chicago crime data (formerly chicagocrime.org) | EveryBlock Chicago
I`ll find some simple per capita figures. But these just don`t bear out your opinion Ian..Even allowing for the extra 3 months included in the Chicago figures..
As with all places people allow their perceptions of crime to form their opinions rather than the actual figures...
Yeah, sure - some 3O or so mostly low-lifes get stabbed per year - anyone read the figures on deaths by gunfire in comparable US cities? I believe it's in the region of 3500!
Don't rip your heart out over some little thug who got knifed - about 85% of them are in gangs anyway.
Oh, and you have to be kidding about Chicago, right? My DH comes from there and I know it well - I have never walked down a street there without being afraid of crime - in fact have been stolen from there - and so many warnings from family about how to avoid crime! On my very first visit, I was buying CDs and was 'used' by a thief - he grabbed me & propelled me out of the door as a cover for his own theft. My FiL told me, 'Never let anyone see your AmEx card here.'
In contrast, I feel totally safe in London - I live in the suburbs but am in town at least 2x a week, walk & used public transport all the time - never any crime, never any fear of it. And I flash my platinum AmEx around all the time.
We were talking in the CLT forum about Bank of America's (BofA's) takeover of Merrill Lynch . . . and we have a guy from London who enjoys pointing out that CLT is gonna get zapped when BofA moves to NYC . . . taking all the jobs and destroying CLT's rep as the second largest banking center in the USA. His premise is that a "big bank" has to be positioned in London or NYC to survive . . . even tho BofA has a very impressive presence already in NYC . . . and business is already being conducted in NYC . . . and since it was announced this morning that Lloyd's is taking over HBOS, looks to me like even London is reeling from the mortgage/securities fallout . . .
We all know Charlotte is no NYC and Charlotte does not wish to be NYC (and never will be). We are a small southern city w/ a lot of newcomers. Indeed, CLT is no CHI and never will be. However, if CLT were to aspire to be something else, LOL, I would hope it would aspire to be CHI, as to me . . . CHI is one of the most "user friendly" cities in the world.
CHI has a wonderful mix of elements that makes the city great for residents as well as visitors. From the very walkable Magnificent Mile, to Grant Park, to the Navy Pier . . . Field Museum and Art Institute . . . to the Merchandise Mart . . . Sears tower and wonderful views from the "top of the Hancock" . . . Chicago is easy to navigate with robust CTA to tie it all together w/ burbs (heck, if you wanted to head to Gary, IN, you could, not that I would WANT to do that, but you get my point) . . . outstanding dining, shopping, entertainment (I can find good Jazz!!!!) And then there are the universities, including University of CHI . . . Northwestern . . . DePaul . . .
CHI truly does have "broad shoulders" as Carl Sandburg (who NC likes to "claim" also) once penned . .. "stormy, husky, brawling, City of the Big Shoulders."
Of course, CHI has become more refined in the decades since Sandburg wrote those words . . . but not so refined that the energy and midwest sensibilities have been lost.
NYC is a great place to visit . . . as is London . . . but if I had to choose a city to actually LIVE in . . . it would be CHI.
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.
