NORTHERN NASTY AND NICE (United Way ranks quality of life: Southern states are the worst)

Providence Journal ^ | 11/22/01 | Robert Whitcomb

[#3Fan]

Somehow I don't think you would hold that opinion if your family had lived in Georgia.

I would hope that I would know that my states should not have seceded to perpetuate slavery.

[JD86]

I'm sure I'm more conservative, America loyal, and state loyal than 90% of Southerners.
You are in denial....:) But then you do live in Lincoln's adopted state....we got rid of him as soon as we could...:)

But wait, you might be right....with all the snowbirds (read Yankees) who have been moving South...we are almost outnumbered. Look at poor Florida. Boy, those Gore supporters I saw on TV sure looked conservative, America loyal and state loyal...but what do I know? I'm just a backwoods Southern lawyer.

[cgbg]

Connecticut?

(This is my state so I can fire at will.)

This state has Hartford, New Haven, Waterbury, Bridgeport, Stamford as its largest cities. All are slums for miles in all directions--dirty and dangerous.

People from the South who visit (or think they are going to relocate to ) one of these cities turn tail and run back home faster than you can yell "Dixie" and refuse to discuss their experience with strangers for fear of being called racists. Oh, and did I mention that the major of Bridgeport has been indicted for a laundry list of corruption counts and the (now former) mayor of Waterbury has been indicted for child molesting and corruption?

There currently are office pools as to which big city mayor will be indicted next.

Sure, the outer burbs and countryside are great, but this state has social problems that just won't quit with a legislature filled with liberals who haven't the beginning of a clue how to address them.

[#3Fan]

What I said about Michigan is true.

Sorry for expecting the worst. That is the first time I've seen a Southerner on one of these South vs. North threads say something nice about any place in the North though.

My brother-in-law--from Georgia--has been married twice. Both wives were from Michigan. I don't know why.

I've always like Great Lakes women. They're easier to talk to than women where I live.

The UP won my heart though. My wife and I had a long, leisurely trip there one time. It was so beautiful. The birches. The evergreen trees. The strong wind blowing from the lake. Be thankful!

I actually live pretty far South from the lakes. I may have to go up there next year. My last major trip was to Atlanta, Charlotte, and Myrtle Beach for a week. I couldn't really enjoy the scenery though because I had to cancel a river rafting trip because a friend of mine changed jobs and couldn't go. Then the main thing I did was take 70 laps in a NASCAR race car.

[He Rides A White Horse]

Let me guess. Vermont was tops.

[The people have spoken]

Here's the list in order of most caring, with Bush states in red, Gore states in blue. I hope Paul Begala doesn't see this!

1. Minnesota
2. New Hampshire
3. Connecticut
4. Massachusetts
5. Vermont
6. Maine
7. Wisconsin
8. Iowa
9. New Jersey
10. Rhode Island
11. Alaska
12. Indiana
13. Pennsylvania
14. South Dakota
15. Virginia
16. Nebraska
17. North Dakota
18. Ohio
19. Washington
20. Michigan
21. Missouri
22. Kansas
23. Delaware
24. Colorado
25. Maryland
26. New York
27. Utah
28. Illinois
29. Hawaii
30. Wyoming
31. Oregon
32. Montana
33. Idaho
34. Kentucky
35. Oklahoma
36. North Carolina
37. West Virginia
38. California
39. Tennessee
40. Georgia
41. Alabama
42. Texas
43. Florida
44. South Carolina
45. Arkansas
46. Nevada
47. Mississippi
48. Arizona
49. Louisiana
50. New Mexico

[#3Fan]

Interesting, I didn't see any remarks about Illinois....but since you take that position, I am sure you understand why I would defend my Sourthern state.

Illinois is a Northern state and I haven't seen a thread where a bunch of Northern Freepers get together and talk about how bad modern Southerners are without a comment from a Southerner in the first 50 posts. If there is a thread like this, point me to it.

[FreedomFriend]

Vigilant, where do you live? You must be very close to the urbanized area. I'm thinking that you must be less than ten miles to the "City" since the urban span reaches out about 25 miles west of downtown. Thus, are you around Vila Rica, east Carroll, or Paulding County west of Dallas?

I live in Mableton, probably about 20 miles to the east of you.

[FreedomFriend]

86 cents/gallon of regular in the suburbs of Atlanta.

[Phantom Lord]

JD,

You keep complaining that #3 replies to you or comments to you in response to your posts to others. Well, I did a little scroll of the first page of posts. Seems your first post to me (#52) was in response to something I said to someone else. Looks like your doing what your complaining about.

And so you know, I love living in NC. Have no intentions of nor any interest in moving. Sure there are things here I bitch about and would like to change. But every resident of every town in America can say that with honesty. I don't bitch about them and want to change them because I am a yankee. I do it because i think the changes I would suggest would be an improvement. And none of them are to make things like they are "up north."

I have just sat here for a rather lengthy time trying to think of something from "up north" that I grew up with that I wish I had here. Here is what I came up with...

1) NY Pizza (though food is a regional thing and is different everywhere)
2) My wife's grandfathers bagels. He has been a bagel baker for over 50 years at the same bakery. I could get them, but I don't think they would be too good after being shipped to me.
3) Salmon fishing. (Damn things just refuse to live here! Though your probably happy about that. Don't want those "Yankee Fish" living here.)
4) The "regional beer" that I grew up on in NY is either not available or is so damn expensive compared to back in NY that I refuse to buy it. Take Gennesse beer for example. $9.99 a 30 pack where I grew up. Here, $7.99 a six pack! I just have family members load up on it for me when they visit. Problem solved. Others just arent available. But then there are wonderful local beers here not available up there.
5) I miss Spiedies. They are a food product only available in the region around Binghamton NY. But i just make my own now. Problem solved.

That's about all I can come up with that I wish i had from the north and it took me about 15 mintues! Sure there are other things, but they are little local things like certain restaurants and bars, stores, places of interest. But if you move from one town to another within a state your are gonna lose those.

So what does this yankee want to change about where I live in the south that is so horrible that I should be deported back to where I came from?

[#3Fan]

You really have an inferiority complex about being welcomed don't you?

This is a discussion forum and posts beget comments. A lot of the Southerners on this thread think that they're better than everyone else in the nation because they're friendlier, just pointing out their hypocrisy.

There you go again, jumping on someone else's post.

Posts beget comments. If you don't want comments, send e-mail.

Charlie wasn't talking to you....as if that mattered to you.

No, it doesn't matter to me. This is a discussion forum.

I wasn't talking to you either when you showed up with your anti-Southern bias comments.

In response to 50 of yours and your friends.

[Phantom Lord]

I'm just a backwoods Southern lawyer.

Man, thats worse than being an Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer! LOL! To bad he got killed. Loved his characters on SNL and The Simpson's.

[#3Fan]

You are in denial....:) But then you do live in Lincoln's adopted state....we got rid of him as soon as we could...:)

Lincoln was a great president.

But wait, you might be right....with all the snowbirds (read Yankees) who have been moving South...we are almost outnumbered. Look at poor Florida. Boy, those Gore supporters I saw on TV sure looked conservative, America loyal and state loyal...but what do I know? I'm just a backwoods Southern lawyer.

I didn't say everyone is as conservative as I that move South. My point was that you are bigoted against all Northerners even though some are more conservative than most Southerners.

[Labyrinthos]

You ever hear of anyone retiring and going North?

Actually, I know a lot of people who retire from the New York City area and move to Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Cape Cod. Don't ask me why, but they do.

[Phantom Lord]

How in the world has a North vs. South thread gone 350+ posts without the confederate flag coming up?

And incase your reading JD, you will be hard pressed to find someone who will defend the flying of and the wearing of the Confederate Flag more than I.

[nancetc]

Perhaps us Southerners just don't trust United Way anything. I've lived up North...tis okay...but I'll take the South any day.

[razorback-bert]

See another VIEW

[Stopspin]

You said,
"Look you backwood, tobacco chewing, sister banging redneck hick, there is far more to NY than the fucking city! In fact, there is as much back wood redneck areas of NY as there are NC!

Me thinks ,Your obsession with inbred rednecks and your choice of adjectives says more about you and yours than the genteel southerners .

[razorback-bert]

It's is near Juneau and you have FreeperMail.

[Phantom Lord]

What part of Myrtle Beach are you from? Or are you from Hilton Head?