Houston's obsession with LA....can we analyze this please? (Los Angeles: best city, apartment complexes)

[Spikett]

Originally Posted by Trae713

Shouldn't the culture in Houston be Texan, considering its in Texas? Don't see how that's different than any other city in any other state. The culture between the two cities are different, but there are still some similarities. Houston is one of five cities (the bay, la, nyc, and dc being the others) to have a Pacifica radio station. The art car parade started in houston. I mentioned the no zoning earlier. It's pretty live and let live in Houston. People hype up Austin as that place in Texas, but Houston was the original and still is.

I'm not saying it shouldn't be Texan - I'm saying that Texas culture and SoCal culture are worlds apart.

[BarcelonaFan]

Dude I know Houston in and out and did everything there. It's only live and let live and eclectic inside the loop. It's like a night and day difference between Montrose, Rice Village, Midtown, and Downtown, AND the suburban wasteland of the outer loop. If you in the Heights, Museum District, Galleria and upper Kirby I could totally see loving Houston. Heck I even love the area around the wards near downtown. I used to eat at the reggae hut all the time but I felt confined to the same area, doing the same things.

Also the stuff that happens in LA only happens every once in a while in Houston. I remember having to wait months for a really good house DJ to play at a venue or club. My favorite parties were all monthlies. Here in LA I find that every week.

I am not trying to knock Houston as some Podunk town cus its not buy its overhyped in the media and Houstonians think that they've somehow reached world class status or something.

[BarcelonaFan]

Originally Posted by timtemtym

Houston definitely has a large population of people barely scraping by as well. When I taught in Southwest Houston, I regularly got kids who moved in from California and I always wondered why if they moved from a super expensive place like LA, they would end up in a slummy place like Alief. So they lost the scenery and were still scraping by. Odd, but maybe they came from a part of LA more run down than SW Houston which seems unlikely...

A lot of Californians bought into the media hype and left the scenic LA for either better or worse conditions because there is more job stability. I remember meeting a bunch of Californians who made the move and were looking for a place in the apartment where I uses to lease. It was a nice place but it wasn't the Ritz. I could not believe they packed up and left CA to be in a place that was just marginally better. Most said they missed the weather and the scenic views but they felt a little more secure job wise and they only marginally improved their living standards.

[Alpha_Dog]

Originally Posted by Trae713

Hahaha don't come here with that. How is it the same thing as Broadway shows going to town? I only brought that station up to show that houston is more than just this "Texan". Besides, I think being home to one of those stations shows what kind of city it is. Broadway shows go all over the place. All I see are stereotypes in this thread and you not looking at the broader scope and instead nitpicking. Why was this thread started anyways? Because barcelonafan read some of metro matt's posts in the Texas section (not even from Houston), and then tried to generalize that as all Houstonians. There are some entertaining reads here tbqh.

Houston easily wins for the city with the biggest inferiority complex. On Houston's best day, it only offers the worst qualities of L.A. -- Congestion, Sprawl, and Terrible Air Quality.

L.A. is home to the motion picture and entertainment industry, top innovation hub, the only true Mediterranean climate in North America along with O.C./S.D., Top Rated higher education; Caltech, UCLA, USC, Venture Capital $$$ and Technology leader-- Incredible beaches from Malibu to San Clemente - Mountains and the Desert -- Dodgers - Angels - Lakers -- Clippers -- Disneyland & Mickey Mouse. LA is a home to the beautiful and talented. A dynamic progressive and diversified culture second to none.

Houston's proper place has always been the forgotten fat kid in the back of the class who's constantly ignored, completely lacks social skills and is so desperate for attention and acceptance but nobody seems to care. Houston was recently ranked the second most boring city in the nation and appeals to the lowest common denominator - Fattest, Dumbest, Most unbanked, along with the lowest personal credit scores for large cities along with Dallas. Texas has the highest percentage of uninsured in the nation and scored 38th out of 50th on the Human Development Index, really not surprising with all of its uninsured residents, religious nuts, and large number of rednecks roaming the Gulf Coast. Houston is still a dirty cowtown with lousy entertainment options, endless sprawl, high crime rates, and oppressive humidity. It's really no wonder people from outside of Texas have such a negative perception of Houston.



Houston ranked as one of nation's dumbest cities
Houston earns dubious distinction on Daily Beast's list of dumbest cities | abc13.com

Houston nation's fattest city
Houston ranked nation's 'fattest city' by Men's Fitness Magazine | abc13.com

[jm1982]

Techwired, I'm curious what made you move from L.A to Austin?

[BarcelonaFan]

Like I said I think the hype behind Houston by the biz rags is just to promote the texas model of doing business which is favorable to wealthy conservatives. It's no wonder rags like The Economist play it as though CA is some failed experiment while Texas is the ideal state to promote as a model for the rest of the country.

Peel back the layers of Forbes BS and you will find a mess in the making. Poverty is up in Houston. Why? Supposedly its a city with ample growth so why is it seeing poverty increases and higher crime? Because the benefits aren't reaching everyone. The ones reaping the benefits are professionals and high skilled workers. The rest have to pull themselves up by their bootstraps with horrible social and city services. If it wasn't for federal help that state would be a third world hellhole.

When I brought this up in the Houston forum the only response I got was "so what, those people need to get in on the gravy train or suffer". They didn't mind the major pockets of high crime no mans lands as long as HPD and Harris County Sherriff remained brutal and they're safe in gated communities, gentrified inner loop hoods and white flight suburbia.

Really the media hype is another attempt by Forbes to push another one of these so called "economic miracles" where business and the professional class are doing great while the average working class stiff is getting by or doing worse, and there is this sizable underclass of hard hit ppl.

[jm1982]

I think that attitude is really sad and unfortunate. The so what attitude.

But honestly...do you really think that the poor are fairing much better in L.A?.. Maybe they do because of possible more social/welfare programs available vs Texas...but that doesn't say anything about private section economy.

We have those gated or virtually gated communities like Bel Air , Brentwood, Pacific Palisades, ,Beverly Hills,etc.

Do you think these people give a rats ass about those struggling in South Central, or Pacoima or similar areas?

This is not just an issue in Texas or California...it's a nationwide issue . The facts are the middle class is slipping away...nationwide. The gap between rich and poor is growing.

[BarcelonaFan]

Originally Posted by Techwired

Houston easily wins for the city with the biggest inferiority complex. On Houston's best day, it only offers the worst qualities of L.A. -- Congestion, Sprawl, and Terrible Air Quality.

L.A. is home to the motion picture and entertainment industry, top innovation hub, the only true Mediterranean climate in North America along with O.C./S.D., Top Rated higher education; Caltech, UCLA, USC, Venture Capital $$$ and Technology leader-- Incredible beaches from Malibu to San Clemente - Mountains and the Desert -- Dodgers - Angels - Lakers -- Clippers -- Disneyland & Mickey Mouse. LA is a home to the beautiful and talented. A dynamic progressive and diversified culture second to none.

Houston's proper place has always been the forgotten fat kid in the back of the class who's constantly ignored, completely lacks social skills and is so desperate for attention and acceptance but nobody seems to care. Houston was recently ranked the second most boring city in the nation and appeals to the lowest common denominator - Fattest, Dumbest, Most unbanked, along with the lowest personal credit scores for large cities along with Dallas. Texas has the highest percentage of uninsured in the nation and scored 38th out of 50th on the Human Development Index, really not surprising with all of its uninsured residents, religious nuts, and large number of rednecks roaming the Gulf Coast. Houston is still a dirty cowtown with lousy entertainment options, endless sprawl, high crime rates, and oppressive humidity. It's really no wonder people from outside of Texas have such a negative perception of Houston.



Houston ranked as one of nation's dumbest cities
Houston earns dubious distinction on Daily Beast's list of dumbest cities | abc13.com

Houston nation's fattest city
Houston ranked nation's 'fattest city' by Men's Fitness Magazine | abc13.com

Techie I agree with you except for the criteria for the dumbest city. It sounds well ridiculous. I mean Non fiction book sales as one? I only buy non fiction but from half price books online or I go to the library. People find the books for free online too.

Also I have always found the ppl in Texas to be willfully ignorant but not totally stupid. I've met a lot of people who were highly skilled at various things and interested in a variety of things but it was the culture, religion and super traditional conservative beliefs that keeps a lot of them from expanding their interests.

To me the native Californian is a bit "dumb" (to uttetly generalize) you could say but genuinely willing to learn new things, listen and expand their minds. I've noticed a lot are also good natured and a bit new agey with slight superstitious beliefs. They're humble enough to admit they do not know what you're talking about but a Texan is stubborn and will tell you you're wrong but cannot explain why they just know you're wrong. They're humbly arrogant.

[BarcelonaFan]

Originally Posted by jm1982

I think that attitude is really sad and unfortunate. The so what attitude.

But honestly...do you really think that the poor are fairing much better in L.A?.. Maybe they do because of possible more social/welfare programs available vs Texas...but that doesn't say anything about private section economy.

We have those gated or virtually gated communities like Bel Air , Brentwood, Pacific Palisades, ,Beverly Hills,etc.

Do you think these people give a rats ass about those struggling in South Central, or Pacoima or similar areas?

This is not just an issue in Texas or California...it's a nationwide issue . The facts are the middle class is slipping away...nationwide. The gap between rich and poor is growing.

There is more community involvement and direct action going on in LA. Several hoods could've gone to the dogs but they didn't. I never even met the elected dog catcher back home in Texas much less my councilman or the city attorney or other people that work for the city.

The whole country is suffering but CA is still holding on because of the social services and the more progressive elements. If it was up to the NIMBYS or rich people in LA we would have gone the TX route but we have a lot of people here who won't let that happen.

Texans stuck in poverty are really badly stuck on poverty and a lot of texans are like who cares, we don't need social services they need to pull themselves up, we cannot help them or we will end up like CA. Yet Texas cities have higher crime rates and worse issues with poverty.

[moonsparkle]

Barcelonafan...did you ever find the "college football culture" in Texas to be annoying?

That community involvement thing seems to be a difference in the midwest & south. In the midwest, they get a little too involved in the community and look down on you if you aren't.