Pro/Regressives and hive-cities

A number of cows we keep tabs on are vocally, angrily pro-urban, anti-rural.

Some of them will cite things like environmental reasons for this, but I'm not interested in that. And we know a huge chunk of it is that it favors their politics better to concentrate humanity. I'm also not interested in that, because those are too obvious.

What gets me is that a number of them - MovieBob, for example, or BootlegGirl, just to name two I can think of off the top of my head seem to feel that this sort of existence - with everyone crammed in ass-to-nose in sardine can cities - is actually the ideal living situation for humanity.

On the flip side, I would sooner slit my wrists than live in those conditions. I've got friends who do, and I hate visiting them. I'm living in too much of a city right now, as it is - I live in a small rural-ish town on the outskirts of a "city" of around 200,000. It's still too goddamned big and too urban around here.

Now, look, I'm open minded in general. Cities are going to exist, so it's a good thing some people like living in them. That's fine. But it seems like most of the people who do are of one side of the political spectrum. And it might be one thing if they were all wealthy and could afford to take frequent vacations to "decompress", or whatever, but most of them aren't. Very few cows are.

So what is it? Is there some correlation between left-leaning politics and a lack of stress from being crammed in like that?

I think it's funny especially with people like Moviebob, who despite living in a big city is effectively a hermit. I feel he particularly likes the idea of the city rather than the actualities of the city. It is a place with all minorities and few whites, all enlightened euphoric atheists and few disgusting religious people, and all fart-sniffing liberals and few dangerous conservatives.

The Manglement said:

I think it's funny especially with people like Moviebob, who despite living in a big city is effectively a hermit. I feel he particularly likes the idea of the city rather than the actualities of the city. It is a place with all minorities and few whites, all enlightened euphoric atheists and few disgusting religious people, and all fart-sniffing liberals and few dangerous conservatives.

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It's also funny because Lynn(MA) has a reputation for being a disgusting shithole.

The Manglement said:

I think it's funny especially with people like Moviebob, who despite living in a big city is effectively a hermit. I feel he particularly likes the idea of the city rather than the actualities of the city. It is a place with all minorities and few whites, all enlightened euphoric atheists and few disgusting religious people, and all fart-sniffing liberals and few dangerous conservatives.

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Hmm...I wonder whether the Mouse-Utopia experiments might have some relevence here given the conclusions drawn

I would say it's a form of gentrification as well. When you live in a city, you're around stores and chains within blocks of each other. Because of the high population, it would be a great revenue stream as well. Get the people that can't afford it out so they can expand, then leave when it's too "mainstream". Another theory is because since the city is always busy, you are excused from interaction as everybody is busy going from one place to another. In a rural area, you would almost know everybody and there's a lot of open space. Both have their pros and cons but it's preference.

They want to feel like they're part of something bigger, while still living as anti-social shut-ins because they have no people skills.

I'd say it involves jobs, too, but who am I kidding...

MembersSchoolPizza said:

So what is it? Is there some correlation between left-leaning politics and a lack of stress from being crammed in like that?

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The Manglement said:

I think it's funny especially with people like Moviebob, who despite living in a big city is effectively a hermit. I feel he particularly likes the idea of the city rather than the actualities of the city. It is a place with all minorities and few whites, all enlightened euphoric atheists and few disgusting religious people, and all fart-sniffing liberals and few dangerous conservatives.

Click to expand...

I like to equate this to the herd-immunity of vaccinations; If you live in a rural community everyone likely knows you, what you do, your merits like having a fucking job that benefits everyone. The city is a paradise for a fat slob that wants zero contact with other people and just wants to feed off the success of civilization. It's community-immunity.

It's really comfy living in your own isolated apartment with the store being a stone's throw away, it's slightly more work living in a rural area. Also (I hear) more fulfilling, but why have fulfilling when you can slowly die inside in a grey district of misanthropy and pessimism?

Give me rural or give me death is what I say. I get everyone has their living preferences but people who think living in a noisy, crammed, grimy, overly expensive and crime-ridden city is the greatest thing in the world are fucking nuts in my eyes.

...And I just realized the connection. You have to be nuts to live in such a place.

MembersSchoolPizza said:

So what is it? Is there some correlation between left-leaning politics and a lack of stress from being crammed in like that?

Click to expand...

The appeal of the city is that everything you want is right there. You don't have to exert yourself, travel, or even move all that much in order to obtain things. You can get someone to drive you there, you can get someone to bring it to you; and if something breaks or breaks down, it's not your job to fix it, it's the government's.

In the less urban areas, you have to actually get off your ass and go get it or fix it yourself. I've lived in places where if I wanted pizza that I didn't make, I had to get in the car and drive half an hour each way--for Pizza Hut, not even your fancy stuff. Delivery is not a thing. Mass transit, what's that? I've had to pave the road in front of my own house once (and I have enormous respect for road crews now). Out in the sticks, you have to rely on yourself.

That alone breeds more right-wing attitudes and therefore politics. If I can take care of myself without your help, then why the hell should I give you my tax money so you can do for me what I'm already doing for me--except you won't do it as well or as fast--and forbid me from doing it myself? That's basically how America happened to begin with.

Ultimately, because we have freedom of movement in this country, you can choose to live wherever suits you. And if the benefits of living in a certain place outweigh the negatives, that's where you'll make an effort to be. People who live in the city value whatever it is that makes Sardine Life and daily muggings tolerable; people who live rural value independence and quiet enough to give up city conveniences.

TL;DR: Cities have more left-wingers because right-wingers get fed up and move away.

Because most of these people have this notion that a city is a place that is modern, inclusive, global, yadayada, all the things they want to be. You can't be such while living in a farm in Arkansas because those awful people are retrograde bible thumpers who hate gays, ew.

There is a middle ground. Suburbia. While I'm a fan of rural overall and could never see myself city dwelling, I'm content in a suburb. Easy access to whatever I need, friendly neighbors that I know by name. Solid services of electric, internet, water, trash pickup, sewer. But, no de-luxxx apartment in the sky or concrete jungle. When I first bought this house, it WAS rural. Suburbia caught up and it feels more like a city now. Don't know if I have it in me to move further out again.

I like living in the city I'm in because it's full of Chinks and Japs and Gooks so I'm not a manlet around here. When I walk down the street I can SEE OVER PEOPLE'S HEADS I AM THE FUCKING ALPHA CHAD WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

I only would want to live in a big city for the libraries

Eryngium said:

Spoiler: HighPosting

When I was a kid all i wanted to do was live in a big city and be a big ass killer whale, but as i get older I find myself wanting more and more to just move to some remote area with a little town, set up a farm, met a chick that isn't afraid to get her hands dirty, and living solely off the land and drinking beer every night and watching the sun set.

I know both my dreams- now and as a child are unrealistic but maybe the reason these people can't grow up is because they confine themselves to their childish dreams and are too scared to reach out for bigger things.

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Dreams die when they come in contact with reality.

And strange as it may seem, that is a good thing.

Lemmingwise said:

Dreams die when they come in contact with reality.

And strange as it may seem, that is a good thing.

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Source: every lolcow's creative effort ever

Eryngium said:

Spoiler: HighPosting

When I was a kid all i wanted to do was live in a big city and be a big ass killer whale, but as i get older I find myself wanting more and more to just move to some remote area with a little town, set up a farm, met a chick that isn't afraid to get her hands dirty, and living solely off the land and drinking beer every night and watching the sun set.

I know both my dreams- now and as a child are unrealistic but maybe the reason these people can't grow up is because they confine themselves to their childish dreams and are too scared to reach out for bigger things.

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What is stopping you from pursuing your "now" dream? Just curious, because there is really nothing wrong with it at all (or maybe a slightly modified version thereof, it is difficult to live solely off the land). I garden extensively; it keeps me from getting angry at the Internets! Was even thinking of getting some chickens. We sit on the porch and watch the sunset nearly every night, sipping a cocktail. Watch all the birds come into the feeder; we've attracted a flock of wild peach-faced love bird parrots that now come in every night for treats. Squawking and chatty, fun to watch. Relaxing. It's exactly where I chose to be and made it that way. You could too, I suspect.

Suburbia for life. All others shall be trampled under our properly manicured lawns.

Only when every man owns a John Deere(PBUH) can there finally be peace!

The older i get, the more the concept of the mega city seems to offend me. The longer i stay in one, the more often ideas creep in my head like "If an earthquake would strike here, the place would be a deathtrap!". Once i'm back home i can enjoy trees, quiet nights, and lots of space again.
I can imagine some people will even become anxious from living in a city, but all that progressives can see is sticky greasy streetfood to throw down their holes, sad.

Cities drive you fucking insane. That's pretty much it. Cities fuck with your notion of personal space, they fuck with your perception of how society fucking works, they distort how you view other human beings. In a city you are constantly on guard against everything, you trust almost no one, you deadbolt your apartment door at all times, you never go somewhere you aren't familiar with on your own, you hate the cops because they're useless fucking pissants that are completely incapable of Protecting or Serving, you hate your neighbors because they do exceptional shit that makes the one place that should be a safe haven for you into a torture chamber, you hate your elected officials because they do nothing but soak up taxpayer dollars while the city issues that affect you get ignored in favor of some asshole's pet project.