Is Coeur d'Alene crazy lefty-liberal like Seattle, Portland? (Boise, Sandpoint: fit in, transplants)

[LS35a]

I lived in Seattle for twenty years. It's long on scenic beauty but short on sane people. It's home of the 'if you don't believe in our long check list of, global warming, white people are all racists, capitalism is evil, etc, etc, etc, then we will scream at you at the drop of a hat.

Really, it's not a good place for a normal person to live. I visited Portland over the years, same deal.

I'm stuck in Phoenix which is a little too heat, sand, scorpions and strip malls for me. I hope to someday move to a place with four seasons and some green.

Is northern Idaho maybe the place? I love the climate and scenery of the northwest, but my experiences in Seattle make me leery.

[fearnofish]

Coeur d'Alene is NOTHING like Seattle in those manners. CDA is a lot more laid back than the cities you cited. It is mostly Republican, if that matters to you. Most of the "crazy lefty-liberals" are transplants but they notions hardly ever get any footing in North Idaho. It seems they try to make themself stand out from time to time but their numbers are very low comparitively.

[Sage of Sagle]

CDA (downtown) has a small contingent of artsy liberals (like downtown Sandpoint only larger), and Kootenai County only votes about 65% conservative (compared to 80%-plus for Bonner County and 85%-plus for Boundary County).

So if you hang out around Sherman Ave downtown, it will feel more like the moderate parts of Seattle metro (Bellevue/Redmond/Issaquah). If you live in 90% of North Idaho, it will feel extremely red-state, although in a more libertarian Ron Paul way than southeast Idaho (which is more republican party line).

One thing that surprised me when first moving to NID was how few conservative campaign stickers were on cars, although I saw a few Obama stickers here and there. What I found was that people here just assume you're conservative. So people on the left side of the political spectrum make a point to stand out.

I wouldn't say that CDA is AS conservative as Seattle is liberal. But you'll find it REALLY conservative compared to Seattle or Portland.

[MysticalDream]

I don't know about Coeur d'Alene, but people in Idaho, at least Boise, are about as wacky conservative as people in Western Oregon are wacky liberal. Like if you say you like to eat Organic food or think fast food is bad for you, people will throw a fit and curse you to hell. Also, even though wacky liberals annoy the heck out of me, I don't usually have to worry about them trying to kill me if I say something they don't agree with. Idaho rednecks are hostile to say the least. Basically, if you don't fit in with their mentality, they will treat you like you are piece of dirt.

Let's put it this way, arrogance and stupidity know no political alignment. You will find creepers of both kinds in both states.

I was really confused when I first came to Idaho. I thought it was a freedom-loving, conservative, God-fearing red state. I was shocked when I saw the attitudes that prevail here. I never thought I would feel happier to hide among liberals then conservatives. Basically, people in Idaho only believe in freedom if it is freedom they agree with. If you disagree with them, they will treat you like dog crap. People are not open-minded and accept different opinions. This is the same crap I had to deal with the PC liberal crowd in Portland, but really, I find people here way more polarizing.

I am politically conservative, but I have to do everything the locals do or I am treated like an invader from another country. Being Jewish, I also feel quite a bit of animosity. Basically, whatever I do is scrutinized 100 times more than a typical Idaho gentile-born person. I have learned to shut up about my religion and culture. Despite, the so-called non-racist attitude they claim to have, there is a mistrust and judgmental attitude for those who claim to be different in any way. Seriously, there is no sense of love or respect here.. I am pissed off at the hostile mentality. For example, if I shop at the health food store, I am a "******* tree-hugger". You may be dismayed about the Idaho mentality, even being a conservative raised in western OR/WA..

[pw72]

Boise has never seemed "wacky conservative" to me. The city itself is mixed, the suburbs definitely are more conservative.

So you hate Pullman, and now Boise. Perhaps you are in the wrong part of the country?

I'm just giving you a hard time. Actually, we may be pretty much alike.

[quenton]

Originally Posted by LS35a

I lived in Seattle for twenty years. It's long on scenic beauty but short on sane people.

Oh, it's terrible... you'll hate it, trust me.

[creeksitter]

Wow, Mystical, your post made me really glad I live in Appalachia. There's a lot to be said for the mind-yer-own business mentality.

[kimmradd]

I live in Southern California... the most insanely liberal idiots you can imagine. I cannot WAIT to get out of her and get with some like minded people. All of the people commenting on this post about the wacky conservatives are only convincing me that CDA is THE place for me to be! I was born and raised right here in So Cal and I am talked to and treated horribly because of my ultra conservative beliefs. I am an outcast here, and am ready to be among people who hold the same beliefs and ideals that I hold so dearly. I have been screamed at, I have had my car vandalized, and have been treated terribly. LIberals are some of the most hateful, poisonous people I can imagine. They are not the peace loving tree huggers they'd have you believe them to be.... they are mean hateful criminals who don't care about anybody else who does not believe in the same b.s. insane ideas they believe in. I want my kids OUT OF HERE. I want schools that don't teach liberal ideas and who don't pander to Spanish speaking illegal immigrants. I want English speaking conservatives and I would do anything to be able to move up there RIGHT NOW. As I type this, a police helicopter is circling outside of my home, on a bullhorn telling everybody to stay in their homes and lock their doors and windows because there is a suspect armed and dangerous on the lose out there... this is a WEEKLY occurrence in my ultra liberal neighborhood. Drugs, gangs and violent behavior. That's what is promoted in liberal cities. I'd love to live in a nice, safe town where there is no ghetto bird and my kids can actually ride bikes outside with neighborhood friends.

[MysticalDream]

Kimmradd.. This has less to do with liberalism and more to do with the culture of the people.. I agree that liberalism has its downfalls.. There is plenty of conservative states that have bad crime. Look at Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama. Despite being red states, the cities in those states are very crime-ridden, worse than California, even! Liberalism might dump salt on the wounds, like I think it is in California, sadly.

I prefer the conservatism in western Oregon/Washington to the hostile, almost-fascist like, do what we do or else mentality of Idaho. I don't know, but I hate being confined to a certain group of thoughts just as geos said. I really believe in the First Amendment, unlike many so-called conservative Idaho people do. Basically, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and free-thinking is absolutely not accepted here.

I, myself do not promote liberal ideas.. Let's just say I sounded exactly like you before I moved here.. I think anytime you have one group of people running the show, they tend to overstep their boundaries and start to enforce their ideologies on everyone else.

I am starting to learn the benefits of BALANCE.. Idaho is just too damning. There are plenty of conservative states where people are freedom loving and more accepting than Idaho. What can I say. I never felt the ultra-hostile mentality in Montana that I feel in Idaho. Montana seemed more accepting for some reason. Sadly, there is an element of fascism that is trying to colonize Kalispell area. Read about the PLE. I sure hope the dignified people of Montana can run out this element.

I do get very sick of political correctness and stupidity that happens in Oregon and there is no way I'd ever live in Southern California. Sadly, the hostility in Idaho, is BE REDNECK OR GET OUT.. Its like in Idaho we have "Unpolitical Correctness". If I can use that term. It's like if you say anything that sounds progressive, like talk about recycling, criticize GMO foods or fast food, people will hate you. It is the same, but even worse mentality I would face in Oregon for talking to liberals about illegal immigration.

ON another note, kimmradd, if you are conservative Christian I think you may find Idaho a good fit. Being Jewish, I am not welcomed here, however, despite me being more conservative on paper, than many Idahoans, actually.

You should have seen the reaction people made on the Boise thread, when I said the girls downtown were dressed provocatively. Yeah, I am definitely old-fashioned and religious. However, I wasn't allowed to comment on how Idaho women dress. That is bad, bad, bad.. I was gravely insulted. If I said the same thing in "LIBERAL" Portland, it would have just been laughed off mostly. Maybe, I would have been given at worst, the anal-Portland cold-shoulder.

I wish I could write more and express myself better, but I know there is more types of conservatism out there, then plain "ultra-redneck conservatism".

[NW Crow]

MD, If Kalispell and Coeur d'Alene are not just right for you and you are looking in western Washington, you might consider Lake Stevens, east of Everett. More liberal and more suburban than those two but it might be reasonably close to the mix you want.