Oh yeah, Dayton is just like that. It’s got so many issues along those lines and is just generally a pretty depressing city. Great oktoberfest though.
And Ohio in particular has a cultural issue where people don’t seem to believe change for the better is possible. A lot of people disengage rather than acknowledge that at the local level of government a fuck ton of real change can happen. Columbus should have a light rail system, whether elevated or underground, but if you talk to people there it just isn’t feasible because they tried to put in a rail system already, but it didn’t work (they couldn’t get the money because of the oil crisis in the 70s and stopped trying afterwards).
I love Ohio in a lot of ways, it’s home, but thank fuck I’m gone
Not believing good change is possible is one of the pillars of conservatism. It leads to “why do what’s right?” and “I should just get what’s mine” and “if you can’t beat em, join em”
Cincinnati’s downtown has subway tunnels underneath it. They were built over a century ago. We could have had public transportation like NYC, in our quaint little Midwestern urban center. But unfortunately the project was scrapped to pay for WWI efforts and they’ve been abandoned ever since. The street car is a step in the right direction, but it’s a bit pathetic compared to what we could have.
Yeah, I’ve been bitching about that one for years. Just fucking put a train in it! Then up zone near the stations you build, the traffic patterns will shift to accommodate it
As another Ohioan I also find this to be true and so very weird.
I find that people in Ohio are generally some of the kindest people. I remember in college a blizzard hit and me and my three house mates spent the day helping anyone we saw get stuck in the snow for the whole day as a fun thing to do. When I graduated I hit some black ice and went off the road, not a minute had passed before a guy in a truck pulled over, hitched a strap to my car, and got me on my way.
I grew up outside Cleveland, I now live in a rural township outside Columbus with wonderful neighbors that all look out for each other. Even in a small township, we have little libraries, free food pantries stocked by the community outside the Kroger, volunteers that do trunk or treat for the children.
And yet when it comes time to vote, those same caring good hearted people will look at a $5 tax and say “fuck those school kids”
I left Ohio to find better work and came back once I could do that work from here. There are so many things I love about this state, it is my home, it is where my family is, it is a place of tremendous natural beauty and people who are for the most part friendly and kind. And those same people are sometimes just the most intolerant assholes.
Anyways, I believe Ohio can be a wonderful place, I moved back to make it more so. Hope you have a beautiful life wherever you are now, maybe enough of us will make it worth coming back to.
I think I have a slightly different perspective on the kindness of Ohioans given that I’m trans. On one hand, as you say, there is so much of it. Midwestern kindness still does exist and it’s something I cherish even more than the thriftiness. But on the other hand, over the years aggression has been rising there, especially from drivers, but from a lot of people.
I miss it to some degree, it was beautiful in its own way (ok, on the natural front Cincinnati and Cleveland more than Columbus and Dayton, but I love all 4 for their charms). I still go back to visit family for holidays. Most of my childhood friends have left now, but my family is still there, my mom is buried there, and I integrated myself pretty tightly in a community over the years before I moved away and I still like to visit them while seeing my family. I miss the bar I had my first date with my wife, the little bar I used to host and attend events at, and the little restaurant we started going to a lot after I quit meat. And I miss spaces that stopped existing long before I left even.
And oh how I miss the storms, especially the ones with a cataclysmic looking stormhead with winds that threaten to sweep you off your feet. The storms that make you feel like you’re seeing the wrath of the gods as the air pressure plummets and you’re feeling too light even before the wind comes. Every Midwesterner I talk to out here misses that.
But on the other hand, I fell in love with the PNW at first sight. I love the rain and trees and the fact that mountains and the sea are both accessible. While I have some culture shocks sometimes here it’s really compatible to me.
So yeah I hope you succeed. I left because they began passing anti trans laws and I figured it was best to leave on my own terms before they passed on that directly affected me and I had to rush out. Had 2024 gone differently, I’d probably own a house in Ohio now. And I do really hope nobody else like me, who could have lived happily there for life, has to leave in the future. I hope that I can continue visiting my loved ones and that my family and friends can have the state they deserve. I hope that someday the 3CD high speed line happens and that the 3Cs all have an urban rail and that there’s an intracity light rail connecting Cincinnati, Dayton, and the suburbs between. I hope the state can start scrubbing the rust off its belt and thrive.
And yeah my wife has been playing some game where you design train routes of real places that’s apparently based off the software that professionals use, and has spent the past week designing train systems for Ohio lol.
I think that is the worst part of MAGA, it emboldened people to embrace their worst aspects. Proudly and loudly ignorant and hateful.
They’ve at least been regaining some shame, I’ve seen a lot less flags, a lot fewer hats and shirts emblazoned with some hate filled garbage. They may still hold those terrible beliefs but they’ve shut up (and hopefully some have had a change of heart, but I suspect most are just angry about gas prices)
My spouse and I also loved the 10+ years we spent in California. Culture, art, great food, natural beauty, kind people (not Midwest nice, but nice in their own way).
I’m sorry you felt the need to leave Ohio, but I understand it and I’m happy you found a place to call home. Next thunderstorm I’ll send positive vibes your way, although it seems more likely we will be getting snow than rain (but with Ohio weather you never really know).
I hope wherever your life takes you, it is one filled with happiness, love, and joy.
Thanks lol, and I’m glad they’re regaining shame. And you enjoy your community out there! And I do sincerely hope the drivers get less aggressive for you than I remember them being.
I’m also an Ohio native who’s committed to sticking around and building community in an effort to improve things, rather than running away. I feel like it’s rare to see other people share that sentiment. All too often I hear people say they “escaped” Ohio and get patted on the back for it, and it’s just weird.
Oh yeah, Dayton is just like that. It’s got so many issues along those lines and is just generally a pretty depressing city. Great oktoberfest though.
And Ohio in particular has a cultural issue where people don’t seem to believe change for the better is possible. A lot of people disengage rather than acknowledge that at the local level of government a fuck ton of real change can happen. Columbus should have a light rail system, whether elevated or underground, but if you talk to people there it just isn’t feasible because they tried to put in a rail system already, but it didn’t work (they couldn’t get the money because of the oil crisis in the 70s and stopped trying afterwards).
I love Ohio in a lot of ways, it’s home, but thank fuck I’m gone
Not believing good change is possible is one of the pillars of conservatism. It leads to “why do what’s right?” and “I should just get what’s mine” and “if you can’t beat em, join em”
Cincinnati’s downtown has subway tunnels underneath it. They were built over a century ago. We could have had public transportation like NYC, in our quaint little Midwestern urban center. But unfortunately the project was scrapped to pay for WWI efforts and they’ve been abandoned ever since. The street car is a step in the right direction, but it’s a bit pathetic compared to what we could have.
Yeah, I’ve been bitching about that one for years. Just fucking put a train in it! Then up zone near the stations you build, the traffic patterns will shift to accommodate it
As another Ohioan I also find this to be true and so very weird.
I find that people in Ohio are generally some of the kindest people. I remember in college a blizzard hit and me and my three house mates spent the day helping anyone we saw get stuck in the snow for the whole day as a fun thing to do. When I graduated I hit some black ice and went off the road, not a minute had passed before a guy in a truck pulled over, hitched a strap to my car, and got me on my way.
I grew up outside Cleveland, I now live in a rural township outside Columbus with wonderful neighbors that all look out for each other. Even in a small township, we have little libraries, free food pantries stocked by the community outside the Kroger, volunteers that do trunk or treat for the children.
And yet when it comes time to vote, those same caring good hearted people will look at a $5 tax and say “fuck those school kids”
I left Ohio to find better work and came back once I could do that work from here. There are so many things I love about this state, it is my home, it is where my family is, it is a place of tremendous natural beauty and people who are for the most part friendly and kind. And those same people are sometimes just the most intolerant assholes.
Anyways, I believe Ohio can be a wonderful place, I moved back to make it more so. Hope you have a beautiful life wherever you are now, maybe enough of us will make it worth coming back to.
I think I have a slightly different perspective on the kindness of Ohioans given that I’m trans. On one hand, as you say, there is so much of it. Midwestern kindness still does exist and it’s something I cherish even more than the thriftiness. But on the other hand, over the years aggression has been rising there, especially from drivers, but from a lot of people.
I miss it to some degree, it was beautiful in its own way (ok, on the natural front Cincinnati and Cleveland more than Columbus and Dayton, but I love all 4 for their charms). I still go back to visit family for holidays. Most of my childhood friends have left now, but my family is still there, my mom is buried there, and I integrated myself pretty tightly in a community over the years before I moved away and I still like to visit them while seeing my family. I miss the bar I had my first date with my wife, the little bar I used to host and attend events at, and the little restaurant we started going to a lot after I quit meat. And I miss spaces that stopped existing long before I left even.
And oh how I miss the storms, especially the ones with a cataclysmic looking stormhead with winds that threaten to sweep you off your feet. The storms that make you feel like you’re seeing the wrath of the gods as the air pressure plummets and you’re feeling too light even before the wind comes. Every Midwesterner I talk to out here misses that.
But on the other hand, I fell in love with the PNW at first sight. I love the rain and trees and the fact that mountains and the sea are both accessible. While I have some culture shocks sometimes here it’s really compatible to me.
So yeah I hope you succeed. I left because they began passing anti trans laws and I figured it was best to leave on my own terms before they passed on that directly affected me and I had to rush out. Had 2024 gone differently, I’d probably own a house in Ohio now. And I do really hope nobody else like me, who could have lived happily there for life, has to leave in the future. I hope that I can continue visiting my loved ones and that my family and friends can have the state they deserve. I hope that someday the 3CD high speed line happens and that the 3Cs all have an urban rail and that there’s an intracity light rail connecting Cincinnati, Dayton, and the suburbs between. I hope the state can start scrubbing the rust off its belt and thrive.
And yeah my wife has been playing some game where you design train routes of real places that’s apparently based off the software that professionals use, and has spent the past week designing train systems for Ohio lol.
I think that is the worst part of MAGA, it emboldened people to embrace their worst aspects. Proudly and loudly ignorant and hateful.
They’ve at least been regaining some shame, I’ve seen a lot less flags, a lot fewer hats and shirts emblazoned with some hate filled garbage. They may still hold those terrible beliefs but they’ve shut up (and hopefully some have had a change of heart, but I suspect most are just angry about gas prices)
My spouse and I also loved the 10+ years we spent in California. Culture, art, great food, natural beauty, kind people (not Midwest nice, but nice in their own way).
I’m sorry you felt the need to leave Ohio, but I understand it and I’m happy you found a place to call home. Next thunderstorm I’ll send positive vibes your way, although it seems more likely we will be getting snow than rain (but with Ohio weather you never really know).
I hope wherever your life takes you, it is one filled with happiness, love, and joy.
Thanks lol, and I’m glad they’re regaining shame. And you enjoy your community out there! And I do sincerely hope the drivers get less aggressive for you than I remember them being.
I’m also an Ohio native who’s committed to sticking around and building community in an effort to improve things, rather than running away. I feel like it’s rare to see other people share that sentiment. All too often I hear people say they “escaped” Ohio and get patted on the back for it, and it’s just weird.