[famlife]

Originally Posted by writerdeman

Come on, you live in one or two towns in the midwest, then you write off the whole region based on that experience. That drives me nuts. Say you don't like Flint. Say you don't like Detroit (or whatever area you lived in), but don't say you hate Michigan or the entire midwest! I've lived on the North Shore of Lake Ponchartrain in Louisiana for 3 years, and I can't wait to get back to the midwest, and Michigan in particular! I live in the Traverse City area and I love it there!

i'm not trying to say it'd be intolerable for everyone, or you for that matter... but it would be intolerable for me. i have different standards than u apparently. diff'rent strokes, folks!

what do you want me to say, that i don't hate mi, the midwest, and traverse city? cause i can't. sorry if that irritates you. i wish i could like it. it is my birthplace and the place where all of my childhood memories are from. but to be honest, i really don't like any part of the midwest. i'm not saying that it's all a hopeless pit, abandon all hope ye who enter here, but i just really really don't like the midwestern atmosphere. or the cities. or the landscape. or the climate. or the industry. or the attitude. or ANYthing i can think of, besides my family and friends.

if i was say, bill gates rich, i would invest billions into flint, mi. just so i could stop worrying so much about my family and friends who still live there, who've been stripped of their pensions and health insurance and been robbed of a good education (i'm gonna stop there) and still manage to conjure up hope and pride for their hometown despite it all... i'm gonna stop here.

[Cato the Elder]

There must be thousands of faculty at U of M-Flint with Ph.D. degrees from top schools around the nation. Where do they live if the schools and cultural scene are so terrible? Coming from the outside and achieving certain milestones in life, they would presumably not settle for a lifestyle devoid of culture. Do they commute from long distances? Where did all the white-collar execs live during the golden years? Surely there's an upscale part of Flint?

[kaypurdue]

Originally Posted by Cato the Elder

There must be thousands of faculty at U of M-Flint with Ph.D. degrees from top schools around the nation. Where do they live if the schools and cultural scene are so terrible? Coming from the outside and achieving certain milestones in life, they would presumably not settle for a lifestyle devoid of culture. Do they commute from long distances? Where did all the white-collar execs live during the golden years? Surely there's an upscale part of Flint?

There's not exactly thousands of faculty... but enough. I imagine many of them live in the suburbs. I remember my professor/academic advisor commuted from East Lansing... but that was because his wife taught at MSU. I can imagine what that household was like, LOL.

There are upscale parts of town that are well kept up, and even neighborhoods that aren't as upscale that are still well kept up. They are overshadowed by the many neighborhoods that are run down. We're not completely devoid of culture, either - there is a whole Flint Cultural Center with an art museum, music school, auditorium with shows throughout the year, etc.

[famlife]

my MIL works at UofM Flint. she lives in a decent neighborhood, not upscale by any means, but a nice kept up house surrounded by other nice kept up houses. i believe she stays because it is a good job, and she's hoping that she can sell her house for something reasonable if she sticks around awhile. we hope that the value will go up instead of down! also, she is very hopeful for flint. her parents and family live there, so it's a toss up. there are sometimes issues with people from surrounding neighborhoods coming in and causing prolems though.

[mrkool]

1. Very bad economy
2. Population demographics. There is *no* city with those sort of demographics that is a good place to live in terms of crime, schools, etc.

[paulb]

Originally Posted by hillside

no economy. no jobs. bad schools. loss in population. crime. flint has all of the problems of detroit on a smaller scale. i have family in flint and its depressing to visit. i enjoy my time up there because of my family but it's not a great place to live.

I thought you were talking about Michigan in general. LOL.
You may as well have been. It is the story across the state. I heard the canadians put in a lowball bid on the state. Grandhome took a long look at it. hahahaha

[jaybrad77]

Unemployment, and high crime rate, "which alway's follows unemployment". Flint is nice if you look beyond no work and crime.

[GastoniaNative]

Originally Posted by mrkool

1. Very bad economy
2. Population demographics. There is *no* city with those sort of demographics that is a good place to live in terms of crime, schools, etc.

What is that supposed to mean? The amount of african americans? Unemployment? Crime?

[Alexia319]

For people with low-paying service jobs who barely squeak by, there is no particular pride in working - no one accords them any respect, and there's certainly no monetary reward, no security, no hope of betterment. It's not surprising that the pride and sense of accomplishment that are supposed to come from work are not to be found in these dead end jobs. The Detroit area, like many other depressed areas, desperately needs an influx of money and decent paying jobs, neither of which is likely to happen.

In many rural areas of the country, the picturesque landscape hides very much the same problems as metro Detroit. Those who are skilled and able leave the area due to the lack of good jobs and potential for advancement. I can say from personal experience that it's not at all pleasant to live in a place where, as a skilled worker, there are only three possible jobs you could have within a 50 mile radius.

[me4prezz]

You mean, besides the shootings, gangs, rapes, robberies, murders, lack of economic growth or even stability, no jobs, no money, lack of community pride? Nothing at all.