Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: Mableton, GA USA (NW Atlanta suburb, 4 miles OTP)
11,334 posts, read 26,092,084 times
Reputation: 3995
Advertisements
Quote:
Originally Posted by GBCommenter
As for weather, 2 million+ in the metro area call this home and manage to get by, so dress appropriately and you too can adjust. Whether you want to or not is another question. I am a native and, to be honest, hate it to the point of considering throwing in the towel. Be ready for a drastic change, however, especially if next winter is more typical of a MN winter than this one was...
As long as you're able to accept a relatively high standard of living for all, relatively functional state and local governments, high voter turnout, a hefty dose of environmentalism (because we live in such a naturally beautiful state, it's just part of our culture), and the idea that children in poor parts of the state deserve as good a public education as children in rich areas, I'm sure we can accept you.
Man, I restrained myself the first few times I read these totally unnecessary potshots at the South... but please--spare us. A relatively functional state government? Really? What was that about a shutdown last summer? The idea that children in poor parts of the state deserve as good a public education as children in rich areas? The moral superiority in that statement is incredibly off-putting. People, especially people who have lived their entire lives in the Upper Midwest should really stop ignorant statements about the education systems of states with vastly different demographic make-ups and facing vastly different cultural obstacles in education.
That said, I think the OP will do just fine in Minnesota.
Last edited by southernsmoke; 03-10-2012 at 10:24 AM..
Location: Mableton, GA USA (NW Atlanta suburb, 4 miles OTP)
11,334 posts, read 26,092,084 times
Reputation: 3995
Quote:
Originally Posted by southernsmoke
Man, I restrained myself the first few times I read these totally unnecessary potshots at the South... but please--spare us. A relatively functional state government? Really? What was that about a shutdown last summer? The idea that children in poor parts of the state deserve as good a public education as children in rich areas? The moral superiority in that statement is incredibly off-putting. People, especially people who have lived their entire lives in the Upper Midwest should really stop ignorant statements about the education systems of states with vastly different demographic make-ups and facing vastly different cultural obstacles in education.
These are my own observations as a native Minnesotan based on what I have seen in the last seven years living in the Atlanta metro:
While it isn't really fair to lump all of "the south" into one monolithic entity, just like it isn't fair to lump all of "the midwest" together, I think the Atlanta area and State of Georgia both have a lot to learn from the Twin Cities and the State of Minnesota, especially in the areas of regional cooperation and education.
Whether or not that applies to the rest of the south I have no idea, but from what I've seen, the potshots people are taking up here are not inaccurate. Some areas of the south are vastly different from others, of course. But folks down here seem to be very slow to adopt ANYTHING from other areas of the country, and that sort of NIH attitude means that change is a very slow process. The huge level of balkanization in GA makes it even worse, since even an accepted new idea often gets bogged down by NIMBY attitudes and an overlying belief that large-scale cooperation is somehow "socialist" in nature.
Sometimes I wonder how this area functions at all.
Yeah, taxes are a little higher. But education and services are better, and our parks are prettier. And because we tend to get paid better here, we can easily afford the difference, and still have more left over to put back into the economy, thus keeping more people employed. People with spending money creates demand, and demand creates jobs.
Whether that's exorbitant or not is a matter of opinion, but it's hard to argue with results.
I'm not sure what puzzles me more: 1) those who seem to believe they are not capable of deciding how to spend their money and live their life, so they trust a government bureaucrat to decide it for them, naively hoping the bureaucrat will somehow not be corrupted by lobbyists or political power, or 2) the stubborn unsubstantiated insistence that higher taxes in and of itself CAUSE higher standard of living (as opposed to other elements that may exist here). If that were absolutely the case, then a place such as Detroit should be a Shangri-La and California should not have tens of billions of dollars of debt.
Shoot, Minnesota should not have perpetual budget shortfalls to bridge seemingly every legislative session and the $787 billion federal "stimulus" should have unemployment nearly non-existent as opposed to the 9.8% or so it currently is...
For that matter, if those advocating the unsubstantiated belief higher taxes CAUSE higher standard of living actually believed those words, then put your money where your mouth is and advocate for flat 100% income tax rates. Everyone give all your money (and that includes the advocates) to government and let the government dictate where you will live, what you will eat, what clothes you wear, and everything else. My suspicion is the advocates will grow strangely quiet on that front.
More to the OP's questions, as far as the belief that Minneapolis pays so much more than Memphis area for jobs, so we can "easily afford the difference", Moderator cut: link removed, competitor site
seems to disagree. When inputting under their Cost of Living Calculator stating old location is Memphis and new location is Minneapolis it states, based on a theoretical $50,000 annual income:
"The cost of living in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN is 29.9% higher than in Memphis, TN. Therefore, you would have to earn a salary of $64,945 to maintain your current standard of living...Employers in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN typically pay 12.2% more than employers in Memphis, TN. Therefore, if you take the same type of job in the same type of company in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN you are likely to earn $56,089."
Admitting this is for the Memphis area in general, not specifically Southaven so not necessarily a complete apples-to-apples comparison, I posit this - If the OP is able to find a job that will allow for a comparable standard of living in a more expensive area and likes what Minneapolis offers (and, in spite of my disdain for our taxes, it does offer positives - just a question of how those positives actually come about), then definitely consider moving here. Just be aware there is more than meets the eye to the higher standard of living we may enjoy.
These are my own observations as a native Minnesotan based on what I have seen in the last seven years living in the Atlanta metro:
While it isn't really fair to lump all of "the south" into one monolithic entity, just like it isn't fair to lump all of "the midwest" together, I think the Atlanta area and State of Georgia both have a lot to learn from the Twin Cities and the State of Minnesota, especially in the areas of regional cooperation and education.
Whether or not that applies to the rest of the south I have no idea, but from what I've seen, the potshots people are taking up here are not inaccurate. Some areas of the south are vastly different from others, of course. But folks down here seem to be very slow to adopt ANYTHING from other areas of the country, and that sort of NIH attitude means that change is a very slow process. The huge level of balkanization in GA makes it even worse, since even an accepted new idea often gets bogged down by NIMBY attitudes and an overlying belief that large-scale cooperation is somehow "socialist" in nature.
Sometimes I wonder how this area functions at all.
I think people take offense at the "oh hey, we're from Minnesota and we know better than you backwards people" attitude--it's somewhat of a vicious cycle (the refusal to accept new ideas from other regions of the country) because even if Minnesotans did have some worthwhile contribution to Georgia's education system, people aren't going to be terribly receptive to anybody who acts like that.
And oh by the way, Atlanta is 54% black; Minneapolis is 70% white (and only 17% black); St. Paul is 67% white (only 13% black). I don't want to get into racial issues too much--after all, there is no single issue about which ignorant (white) people love to rip the South--but that is a huge cultural difference, and a major challenge for Atlanta's education system. And for what it's worth, Minnesota's black-white racial achievement gap is significantly worse than Georgia's. See NAEP - Achievement Gaps. Adds a whole level of complexity to that little "we think our poorest kids are just as important as our richest kids" schtick.
Last edited by southernsmoke; 03-11-2012 at 10:22 PM..
If anyone happen to be familiar with the corners of Snelling & West Juno Avenues in St. Paul, could you please tell me the name of the townhouse complex that is across the street from M&I Bank and Twin Cities Deaf Church? The whole complex is between Juno Ave. and Niles St. on Snelling Ave.
I was recommended by a word of mouth but that person doesn't remember the number or the name.
I tried to look it up on Google Map via satellite; it's very luxurious and attractive but I couldn't get close enough to see any name or specific address.
If anyone happen to be familiar with the corners of Snelling & West Juno Avenues in St. Paul, could you please tell me the name of the townhouse complex that is across the street from M&I Bank and Twin Cities Deaf Church? The whole complex is between Juno Ave. and Niles St. on Snelling Ave.
I was recommended by a word of mouth but that person doesn't remember the number or the name.
I tried to look it up on Google Map via satellite; it's very luxurious and attractive but I couldn't get close enough to see any name or specific address.
That's exactly the one I'm talking about. Darn, they are not rentals. It would be nice to rent something like that in safe St. Paul neighborhood. Any suggestions for one like that for rentals?
I'm not sure what puzzles me more: 1) those who seem to believe they are not capable of deciding how to spend their money and live their life, so they trust a government bureaucrat to decide it for them, naively hoping the bureaucrat will somehow not be corrupted by lobbyists or political power, or 2) the stubborn unsubstantiated insistence that higher taxes in and of itself CAUSE higher standard of living (as opposed to other elements that may exist here). If that were absolutely the case, then a place such as Detroit should be a Shangri-La and California should not have tens of billions of dollars of debt.
Shoot, Minnesota should not have perpetual budget shortfalls to bridge seemingly every legislative session and the $787 billion federal "stimulus" should have unemployment nearly non-existent as opposed to the 9.8% or so it currently is...
For that matter, if those advocating the unsubstantiated belief higher taxes CAUSE higher standard of living actually believed those words, then put your money where your mouth is and advocate for flat 100% income tax rates. Everyone give all your money (and that includes the advocates) to government and let the government dictate where you will live, what you will eat, what clothes you wear, and everything else. My suspicion is the advocates will grow strangely quiet on that front.
More to the OP's questions, as far as the belief that Minneapolis pays so much more than Memphis area for jobs, so we can "easily afford the difference", Moderator cut: link removed, competitor site
seems to disagree. When inputting under their Cost of Living Calculator stating old location is Memphis and new location is Minneapolis it states, based on a theoretical $50,000 annual income:
"The cost of living in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN is 29.9% higher than in Memphis, TN. Therefore, you would have to earn a salary of $64,945 to maintain your current standard of living...Employers in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN typically pay 12.2% more than employers in Memphis, TN. Therefore, if you take the same type of job in the same type of company in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN you are likely to earn $56,089."
Admitting this is for the Memphis area in general, not specifically Southaven so not necessarily a complete apples-to-apples comparison, I posit this - If the OP is able to find a job that will allow for a comparable standard of living in a more expensive area and likes what Minneapolis offers (and, in spite of my disdain for our taxes, it does offer positives - just a question of how those positives actually come about), then definitely consider moving here. Just be aware there is more than meets the eye to the higher standard of living we may enjoy.
My wife was born and raised in Southaven MS. She started her RN career in Memphis. Her pay here in St. Paul is 29.9% higher than it would be in Memphis right now.
That's exactly the one I'm talking about. Darn, they are not rentals. It would be nice to rent something like that in safe St. Paul neighborhood. Any suggestions for one like that for rentals?
There are a few complexes like that in Apple Valley that have rentals available-rental by owner though.
There is a rental complex right across the river from Fort Snelling on Highway 5 that is pretty nice--can't remember the name-the Point or something?? They are pretty new. I have a feeling that with the hits you are getting on your search that they might be out of your price range though, but maybe not.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
