Things you don't like about Seattle (Bellevue, Forks: nightlife, food, title)

[Andy Patrizio]

Originally Posted by victorianpunk

I mean, no one in Washington State is going to impose their religion on anyone. We are a liberal state with gay marriage and legalized cannabis, legal abortions and the whole nine yards. Why be a crazy anti-theist here?

In Seattle, maybe. Isn't Spokane the opposite end of the spectrum? I know all your Republican congressmen come from there and if anyone is going to win the governorship or Senate, they have to take the east end of the state.

[NoNansea]

Originally Posted by angelenogirl

Whatever do you mean? It was a cool and comfortable 89 degrees today!

It is hot, but not California hot. I just wish people here believed in A/C. I had to buy a unit for my bedroom else I'd never have survived this summer.

These are all minor quibbles, though. I love this place.

And screens. I have yet to see a rental house that comes with screens. I've had to make my own. If
you mention this to a long-time Washington resident, their answer is. "We don't have bugs." But it's not true.

[NoNansea]

Originally Posted by KAILANI

The highway I-5 is horrible.. It's always under construction somewhere.. Was just there this Saturday at 1pm and it was wall to wall traffic jam...

Most of the streets are in need of repair.. The signs are not well placed.. You will miss a turn because the sign is too close to the turn and you don't have enough time to get over in traffic to make the turn....

I have never seen any road rage or any horn honking.. People just allow others to cut in and slam on their brakes. It must be a normal commuters thing.. At least people are nice about it!!!
Just drink your coffee, enjoy the views and hope you get there on time!!

I like Seattle!

And some of the freeway on ramps are hidden. It will look like you're entering a forest or a quiet neighborhood, but lo and behold, there is an on ramp. Then there are signs on regular roads that say hidden driveway. I laugh everytime. I might be pissed if it were my drive; giving away my location. Driver's are polite. You can make a left from a very small street onto a major Hwy at traffic time because cars will stop & let you go. And you don't even sit and wait at all. They Que up very well here. Be aware tho, some freeway off ramps are on the left and some are carpool lanes. Also, don't use the express lanes until you really understand how they work. Sometimes they go one way, other times they go the opposite way. Scary! Even worse, there is a bldg downtown that you drive into or out of to get on or off the express lanes. It accesses 2 different corners In downtown Seattle into this skyscraper! . Craziest thing I've ever seen!

[NoNansea]

Originally Posted by branh0913

There are definitely not a lot of black people in Seattle or hispanics. I've definitely lived in places that had much bigger black and hispanic populations. Of course you're going to get your foreign born population who comes through. But blacks and hispanics are real American minorities. Blacks and hispanics have been in this country as long as whites have. There are native Americans, but the don't really want to be apart of mainstream America.

I'm not saying Seattle should be more diverse, or that it's bad that it's not diverse. However Seattle isn't as diverse as people like to pretend it is. I could easily walk around Seattle for a few hours and still see an overwhelming amount of white people. I think people in Seattle say it's diverse because there are some other groups who live there, but definitely not in very strong numbers.


The real issue I have with Seattle is that it tries to be more than what it is. And it's a city that pretends that it doesn't have issues. That all of a sudden issues that exist in the rest of America all of a sudden disappear once you hit Washington state. That is the most grinding issue I have with Seattle. It's a city that believe it's perfect by ignoring it's problems. There is very little that happen in Seattle that doens't happen elsewhere, but at least other cities are willing to admit they have issues.


There is most definitely class issues in Seattle. And while I'm a professional, I don't have to concern myself with it. But it is amazing that I'm a black man who came from somwhere else, and I do better than minorities who were born and raised in Seattle. That tells me it's probably extremely hard to get out of poverty in Seattle. And in talking to blacks in Seattle, none will admit there is racism, but they are most certainly on the government handout plantation. Many people in Seattle don't get to know people of lower income, assuming that they're dangerous. In reality in Seattle people are kept in their place. I think Seattle has issues with class, but many people have been conditioned to ignore i. Lt. Or just pretend it doesn't exist. It really takes someone to come from out of state to really expose Seattle for what it is.

Seattle does have issue with diversity, and the people who love Seattle think people are saying this for no reason. Almost everyone who has been to Seatte, through it, or came here from another state are shocked by Seattle's lack of diversity. Yet at the same time, people are told not to ever question it, and the people of Seattle love to keep repeating (lik e a parrot) that Seattle is oozing with diversity. Again, Seattle ignoring it's current state to try to make itself look perfect, when it's far from it.


And reall y the real issue I have with Seattle is the fact that it's just one of those cities that isn't really in reality. It's a fine city, and honestly it 's class issues don't really impact me. But it's way too obvious that people in Settle really do live in a big giant bubble of high ideals. Perhaps it just comes from being a younger city, who knows. But that's the core issue I've always had with Seattle. Especially since I like to call things like I see them.

I was led to believe Seattle had a diverse population. But it is very white up here! And in the summer, it's really white. Shockingly so! Having lived in southern California all my life, it takes some getting used to. And I'm white!

[rlrsalem]

@tobester. sounds like home. However, the grass is greener lol

[happyhunting]

Originally Posted by NoNansea

And screens. I have yet to see a rental house that comes with screens. I've had to make my own. If
you mention this to a long-time Washington resident, their answer is. "We don't have bugs." But it's not true.

Agree about the screens, and beyond that we have cats we don't want getting out. In a house that's over a hundred years old, with plenty of upstairs old fashioned crank windows, you almost have to make your own screens and then take them down each day to close them. We went to Lowes and bought the stuff a couple years ago to do this.

[happyhunting]

Originally Posted by NoNansea

I was led to believe Seattle had a diverse population. But it is very white up here! And in the summer, it's really white. Shockingly so! Having lived in southern California all my life, it takes some getting used to. And I'm white!

I'd like to personally appologize for this, although I don't consider myself white, just melanin challenged. I may in fact be related to the Cullens's family of vampires in Forks, pretty pale. I know that last week I was the only one at my son's game, during a gray day with a few sprinkles, to actually burn.

That aside, my husband is not white (our kids are mixed race) and nothing up here bothers them about lack of diversity. We're in Ballard (home of the Norwegiens) and I think every summer at Seafair we comment on just how white the whole crowd is. However, their schools are plenty diverse, as are all of their friends. We have family in Chicago and other cities where there is a whole lot more diversity, but there is also a whole lot more segregation. I'd rather rather feel comfortable in my environment, even if less diverse, than have all the diversity and feel judged.

Not everyone's experiences are the same, but I've always felt comfortable in this city. I think the diversity rumor is really based on that Seattle has a high population of interracial marriages and a certain zip code that is considered the most diverse zip in the nation, or some such thing.

[CarawayDJ]

Originally Posted by NoNansea

I was led to believe Seattle had a diverse population. But it is very white up here! And in the summer, it's really white. Shockingly so! Having lived in southern California all my life, it takes some getting used to. And I'm white!

I've heard people say this, yet the one thing that has stood out to me is how diverse Seattle really is. Perhaps I should say the Seattle Metro area instead. There is a very large Asian presence in the area. I even see a sizable amount of Latinos in the burbs. I spent the weekend on the east side and the diversity was very apparent. Even Seattle proper has a minority population of just over 30%. Are there more diverse places in America? Sure. However, there is a sizable non-white population in the area. This is supported by both my eyeballs and by actual demographics. It's a far cry from Montana.

I just moved up from SoCal and thought I would miss the diversity myself. I haven't missed anything. There is plenty of diversity here. I guess we just all have different measures of diversity. Some people might think an area with 30% minorities is diverse, and some might think it needs to be 60%. And of course, some people don't count Asians towards diversity for some reason. One of the more ignorant posts I have read here on CD was someone posting to the San Francisco forum how SF really isn't diverse because it's just white people and Asians lol.

[dicecobb]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

It (lack of diversity) shouldn't be a huge shock, given Seattle's location in the country and its history.

So why should we expect Seattle to be more diverse than it is, and then make it a detriment as if it's somehow Seattle's fault for not being moreso?

Because it is Seattle's fault! Branh0913's post was very accurate but I disagree with his statement that Seattle has a class issue. When a significantly large percentage of lower class is black/brown it's no longer a "class" issue, it's a race issue dammit.

Seattle Economic Indicators (seattle.gov) tells us the avg Seattle black household makes $3K less than the avg US black household. Higher cost of living and less pay?! WTF, Seattle?! While the avg white household makes $14K more than US avg. That's racist and Seattle likes it this way!

[dicecobb]

Originally Posted by branh0913

And in talking to blacks in Seattle, none will admit there is racism, but they are most certainly on the government handout plantation.

Bravo for telling the truth! Most of the blacks who deny Seattle's racial tension are the ones chasing white women. It's bizarre that I see more black male/white female couples than black male/black female.