Rough Cities in America

On and off watching this movie set in South Philadelphia. Is Philadelphia really that bad, I mean the movie was so dark a person would want to kill themselves if their day to day existence is like this. But then I got to thinking about just how many rough cities (or neighborhoods), there are in America. You have Cleveland, Detroit, Flint, Youngstown, Dayton, Baltimore, St. Louis, Toledo, Portsmouth, Newport News, the list goes on. These are cities where it does not cost a fortune to live; for example you can get beautiful views in Downtown Detroit in one of many high rises for as little as $700 a month. But these are misanthropic cities where people are out for themselves, the jobs are sparse, and if you can make it day to day you are indifferent to the ills of society.

It is not that you no longer care about the crime and the living conditions of the city but what can you do about it? Move out to the suburbs or attempt to live in one of the redeveloped or gentrified areas of the city? People talk about cities that still have a bit of give and take and the rich still live in the city limits that have some sense of "balance". Cities like Washington DC, Atlanta, Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Chicago. These cities have slums as bad if not worse than the first set of cities. But people still want to live in those cities and they are still household names.

So what is it all about? Everyone who can get out of the first set of cities and move to suburbia already has. Everyone who could get out of the state and into the second set of cities already has. Prices are so high in the second set you should have a back up plan if you get into that second set and cannot make it. It helps to have a few degrees under your belt, fifteen years of experience, or can get by on pure luck, meaning that you make it as a writer, artist, singer or actor. There is always the real estate market, which will always have some signs of life in the second set of cities.

I live in a city that is somewhere in-between, a city that people generally do not think about or do not know about but a city that is not really that bad, sort of like Columbus, OH. Virginia Beach or Norfolk do not lean to either extreme, but people do not know about this area and for the most part are not even thinking about living here unless they are in the military, know someone in the military that told them about it, or have relatives that are already here. Three different classes of cities, three different realities. Everyone wants to live in a different class of city than they are in. It is the American way, for you to satisfy each side to yourself. Live in a town that is a slum for a few years, a nice family town for a while and a world class city for a season. If you can't afford the world class city the nice family town has some frills for those who can afford it. Live the world class lifestyle in the family town. Chill out in the slum for a while and save your money. What else are you going to do?