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That first paragraph is one of the funniest I've read on C-D. And there are absolutely no facts to back it up. Data show Iowa and Nebraska (I have to assume that's your idea of what is "real America" because I can't imagine you mean Boston or Miami) becoming more like California instead of ... let's say "cornier," each and every year. (For one thing those quaint covered bridges will never hold up in the climate change.)
Woah waoh waoh. Chill. I said it happens around here. There's no data to back it up but even if there were, you'd criticize the source anyway right? What I said is no more ridiculous than saying "they're jealous of us" LOL. I also didn't use the phrase "real America". You did as have others on these forums.
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By the way, next time you're toting up what isn't "American" about the U.S. of A., you might want to include New Orleans. It's a bit French.
Where the hell are you getting this crap? I said no such thing. Seriously, do you really expect a well thought out answer from such an idiotic question? Maybe you're right, they're just jealous. that sounds a lot better.
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The question of legalizing pot isn't really a red/blue issue.
Frankly, I don't think California can afford the risk of legalizing pot. Colorado and Washington are fairly small potatoes, population-wise, so they're getting away with it for the time being. If we legalized it here I think the full force and fury of the DEA would soon be evident, and they would try to stamp out the CA marijuana market once and for all. We're the biggest state so they'd try to make an example of us.
They "hate" it because most people want to only see/believe things that fit with and reinforce their outlook and preconceived notions, and LA/CA has such a high profile it's the logical target.
In me experience, so much of what is passed off as fact by someone on a hate binge is completely full of bull but fits nicely with their world view.
They "hate" it because most people want to only see/believe things that fit with and reinforce their outlook and preconceived notions, and LA/CA has such a high profile it's the logical target.
In me experience, so much of what is passed off as fact by someone on a hate binge is completely full of bull but fits nicely with their world view.
Exactly, LA+California's success doesn't fit their worldview and so will go out of their way to discredit. I know that CA is a melting pot now but, it is still very much Hispanic/Mexican influenced. Haters are willfully ignorant to the fact that Spain/Mexico were once world powers and at the forefront of progressiveness. To each his own, though. My slant.
Last edited by theGreat1; 12-14-2013 at 02:55 PM..
Exactly, LA+California's success doesn't fit their worldview and so will go out of their way to discredit. I know that CA is a melting pot now but, it is still very much Hispanic/Mexican influenced. Haters are willfully ignorant to the fact that Spain/Mexico were once world powers and at the forefront of progressiveness. To each his own, though. My 3 cents.
I was thinking more along the lines of how someone might call LA a heathen's paradise while conveniently ignoring, for instance, the HUGE RC population. Stuff like that.
I was thinking more along the lines of how someone might call LA a heathen's paradise while conveniently ignoring, for instance, the HUGE RC population. Stuff like that.
Yes, I understood that but just wanted to give "my slant."
Also that racism in CA is for the most part relatively looked down upon with a vengeance. Even though I still think LA is racially segregated and can be class based hierarchy at times, it's still light years ahead of most other cities in terms of racism. It's not even considered polite to joke like my friends (of all races) casually do back in TX.
California is polarizing because it's truly ahead of the curve in comparison to other states. For instance, even in it's down turn it's still ahead of cities in their upswing. I am going back to Houston this X-Mas and that's the "it" city of the year apparently, but as far I can remember visiting two years ago it still had nothing in LA. Great city, I am fan and a booster but my goodness was it still way behind even average CA towns.
There is just no contest. The whole State is wildly filled with up to speed cities and towns with a progressive outlook and creativity that no other State can match. Other States have one or two cities tops that are ahead of the curve but CA has several cities and smaller towns that just feel as though they set out to create a better environment for their citizens and a quality of life unmatched.
I mean just look at Palo Alto, Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Solvang, Ventura, San Diego, Los Angeles, Carmel, Monterrey, Big Sur, Tahoe, San Luis O, Temecula, etc etc etc. It doesn't stop.
NYC used to conjure up similar disdain but since 9/11 and since Guliani turned Manhattan into Disneyland, no one dares critique it anymore and say its a "cesspool". LA though takes the brunt of the hate. For some reason people still think of LA from the 90s with the smog, the gangs and the overall unsafe environment.
For visitors I can understand the hate too. I mean you have to actually live in LA to get it and get used to it. I mean for first timers, the shock must be extreme. First time I arrived in my section of North Hollywood and driving down Lankershim I thought I descended into gang land territory but in reality it's just a working class neighborhood, and I live in Valley Village!
People aren't used to old vintage working class areas that are nice and eclectic. They're used to new master planned communities with large fake lakes and grand theme park like entrances with names like Cross Creek Ranch. All around the country cities, especially in the South where the booms are coming from, everything is new and shiny and develops around the "town center" model. When you move to LA, all you see are older late 70s, 80s and even 90s style apartments next to palm trees and big huge urban streets. Even West LA is vintage.
So people's first reaction of LA is one of amazement at something so "new" to them or one of disgust. They proly think Studio City is "too urban" for them.
In sum, to live in LA you have to be nearly devoid of racism, accepting of other cultures, humble enough to live in a working class part of town, and get used to a slightly "lower" standard of living in comparison to living in a newer city with a lower COL. Can many people do that? No. Which is why they hate LA.
People don't like Los Angeles because it's the city that caters to rich people. Let me explain.
80% of world's population( so is 80% of USA,California, LA etc.) consist of working middle class, and Los Angeles just isn't the city that was meant for middle class, it never was. Being middle class in LA means struggle, on many occasions living in high crime areas with dirty streets, very bad infrastructure, ugly buildings around you, ugly little houses with brown burned front lawns, to make it short if you're a middle class in LA, there's very few things that will give you a piece of mind when you leave your house in the morning.
(And so forth.)
Just about every other big city I've ever seen has similar problems--potholes, dirty sidewalks, income disparity and homelessness, along with the positive aspects of of city life. There are ugly neighborhoods in San Francisco, and there are Manhattanites struggling to make it of $20K per year. Looking abroad, we hear about the riots in the banlieus of Paris and the subway beating attacks which have plagued a number of German cities, to name just two places.
I'm not sure what your exact definition of middle class is, but as apparently envisioned by most Americans, it's really not so much about income as it is a lifestyle choice--that of the single-family house and yard, ideally with plenty of rooms for everyone to live and sleep in. And to expect that in the cities I've mentioned borders on the absurd. In that regard, none of these places is what you'd call a middle class paradise, at least not in terms of how Americans usually define it. I promise you that staff accountants, teachers, and newly minted electrical engineering graduates are not buying SFHs in Paris, Berlin, or San Francisco, any more than they are in L.A. If you earn decent money but decide to stay in the city and buy a condo, or god forbid rent, does that get you kicked out of the middle class?
One reason L.A. gets hammered may well be that people expect so much more from it.
People don't like Los Angeles because it's the city that caters to rich people. Let me explain.
80% of world's population( so is 80% of USA,California, LA etc.) consist of working middle class, and Los Angeles just isn't the city that was meant for middle class, it never was. Being middle class in LA means struggle, on many occasions living in high crime areas with dirty streets, very bad infrastructure, ugly buildings around you, ugly little houses with brown burned front lawns, to make it short if you're a middle class in LA, there's very few things that will give you a piece of mind when you leave your house in the morning.
On the other hand, there's rich LA, places like Palisades, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, Hollywood Hills, Brentwood, Westwood, that are just unreal. Every city in the world, of course, has nice areas where the rich live, but the nice areas of Los Angeles are in league of it's own. Just for example. North of Montana in Santa Monica- unreal. Beverly Hills Flats- unreal. Oakmont Drive in Brentwood- unreal. Lachman Lane in Palisades-unreal. So, those areas are the lifestyle that most people, not just in LA or USA, but in the world strives to get. It represents the American dream, driving a big SUV, an italian sports car, living in a big mansion, fancy clothes, bottle service in Hollywood nightclubs. The ultimate success.
And that's the main problem in my opinion. The difference beetween areas that are meant for middle class folks to live in and rich people to live in LA is just super super huge. Compared to other global cities, like Tokyo, London, Paris ( didn't mention New York City on purpose, because it's in the same basket as LA on this one), not to mention smaller but very progressive cities like Geneve, Barcelona or Munchen, 80% of LA, in fact, is downright cesspool.
And that's the root of hatred towards LA in my opinion. Is it justified? I think it is.
I don't disagree with your statement that there is extreme income disparity in Los Angeles. But that isn't the reason why the rest of the country is bitter toward LA. There is income disparity all over the United States, especially these days. You're also leaving out tons of nice middle class areas. It's not either Lachman Lane or the projects.
One reason L.A. gets hammered may well be that people expect so much more from it.
You see this often even on this board. There is a paradoxical notion that LA is both a major city (in fact, the 2nd most populous in the U.S.) and yet should have the affordable amenities of a midwestern town. People bash it from both sides -- it is either not a big enough big city, or it is not an affordable enough middle class cow town.
This mixed message is probably rooted in several factors. The pace of change in L.A. over the decades has been quite a lot faster than many other large cities, particularly the established east coast cities. Keep in mind that in 1890, LA had some 50,000 people while NYC had nearly 2.5 million. Consequently, there are multiple generations who grew up in LA who can personally remember "simpler" times (less populous, less costly; but also less cosmopolitan, fewer amenities, etc).
There is a long history of people departing the older settlements in the U.S. -- particularly in the east and midwest -- for the west coast, with LA being a major magnet. This breeds all sort of resentment against people tearing up roots and pursuing "nicer" options, like the climate. This has been going on in one way or another for generations. The weather factor should not be underestimated. Many people who grow up in harsh climates take a type of pride in their personal strength (whether this is justified or a rationalization for putting up with crappy weather is a whole other debate). They view Californians or those who seek to move here as "soft" in personal character.
In addition to all that, people think they know LA whether they have been here or not. LA has, by an immeasurable margin, the most screen time of any city in the world. It is the backdrop to countless movies, TV shows, and even just random commercials. People see LA consciously and unconsciously literally every single day they look at a screen. But they are not watching a documentary. They are seeing disjointed images, locations chosen to tell a compelling story, and all of that. Often, these reinforce stereotypes. Hollywood is quite savvy about leveraging (exploiting?) the desire of the rest of the country to find reasons to dislike LA.
Just look at Jimmy Kimmel's ongoing bit where he compiles clips of the ridiculous local news coverage of marginally noteworthy weather events. Everyone around the country gets to laugh at LA. Ha ha! Kimmel knows it's good TV and plays to the audience -- which is mostly the rest of the country. But when he goes home to his mansion and sits by his pool in 70 degree weather in December, I am sure he is not lamenting his lot in life here. It's theater -- but it is also one of thousands of small ways that stereotypes against LA are reinforced.
People don't like Los Angeles because it's the city that caters to rich people. Let me explain.
80% of world's population( so is 80% of USA,California, LA etc.) consist of working middle class, and Los Angeles just isn't the city that was meant for middle class, it never was. Being middle class in LA means struggle, on many occasions living in high crime areas with dirty streets, very bad infrastructure, ugly buildings around you, ugly little houses with brown burned front lawns, to make it short if you're a middle class in LA, there's very few things that will give you a piece of mind when you leave your house in the morning.
On the other hand, there's rich LA, places like Palisades, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, Hollywood Hills, Brentwood, Westwood, that are just unreal. Every city in the world, of course, has nice areas where the rich live, but the nice areas of Los Angeles are in league of it's own. Just for example. North of Montana in Santa Monica- unreal. Beverly Hills Flats- unreal. Oakmont Drive in Brentwood- unreal. Lachman Lane in Palisades-unreal. So, those areas are the lifestyle that most people, not just in LA or USA, but in the world strives to get. It represents the American dream, driving a big SUV, an italian sports car, living in a big mansion, fancy clothes, bottle service in Hollywood nightclubs. The ultimate success.
And that's the main problem in my opinion. The difference beetween areas that are meant for middle class folks to live in and rich people to live in LA is just super super huge. Compared to other global cities, like Tokyo, London, Paris ( didn't mention New York City on purpose, because it's in the same basket as LA on this one), not to mention smaller but very progressive cities like Geneve, Barcelona or Munchen, 80% of LA, in fact, is downright cesspool.
And that's the root of hatred towards LA in my opinion. Is it justified? I think it is.
If you think bottle service at a nightclub is part of being successful, you are a douchebag.
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