Why do some DC people bash NOVA? (Arlington: transplants, car insurance)

[stars99]

I've noticed on the DC forum some people are very anti-NOVA (especially one person) but I can't figure out why.

[cdmurphy]

They are jealous of our Congressional representation.

[CAVA1990]

There are posters on the NoVA forum who are just as bad. I get tired of my area getting trashed just because we happen to have folks of "unapproved" demographics living nearby and attending our schools. Yeah, you know who you are.

[bmwguydc]

Generally, I think it's akin to real life where some people are not happy unless they are elevating themselves at the expense of putting others down. It's pretty tiresome, since most people who know about the jurisdictions and their interdependence are not so quick to dismiss Northern Virginia, and to some extent Suburban Maryland, though Maryland seems to start fewer flame wars than the Old Dominion.

I have never noticed such rivalries in real life, save for a certain subset of generally junior level employees who think that cramming four to a one bedroom in Georgetown or on The Hill is "status," since they could not afford Arlington on their own, for example. Hence, its easier to typecast the entire area as a suburban wasteland and ignore the fact that Northern Virginia is quite different than the rest of the state, where the economies are not as highly developed, and the workforce not commanding as high a salary as they do in Northern Virginia without having to set foot downtown to earn said income.

I have seen comments to which you are referring, where NoVA is characterized as one giant mall, and culturally deficient. I find such comments to be hilarious, and prove that those who make them have a limited scope of reference. They fail to comprehend the reason why people can actually like NoVA, and perhaps its due to a reliance on public transportation as a sole means of mobility. That, alone, could easily make one feel as though they were headed to the hinterlands, when they are ten miles fom the District line, for example.

I can attest that for all its charm, Georgetown does not supply everything that one needs in life. And, the Whole Foods in Arlington can be easier to get to, and easier in which to shop, than those in NW DC, so one is supposed to say that because they have to drive across the Key Bridge that they should not go there? Ha! That's just one example of the silliness, but it is a sad situation when every thread that mentions Virginia rehashes the same old tired arguments, that are profoundly lacking in substance.

Because the areas are interdependent, we don't cut as off-topic posts/threads that involve DC and Northern Virginia on this forum. Plus, it's easier than sending someone to be castigated for even considering living on the "wrong" side of the Potomac, despite the fact that the airports are located there.

Also, I find it to be similar to some issues in my hometown of NYC, to draw a comparison from the rest of life (on this foum, and off), where transplants are quick to call people "bridge and tunnel" who don't live in Manhattan, negating the fact that while the person uttering the phrase heads back to a lukewarm water, walk-up flat, the one whom they derided is headed home to a duplex in a brownstone just across the bridge in Brooklyn Heights. The "bridge and tunneler" can actually be in Lower Manhattan in mere minutes, compared to the transplant's thirty minutes to get downtown from a remote corner of the upper part of Manhattan. It's sad that such rivalries are promoted on any forum, but given the anonymity of the Internet, people engage in discussions that might not ordinarily occur in real life.

In this region, someone who lives in Rosslyn or Clarendon can actually be to parts of downtown and Georgetown faster than those in more remote parts of the city, for example, so there's an issue with regard to elevating one's own choices, despite the other party not even knowing that there was a competiton.

[Jesco White]

Because they're better than us...joking.

In reality, unless they're in NW and some parts of NE, they really have nothing on residents of NOVA. I'd love to live in DC, but that would make my commute even worse. Additionally, the nicest parts of DC are great, but you still have to deal with crime and general vagrancy. A friend of mine lived in a 1.5 Million townhome in dupont, and you still had to deal with bums crapping in your driveway and breaking into cars.. The nicest parts of NOVA are more expensive than all but Georgetown, so I'm not sure where the sense of superiority comes from.. The best part about that attitude is most of the residents of the nicer parts of DC aren't DC natives. They may just be overcompensating based on their own self-perceived weaknesses.


That being said, if I had a job in DC, I would probably move there in a heartbeat.

[Denton56]

Originally Posted by OrlandoRE_Miracle

I've noticed on the DC forum some people are very anti-NOVA (especially one person) but I can't figure out why.

For the same reasons he bashed the last place he lived. Some people won't be happy anywhere but continue to believe that the fault lies in their location and not within themselves.

[The Dissenter]

Originally Posted by OrlandoRE_Miracle

I've noticed on the DC forum some people are very anti-NOVA (especially one person) but I can't figure out why.

I lived there for nearly 6 years. There is plenty to bash. Oh yeah, I don't necessarily like DC but I can probably tolerate it more than NoVA.

Speaking from DC's viewpoint, some might be jealous that we have lower crime, a school system that is actually usuable, lower car insurance, and less of a nanny state.

There are posters on the NoVA forum who are just as bad. I get tired of my area getting trashed just because we happen to have folks of "unapproved" demographics living nearby and attending our schools. Yeah, you know who you are.

As probably a person of one of those "unapproved demographics," I can say that isn't the problem with one part of your area.

[Pandoras]

Hipster guilt.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

Yeah, you know who you are.

Just to be clear, I was referring to the bashers (who generally live elsewhere), not anyone in my area. In fact, a lot of the kids who the bashers would be afraid to have their kids associate with turned out very well. Amazing how the world looks a lot different after you have a few years under your belt. They used to say don't trust anyone over 30. I'd amend that to say don't trust anyone over 30 or under 50. For some reason those tend to be the "narrow minded" years.

[Caladium]

Most of them are kids, that's why. Bashing is something kids do to amuse themselves, that's why it always goes up when school's out for the summer.