It seems that "crunchy" is a favorite amongst cyburbian members when it comes to describing liberal towns and cities. Do we have such an adjective for the conservative towns?
Moderator note:
Maister: split from RTDNTOTO6
It seems that "crunchy" is a favorite amongst cyburbian members when it comes to describing liberal towns and cities. Do we have such an adjective for the conservative towns?
Moderator note:
Maister: split from RTDNTOTO6
Last edited by Maister; 19 Jul 2011 at 8:42 AM.
Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.
I don't know if there is one or not. We could always create one. Suggestions?Originally posted by HomerJ9139
I'm intrigued...because I work for such a place. So a few ideas...crunchy is short for crunchy granola, referring to a favorite natural snack/breakfast. The opposite of this would have to be chewy as in chewy (rare) red meat or maybe another breakfast food such as bacon? Could you see yourself calling a place chewy or bacon? Gosh, that "insert conservative town name" is so bacon/chewy, I just saw a bunch of SUV's driving to on the "insert six lane road that is always clogged" to the chain restaurant.
"Never invest in any idea you can't illustrate with a crayon." ~Peter Lynch
So, what would be a "chewy" town? I'd go with Colorado Springs. Let's compare:
Ithaca: Cornell University, Ithaca College
Colorado Springs: United States Air Force Academy, Fort Carson
Ithaca: Namgyal Monastery
Colorado Springs: Focus on the Family
Ithaca: Paleontological Research Institute, Johnson Museum of Art
Colorado Springs: ProRodeo Hall of Fame
Ithaca: wine routes
Colorado Springs: Dragonmans
Nonetheless, I really do like Colorado Springs. Yes, it's very conservative, but it's big enough to find your place if you're not.
What would be some other chewy towns? College Station, Texas? Wheaton, Illinois?
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
Yes...Wheaton. Among a vast array of conservative characteristics, the place gave birth to Billy Graham's religious beliefs.
I would also say Joliet. Even though the inner-city areas may make it more Democratic, the whole surrounding area down there is redneck country. Check out the west side of Joliet on Google Earth sometime. You'll never see more suburban-tract homes where EVERYONE has a swimming pool anywhere else in the Midwest. Also, the place has Chicagoland Speedway, an army training facility, a giant veterans cemetery, a minor league ballpark, a waterpark, a casino, a giant paintball sports park, huge intermodal rail facilities with giant industrial warehouses (including, giant distribution facilities for...yep, you guessed it...Walmart), an Exxon Mobil refinery, a Dow Chemical plant, a culture of construction and trucking, and everyone down there seems to go fishing, hunting, or RVing on the weekends. Doesn't get more red-blooded 'murican than that. It's pretty much the South transplanted into Chicagoland.
Some other places that come to mind include Oklahoma City, Amarillo, Lubbock, Jacksonville (FL & NC), Naples, Yorba Linda, Provo, Boise, Spokane, Reno, Bakersfield, Virginia Beach, Wichita, Arlington (TX), Springfield (MO), Fort Wayne, Grand Rapids, Mesa, Greenville (SC), and Anchorage.
Last edited by illinoisplanner; 18 Jul 2011 at 10:56 PM.
"Life's a journey, not a destination"
-Steven Tyler
Don't forget Orange County, CA - the only county in the country with more than 3 cities in the "Top 25 Most Conservative Cities" according to the Bay Area Center for Voting Research.
Also, just about any city in Colin County, Texas (northern Dallas suburbs - especially Plano and Frisco); the entire Phoenix metro (not just Mesa); Midland-Odessa, TX; Lake Jackson/Brazoria County, TX (part of Houston metro); Lafayette, LA; "Pensyltucky"; and the entire state of Kansas.
Certain "crunchy" towns are known as liberal meccas; people actually move there because they are liberal. The place where I live is among them; others include Boulder, Ann Arbor, and Burlington, Vermont.
Some of the "chewy" towns mentioned are very conservative, but the population is mainly comprised of locals. I doubt anyone moves to ... oh, Lake Jackson, because Ron Paul represents the area, and they want to be among other conservatives.
What are "chewy" conservative meccas, those places that other conservatives from around the country flock to specifically because it is conservative, and they can live and work among their peers? Colorado Springs is really the only place that comes to mind, thanks in no small part to military retirees, and James Dobson and Focus on the Family, who actively promoted the area as a conservative evangelical mecca.
"Evangelical Mecca." Doesn't sound right, does it?
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
I don't think you will have too much of a 'mecca' because these type of folks prefer large lot sprawl...country living, no gub-ment. Areas that come to mind are my hometown of Jacksonville, FL...large lot sprawl, navy base and naval air station, etc and basically any large southern city that is not a seat of state government. For example, I would say that the capital of NC, Raleigh and most of the surrounding areas are more liberal than the other large city in NC, Charlotte.
"Never invest in any idea you can't illustrate with a crayon." ~Peter Lynch
I would guess that Ave Maria, FL, which is being developed by Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino's Pizza will be both chewy and crusty.
“Death comes when memories of the past exceed the vision for the future.”
Yes, the areas around Charlotte is very red...I mean chewy. I think alot of that has to do with the cluster of major universities in the capitol-city area as well, while CLT is a banking-based economy.
"Whatever beer I'm drinking, is better than the one I'm not." DMLW
The attitudes of these populations is so different you can't really compare them. We all know liberals who do move various places to fit in and live "their way of life" but the conservative mindset doesn't think like that. It' not right or wrong, it just is a difference. Conservatives generally will pick other reasons to move somewhere, such as low taxes, a better business environment, etc. Also, people tend to become more conservative as they start a family, so moving to the suburbs is common, which in a way are "conservative towns".
Also, I've noticed liberals tend to display what they are against whereas conservatives will display what they are for (if they display anything at all). I've never seen an anti-Flying Spaghetti Monster sticker but I've seen plenty of anti-Christianity stickers. I've seen far more anti-Bush stickers than anti-Obama stickers. Sure this is a generalization but that mindset does play a role in where we live.
I will go on record saying "liberal towns" tend to be more exciting. But maybe this just has to do with the built environment more so than the population.
I burned down the church to atone for my transgressions.
They are called retirement villages. Laguna Woods is a perfect example. And yes Stroskey- people move there in droves.
Children in the back seat can cause accidents - and vice versa.
But do they move their strictly because of politics? Or is it because of no state taxes and warm weather?
I burned down the church to atone for my transgressions.
lol. I think its cause they are just old. But I really don't think liberals move to places because of the politics any more than do conservatives. You just have alot of liberal areas that are close to outdoor opportunities and art and culture and educational institutions. That doesn't have anything to do with politics any more than do low taxes and warm weather.
Children in the back seat can cause accidents - and vice versa.
Certain "crunchy" towns are known as liberal meccas; people actually move there because they are liberal. The place where I live is among them; others include Boulder, Ann Arbor, and Burlington, Vermont.
Some of the "chewy" towns mentioned are very conservative, but the population is mainly comprised of locals. I doubt anyone moves to ... oh, Lake Jackson, because Ron Paul represents the area, and they want to be among other conservatives.
What are "chewy" conservative meccas, those places that other conservatives from around the country flock to specifically because it is conservative, and they can live and work among their peers? Colorado Springs is really the only place that comes to mind, thanks in no small part to military retirees, and James Dobson and Focus on the Family, who actively promoted the area as a conservative evangelical mecca.
"Evangelical Mecca." Doesn't sound right, does it?
Not sure why, but going back and looking at this caught my attention. I think that in a natural "state of things", the younger demographic in a country (relatively speaking), most always tends to be more liberal, while the older more conservative. I think that the idea of "liberal meccas" has a relationship to the fact that younger people have a greater ability to be mobile (no house, no kids, etc.) Therefore, it seems plausible to assume that for any number of reasons (that may or may not be initially driven by political interests), a place can turn into something of a liberal hub.
What intrigued about this idea is Texas. Obviously this state is very conservative by nature, but because of its economic growth in the face of so many other states remaining stagnant, many many people (and many of those many people are young people) have flocked to this state. Austin is already a given, but I don't think it's completely out of the question to wonder if this type of migration could make the entire state more liberal (and even possibly make other states more conservative) compared to the past.
Do I think Texas is going to go Blue in any upcoming presidential elections? No...but it may be closer than in elections prior. What do others think about this concept of the relationship between mobility, the state of our economy, and its political implications?
Also, and this may be more of a side question, but anyone know of towns or cities that at one point were crunchy and over time became chewy? Or vice versa?
Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule.
Villa Park would be chewier than Yorba Linda, and Laguna Beach most crunchy therein.
Good question! Maybe not Texas, but I think North Carolina might be a good example of a traditionally conservative state that is turning blue, at least when it comes to national elections. I don't think residents of heavily Democratic Buffalo are the only liberal-leaning folks who are flocking to the state by the tens of thousands. It'll take decades, though, before the most recent wave of my fellow liberal Buffalonians, or their descendants, will feel that North Carolina is truly "home", and get involved in state and local politics.
Today, I was reminded of just how left of center the town where I now live is. Today, I heard a caller to a radio talk show called MSNBC part of the "right-wing corporate media", followed a few minutes later by stating "Karl Marx knew this was what capitalism would come to."
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
It was the 1970s, my first day in Barclay Hudson's Regional Planning course, when he lifted Mao's Little Red Book on high and said that was the only text needed to learn regional planning and the only one we would be using. I never went back. What a waste.
So are your posts.
"I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany"
Good decision comrade! Mao's little red book, second in influence among planners only to the big green book.
Alle Hagel kommunistischer Führer !!
Children in the back seat can cause accidents - and vice versa.
Socially conservative you mean...we still have a few blue dog democrats! North Carolina is a rural state that has a few progressive urban centers. Politics are interesting here, no doubt. Right now rural vs. urban voters are getting closer to even in numbers.
"Never invest in any idea you can't illustrate with a crayon." ~Peter Lynch
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