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1. Is politics a big topic that you can't get away from? No more than anywhere else I’ve lived.
2. Does it feel very much one-sided? Depends on where you live in the Triangle. There are deep blue areas, deep red, and in between.
3. If there is a back-and-forth dialogue, is it generally moderate and respectful in nature? I’ve always found most people to be respectful here. During the election there were Biden and Trump signs in my neighborhood. Never any animosity.
You will of course see the extremists who blame one party or the other for all the ills of the world, but I tend to ignore them. I think extremism shows a lack of cognitive function and rational thought.
4. (Most important question!). I know the Raleigh-Durham leans pretty solidly left, which is fine.
But as republicans, might we feel unwelcome? I don’t think so at all. I’m unaffiliated, moderate. My next door neighbor is hard right. My neighbor across the street is liberal. They’re all good people, all welcoming.
I would ask that any comments be instructive and not provocative.
Sad that these questions even need to be asked. Thank you!
I find this post to be spot-on, accurate (To quote Marissa Tomei: "Bawls on ackyarat")
I have friends accross the political spectrum, and it doesn't affect our friendship. Raliegh might (?) lean left at the polls, but I don't feel it. Where I live in the suburbs, it feels right leaning, but respectful and not much annimosity. If you want more right-leaning neighbors, consider towns like Clayton, Garner, Sanford, (further out, but still "greater Raleigh).
It's a big area, and you can find the people you want, or choose to get along with the people around you. There is more than politics for most (not all) people.
The bolded statement sums up how I feel too. I don't have any problem at all here. (been in the area since 1993)
I’m a left leaning moderate from the northeast. I never registered with a party until 45 came along, that made me sign up as a Dem. Lived in CA, would say that’s too liberal for me. My town, which is one of the highly desired ones, feels very moderate. My neighborhood and the adjacent two, mainly had Biden signs up. Two of the neighborhoods had NO Trump signs at all, but the other one did have a few.
I try to avoid talking about politics with neighbors unless I know we have similar thoughts. I think we all know how divisive things are, so why bother bickering with a neighbor? Just leave the subject alone.
There was a LOT of fighting on Nextdoor over the election and a good amount of sign stealing/defacing (on both sides).
Thank you. Sounds like people are reasonable in the triangle area - even if they have strong views - and the guy who won't tallk to people with Trump signs is an outlier, lol. I do not generally engage in political conversation unless I know I'm talking with ppl with similar views or who are able to have a rational conversation without the hostility that has infected political discourse these days.
There is a bully attitude in some places against one party or the other, depending on which party is king of the hill in that area. That's what I want to avoid. I don't like extreme on either side, or nastiness. I hate that people take down lawn signs. Anyway, if the political culture is generally respectful and if there's enough of a moderate mentality, it will be fine. Which sounds like the case. I'm looking forward to continuing my search in the triangle area! (And wilmington!). Thanks all for the input.
You might be more comfortable in Wake Forest or Fuquay-Varina, those are Trumpier (rural and cheaper) areas than Cary, Apex, Chapel Hill and Raleigh. Also, since you don't need to worry about quality of schools, that can save you $.
Wilmington is more solidly Republican than the Triangle, but it has more Democrats than the inland rural areas. I live around Jacksonville and see lots of Trump signs and a few people flying Confedrate flags on their pick-up trucks. Most people don't talk politics with their friends.
Probably not Durham. Unless you go to North Durham. Other parts definitely lean progressive. I barely saw any Trump signs, and in some places there were lots of "dump Trump" or even "chinga tu maga, p****jo" signs. I think I have like one conservative neighbor who was brave enough to put up a "blue lives something-something" sign. It got vandalized pretty quickly. Personally I think that was wrong; he has the right to put up whatever he wants on his property and he has the right to believe whatever he wants. I heard peoples' BLM signs got vandalized or stolen in some parts of Durham, so I guess it's the society we live now sadly.
Wilmington is more solidly Republican than the Triangle, but it has more Democrats than the inland rural areas. I live around Jacksonville and see lots of Trump signs and a few people flying Confedrate flags on their pick-up trucks. Most people don't talk politics with their friends.
That's odd. Why wouldn't you talk politics with friends? Acquaintances or neighbors, yes, I get it. But friends? No way.
That's odd. Why wouldn't you talk politics with friends? Acquaintances or neighbors, yes, I get it. But friends? No way.
Because political opinions won't matter a hill of beans in the course of one's friendship unless perhaps one or the other is extremely politically active. If I'm a staunch libretarian and my friend is a left leaning liberal, and we enjoy drinking beer or hiking or fishing together, or share a love of the Hurricanes hockey, what good is a discussion on minimum wage or Universal Basic Income or Gun Control going to bring us?
More Importantly, what is it going to matter? Their thinking that UBI is a great idea isn't going to bring it about. That takes a majority of the people electing officials that think it's a good idea. Vilifying them for a policy I don't care for is completely ridiculous.
1. Is politics a big topic that you can't get away from? No more than anywhere else I’ve lived.
2. Does it feel very much one-sided? Depends on where you live in the Triangle. There are deep blue areas, deep red, and in between.
3. If there is a back-and-forth dialogue, is it generally moderate and respectful in nature? I’ve always found most people to be respectful here. During the election there were Biden and Trump signs in my neighborhood. Never any animosity.
You will of course see the extremists who blame one party or the other for all the ills of the world, but I tend to ignore them. I think extremism shows a lack of cognitive function and rational thought.
4. (Most important question!). I know the Raleigh-Durham leans pretty solidly left, which is fine.
But as republicans, might we feel unwelcome? I don’t think so at all. I’m unaffiliated, moderate. My next door neighbor is hard right. My neighbor across the street is liberal. They’re all good people, all welcoming.
I would ask that any comments be instructive and not provocative.
Sad that these questions even need to be asked. Thank you!
Spot on. My family is somewhat of an outlier in the the Garner area. Born in the rural north and moved here 30 years ago. I have lived in my house for 28 years here in Garner and never had a political argument with my neighbors. Nothing more then some harmless teasing. We are a white conservative libertarian family and all of my next door neighbors including across the street are black liberals. Two more houses down and we have families from Mexico. We share tools, borrow lawn mowers, take turns running kids to school or picking up, have cook outs, birthdays for the kids, or just chat at the mail box. If someone is in need they all rally and help (Our house flooded last September and they put us up for a night which we are eternally grateful). They are all wonderful people.
The outliers portrayed as "common" on the news just isn't reality. Most people live just fine with one another around here I have found.
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