The only thing that matters is how likely crime is to happen toyou. You argument above does not negate the fact that you are more likely to experience violent crime in an urban area. Sure, you'll have more non-crime interactions, but that's little consolation as the knife plunges into your thigh.
Recalculate those crime rates. Take out all the crimes that happened between gangs. Take out all the crimes that happened within families or amongst friends. Take out all the crimes that happened in relation to drugs, gambling, or other underworld activities. Take out all the non-street crimes (like embezzlign businessmen). Now you will get a number that is closer to the actual chance of something happening to me walking back and forth to work, or hanging out in the city at night. The number will be scarily low.
Also, I feel a lot safer being stabbed in the city, in a crowd of people who will immediately come to my aid. In the boonies when that hick shoots me with his shotgun, I'll just bleed to death in the dirt road.
I talked about it on the show years ago. I saw a purse snatcher in the street one morning. A group of random people on the street immediately detained him, and then a police officer showed up before I could call 911. The city is a lot safer than being in hicksville. It's just an anecdote, but that's how city people are. There's safety in numbers.
The crime rate is measured by number of crimes divided by time and population. I think that if you divided the crime rate by the rate of human interactions (if such a thing could be measured) the city's crime rate would be minuscule compared to that of the rural areas. New Orleans, Baltimiore, and maybe Detroit excluded.
The only thing that matters is how likely crime is to happen toyou.
Personally, I'm a lot more concerned about the uneducated conservative rednecks hurting me when I have to venture into flyover country than I am about the normal background violence in an east coast city. If you just use common sense, you won't be hurt - even in Baltimore. If a conservative redneck decides you belong to a group he doesn't like (like, for instance the group of people who can read, write, and cipher), you're in trouble.
As for the farthest north reaches of New York state, I grew up there -- and it's Democratic.
Lake Placid and North is effectively Canada. I'm talking about between Albany and Lake Placid on the Eastern border with VT. Lake George is one spot of resort-goodness among some scary places.
Suburbs are not so great. They just hide the crime. There is a whole lot of drug-related crime and domestic violence going down in them suburbs, but it's behind closed doors.
I like living in more rural areas, but not so rural that I can't get to a decent grocery store within 15 minutes and a decent sized city in 45 minutes. As for the more conservative bent of rural areas, this is usually true, but I have never experienced such an overwhelming majority of conservative ideals and government that it effects anyone in any major way. I have also seen a pattern that while there is a smaller tax base, there are also fewer students in schools and fewer people on the roads and draining public funds, so there is less bloating in local bureaucracy and tax dollars are more efficiently used. It is much harder to cover up corruption and waste in smaller communities. Having smaller communities also allows you to know your neighbors and have a safer environment. Allow your kids to be out biking all day around town and not worry about them getting hurt or in trouble without Mable down on the next farm to call and say "Little Timmy just fell off his bike, you might want to head down here, he is limping. I look after him until you come." - This is worth its weight in gold, both for the parent and the kid. You can give your kid a longer leash with fewer dangers. Rural areas usually have lower costs of living (they usually have lower wages, but not necessarily if you are educated and work in a nearby city/college/town, etc.), so a person can have a larger piece of land and a nicer home without spending even half of what they would in urban areas. You have close knit communities available, but you can retreat to your own property and not be bothered with the goings on of those around you. Plus, having larger property allows you to pursue certain activities that would not be easy to come by in an urban setting without trekking to a park or a public garden. This is only based on my own observation and experience.
Lake Placid and North is effectively Canada. I'm talking about between Albany and Lake Placid on the Eastern border with VT. Lake George is one spot of resort-goodness among some scary places.
I just drove through there yesterday. I've spent quite a bit of time there several years ago. There are a lot of really depressed places between Albany and Plattsburgh. It's pretty sad to see, actually. New York really is a diverse state.
It's pretty sad to see, actually. New York really is a diverse state.
As sad as some of it can, be I think that diversity is what makes New York the best state. It is one of the few states that could see existing as its own country.
Lake Placid and North is effectively Canada. I'm talking about between Albany and Lake Placid on the Eastern border with VT. Lake George is one spot of resort-goodness among some scary places.
I just drove through there yesterday. I've spent quite a bit of time there several years ago. There are a lot of really depressed places between Albany and Plattsburgh. It's pretty sad to see, actually. New York really is a diverse state.
Lake George is probably the ONLY prosperous place north of Albany until you hit Plattsburgh or Lake Placid. Even then, Lake George is ONLY thriving during the summer, due 100% to tourism. Lake George in the winter is one of the most barren places you'll find. Once you hit Adirondack Park proper, you get into the real definition of rural.
And yes, some of the MOST rural parts of New York are more democratic than anything else. You'd be amazed what happens when you get small enough. People tend to leave each other alone a lot more. If I were to take a stab at it, I'd say it's the large rural/quasi-suburban areas that are more problematic. I'd also be interested to see the distribution of racial attitudes geographically in the US.
There are some gorgeous hiking/camping/outdoorey areas in Northern NY. They really are worth a vacation or trip. I doubt I would want to live there unless I they offered an awesome job, but visiting is fine. EDIT: Also, Albany is still like a third world country to me as they have no Wegmans.
2006-07 State Ranking by "smartness" As seen in the ranking, the high end of the list is largely populated by democratic dominated states, the low end by republican dominated states. It also pretty much proves, as if it needed proof, that Ann Coulter is a stupid bitch and her book "If Democrats had any brains, they'd be Republicans" has a bullshit title.
EDIT: Also, Albany is still like a third world country to me as they have no Wegmans.
Pfft. Our Price Choppers are getting all sorts of fancy-pants. Should be good enough for anyone.
No, it is not. The products are still limited and produce is still inferior. Whenever I visit my folks, I go to Wegmans and it just re-enforces how crappy it is here. I have to go to Hannaford, Price Chopper, and Green Grocer and I still don't get some of the items that I used to purchase from Wegmans.
Pfft. Our Price Choppers are getting all sorts of fancy-pants. Should be good enough for anyone.
I don't know about Price Chopper, but the produce at Shop Rite is ass. Produce is pretty much the only reason to even go to the grocery store, since you can get all the non-perishables online. The problem is we don't have any other grocery store that isn't prohibitively far away. There's a Key Food that is closer than the Shop-Rite, but it is so disgusting it needs to be shut down. There's actually some Stop+Shops, a Hannaford, and Adam's Faircare Farms, but they are too far away to go to on a regular basis.
Rym, might you provide some details on your pro-war assumption? What do you mean, exactly? It is true that those in urban areas are the least likely to voluntarily serve in the armed forces, but I'm not entirely sure this is because of a love of peace.
While many Americans may call themselves conservative, the overwhelming majority of Americans support progressive policies. Indeed, a majority of Americans…
– Want universal health care. – Want to expand environmental protections. – Support increasing the minimum wage. – Want abortion to remain safe and legal. – Want federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. – Want to raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for national priorities. – Want same-sex couples to be legally recognized. – Oppose the Iraq war.
Further, the Drum Major Institute found in their recent survey of the American middle class that a majority of both Democrats and Republicans favor similar policies. And after 8 years of conservative rule, a record 81 percent of Americans believe the country is on the “wrong track.â€Â
As Media Matters explained last summer, “the movement of public opinion, particularly on social issues, seems to be in one direction: to the left.â€Â
"Which of these positions best represents your views about abortion? A woman should be able to get an abortion if she wants one, no matter what the reason, up until the time the fetus is viable, that is, can live on its own. Abortion should only be legal in certain circumstances, such as when a woman's health is endangered or when the pregnancy results from rape or incest. Abortion should be illegal in all circumstances, even if the mother's life is in danger."
. Legal Until Fetus Viable 43% Sometimes 41% Legal Never 10% Legal No Answer/Unsure 6%
Bullet points don't mean anything unless you look at the questions asked and the allowed answers. Most people support abortion within the first trimester but almost noone supports partial-birth or late term abortions. Most of the surveys listed in the compiled data have very poor options for answers. In fact, most of the surveys that offer "illegal in all cases" and "legal in all cases" as options have both of those answers polling nearly the same. Same goes for the "mostly" options.
When we get to a survey that asked about partial-birth abortion we see a huge 75% of people surveyed (using most recent survey results) saying it should be illegal.
Then either ignore me or respond to the content of the post.
No one wants to debate someone who has brain damage. You're like that retarded kid that would hang around the playground despite the fact that no one would play with him because he was too unpredictable. It creeps me out just typing this.
Then either ignore me or respond to the content of the post.
No one wants to debate someone who has brain damage. You're like that Special Ed kid that no one would play with because he was too unpredictable. It creeps me out just typing this.
Two posts, no rebuttal, win for the 'brain damaged' guy.
1. They vote Republican. 2. They are very socially conservative. 3. They are anti-gay. 4. They are pro-war. 5. They are xenophobic and/or racist.
As someone who lives in rural northern Michigan, I can say that this describes at least 90% of my area's local population. I even seem pretty anti-social myself but it is mainly because the vast majority of local people are ignorant hicks. I could probably count all of the democrats I know in one hand.
Please go away, you sad, brain-damaged, little troll.
Did I miss something? I haven't been following the forums closely - so what did I miss?
No one wants to debate someone who has brain damage. You're like that retarded kid that would hang around the playground despite the fact that no one would play with because he was too unpredictable. It creeps me out just typing this.
You know if it actually hits a nerve with me, it's gone too far. As a litmus test, I'm totally out of whack. So if I cringe, that's bad.
Isn't this thread posted under the "Flamewars" category? I think it's fair to be a little more explicit in a flamewar.
I'm sorry that he has brain damage. It's sad. If he ever needs to apply for social security disability, I can probably help him. I'm just saying that I'm not going to debate someone who has brain damage. The link he provided says that Lyme Disease adversely affects a person's ability to understand what he reads and it adversely affects that person's ability to express himself in writing. We've all seen Steve exhibit these symptoms. It's useless to debate someone like that in a medium like an internet forum that relies so heavily on reading and writing.
It's useless to debate someone like that in a medium like an internet forum that relies so heavily on reading and writing.
I think the best solution here might be to click on the "block user" link next to his name and allow other people to debate with him if they so choose.
Comments
As for the farthest north reaches of New York state, I grew up there -- and it's Democratic.
Also, I feel a lot safer being stabbed in the city, in a crowd of people who will immediately come to my aid. In the boonies when that hick shoots me with his shotgun, I'll just bleed to death in the dirt road.
I talked about it on the show years ago. I saw a purse snatcher in the street one morning. A group of random people on the street immediately detained him, and then a police officer showed up before I could call 911. The city is a lot safer than being in hicksville. It's just an anecdote, but that's how city people are. There's safety in numbers.
Also, it's the empire state.
And yes, some of the MOST rural parts of New York are more democratic than anything else. You'd be amazed what happens when you get small enough. People tend to leave each other alone a lot more. If I were to take a stab at it, I'd say it's the large rural/quasi-suburban areas that are more problematic. I'd also be interested to see the distribution of racial attitudes geographically in the US.
EDIT: Also, Albany is still like a third world country to me as they have no Wegmans.
As seen in the ranking, the high end of the list is largely populated by democratic dominated states, the low end by republican dominated states. It also pretty much proves, as if it needed proof, that Ann Coulter is a stupid bitch and her book "If Democrats had any brains, they'd be Republicans" has a bullshit title.
Bullet points don't mean anything unless you look at the questions asked and the allowed answers. Most people support abortion within the first trimester but almost noone supports partial-birth or late term abortions. Most of the surveys listed in the compiled data have very poor options for answers. In fact, most of the surveys that offer "illegal in all cases" and "legal in all cases" as options have both of those answers polling nearly the same. Same goes for the "mostly" options.
When we get to a survey that asked about partial-birth abortion we see a huge 75% of people surveyed (using most recent survey results) saying it should be illegal.
1. You're playing a part.
2. You're doing it badly.
3. You have brain damage.
Please go away, you sad, brain-damaged, little troll.
I'm sorry that he has brain damage. It's sad. If he ever needs to apply for social security disability, I can probably help him. I'm just saying that I'm not going to debate someone who has brain damage. The link he provided says that Lyme Disease adversely affects a person's ability to understand what he reads and it adversely affects that person's ability to express himself in writing. We've all seen Steve exhibit these symptoms. It's useless to debate someone like that in a medium like an internet forum that relies so heavily on reading and writing.