What city is the best for a progressive to live in ?

[steve2470]

From my limited knowledge admittedly, it's Berkeley, CA. What do you think ?

on edit,fwiw:

Study Ranks America's Most Liberal and Conservative Cities

Aug 16, 2005 12:00 AM

A new nationwide study released by the nonpartisan Bay Area Center for Voting Research (BACVR) ranks the political leanings of every American city and finds that Detroit, Michigan is the most liberal and Provo, Utah the most conservative

A new nationwide study released by the nonpartisan Bay Area Center for Voting Research (BACVR) ranks the political leanings of every American city and finds that Detroit, Michigan is the most liberal and Provo, Utah the most conservative.

In all, the BACVR researchers examined voting patterns of 237 American cities with populations of over 100,000 and ranked them each on liberal and conservative scales.

The list of Americas most liberal cities is dominated by cities with large African American populations that are concentrated in the Northeast, Midwest and California.

[mnhtnbb]

1. Chapel Hill, NC--known as the Berkeley of the South--without CA housing prices

or traffic.

:applause:

[JuniperLea]

2. Berkeley... San Francisco... Los Angeles...

Probably in that order.

I love the media in SFO... at least the small taste I had this past January. It was shocking. The media in Los Angeles doesn't represent the people, that's for sure. It really stinks.

[mitchtv]

5. generaly agree

Sonoma county/Marin/and Oakland also

[JuniperLea]

28. Yep... now that you mention it...

The Pacific Northwest in general is pretty cool.

[zipplewrath]

6. Portland Ore?

Might be a tad cheaper and you get the rivers too.

[Wickerman]

3. I suggest Dallas, Charlotte, or, Oklahoma City

they need you most.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/general-u-s/81800-metro-areas-most-evangelical-conservative-traditional-3.html

[steve2470]

4. meh no thanks nt

[mitchtv]

8. contemplating suicide

add alabama for fun

[Wickerman]

13. Fair enough

this study says Detroit is the most liberal:

http://govpro.com/content/gov_imp_31439/

1 Detroit Michigan

2 Gary Indiana

3 Berkeley California

4 Washington, D.C. Dist. of Columbia

5 Oakland California

6 Inglewood California

7 Newark New Jersey

8 Cambridge Massachusetts

9 San Francisco California

10 Flint Michigan

-more--

[DainBramaged]

7. Austin, Texas

I have friends there, if it wasn't for the fire ants, scorpions, cockroaches as big as a bus, random gunfire, 1 bar for every 45 people, and a lot of intense heat from April through October, it'd be a great place to live.

[Javaman]

30. Hey I live in Austin!!

Because it has fire ants, scorpions, cockroaches as big as a bus, random gunfire (what city doesn't?), 1 bar for every 45 people (we like a good time!), and a lot of intense heat from April through October!!!

[End Of The Road]

34. I live in Austin, too - BUT

Travis County is one of the few blue counties in a sea of red. Many progressives are completely frustrated here.

[hobbit709]

50. SOUTH Austin rules.

[AsahinaKimi]

9. San Francisco

Berkeley is kinda small, and if Oakland was not near by, other then the University there, not many people would know about it. San Francisco has a HISTORY of being different. I love this city, despite there are a few who have moved here with the idea of trying to change the city from the inside out. Not going to happen. This place has spirit! SO much spirit, Well..we should have our own Shinto Shrine.. just sayin!


Progressive? What other city would name a cove after Willie Mccovey?

[driver8]

16. I would love to live in San Francisco.

In my opinion, one of the greatest cities in the world!!

[TNDemo]

49. Except that SF is so dang cold

My son lives there and comes back here for a visit in the summer just so he can good and warm. Says he prefers our weather. And as Mark Twain said - the coldest winter I ever spent was my summer in San Francisco. I remember when we were touring Berkeley it was late July and I had brought a sweater but was freezing (and during the day). I remember seeing people wearing winter coats and toboggans and realizing I had no concept of coats in July. Lots of great stuff in SF but very expensive and very crowded.

[driver8]

54. I went to a baseball game at Candlestick park in June a few years ago.

We had to wear winter jackets it was so cold!

I was just up there last weekend -- love that city!

(You are right about it being expensive, though.).

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

10. Provo and Detroit?

I smell a football game.

[PDJane]

12. Bern and Zurich in Switzerland.

[Capitalocracy]

11. Lawrence, Kansas is nice

if you don't mind a town instead of a city

[damntexdem]

14. If you can afford it, San Francisco.

But Berzerkley is a close second.

For less money, believe it or not: Oakland.

Santa Cruz would be nice, too.

[Gaedel]

15. Hey, Detroit

The housing prices are a lot more affordable than Berkeley.

Very, very chic and liberal.

[TriMera]

17. Seattle, WA.

If you don't mind a little rainB-)

[GreenPartyVoter]

26. And it's pretty green and environmentally conscious from what I've heard.

[maxsolomon]

53. to a degree

we won't ban plastic bags, we're spending money we don't have to build a highway tunnel under downtown, we're replacing a 4 lane floating bridge with another that doesn't add a dedicated light rail lane, we keep raising taxes on 'sinful' items; liquor, candy, & soda, all without taxing the rich, we're decades behind on light rail infrastructure, cops keep killing people (and vice-versa), and we have nanny-state laws that prevent strip clubs from selling liquor.

but it is literally green here.

[RevStPatrick]

18. I've only ever lived in S.F and NYC.

Felt comfortable in both.

[old mark]

19. I lived in Berkeley in the mid 70's and thought it sucked. I nominate Paris....nt

[steve2470]

21. May I ask why ? nt

[old mark]

62. The Berkeley I lived in till sometime in '75 was extremely rigid. Those who did not

agree with the mainstream were not acceptable and for me at least it was a rather foolish and egotistical and un-free place, very conforming in its non-conformity.

I enjoyed a lot of it - the Felafel stands and Rudy's smoothies around the university and I LOVED Fosters frozen bananas and the German restaurant on Telegraph Ave. There was a bar called the Berkeley Square that was fun, and didn't seem to take itself as seriously as most of the area.
And Berkeley had a very interesting used gun shop.
I did play some good music with a group in North Beach in SF, but just a pickup band.
I also met Jim Jones of Kool Aid fame on the Sproul Plaza at the UC.

Mostly I was not happy there and I was glad to leave.

I found the residents overly concerned with self image, and smug and very superficial.

mark

[burrowowl]

45. Paris Texas ?

;-)

Just joking. Paris France is great, I lived there for 20 years.

[WI_DEM]

20. Madison, WI where I live is pretty good.

[provis99]

44. great town. Plus the best bratwurst in the Midwest.

[NeedleCast]

22. The best city in the states?

Gotta be honest with you, the most progressive city isn't going to be found anywhere in this country.

I'd vote for Austin, TX though. Very blue. Lots of night life, good food, fun festivals, outgoing city, near lots of diverse flora/fauna.

[CatholicEdHead]

23. St Paul, MN, and Madison WI are pretty liberal

[Lifelong Protester]

32. I'd agree! I was born in the former, and the latter is my state

capital now. And I love them both. The former governor of Wisconsin, the (R) Tommy Thompson used to say that "Madison was a liberal island" surrounded by 'reality' (I'm paraphrasing here, but you get the idea, and if he was 'agin' it, you all would be for it, trust me.)

[CatholicEdHead]

47. So true

I have heard Madison as attacked as "The People's Republic of Madison" or Dane County in other parts of Wisconsin.

[LWolf]

24. I've never lived in a big city, although I suppose

the San Fernando Valley was getting there when I left it behind a few decades ago.

I've also never lived ANYWHERE progressive. Always Red. Always conservative.

[librechik]

25. Denver/Boulder is pretty good, esp with the mass transit in Denver

the cops are neanderthals in Denver, but otherwise it can be sweet generally. However, if you are an artist, I recommend Santa Fe or Albuquerque--liberal but very much more open to creativity than stodgy ol Denver, which tends to think art is something you put over the couch.

[provis99]

42. to be a cop in Denver, you need a Gestapo membership card.

Not worth it, even if some of the locals are liberals.

[bvar22]

27. Probably Portland, or Missoula.

Minneapolis is a wonderful bastion of Liberal Democrats, multi-ethnic delights, bike friendly, healthy, Wellstonian Democrats.

If you REALLY want to help the cause,
move to the Deep Red South and help change it.
It is beautiful, fertile, plenty of clean water, low cost of living, long growing season,
and belongs to everybody.

In 2006, we moved from Minneapolis to the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas.

The South is Bluer than it used to be.
We feel our vote weighs more here than it did in Minneapolis.
Changing minds one vote at a time.

[LiberalLoner]

29. You made me smile by mentioning Missoula! Spent the best years of

my childhood there and still consider it home, although I will probably never live there again...

Very progressive, charming little city!

[bvar22]

39. I've been there,

...and my wife lived there and ran a restaurant during her college years.

We looked for property there and in Portland area in 2004, but the "developers" and others had already priced us out of those markets.

BTW: Read any James Lee Burke?

[NorthCarolina]

31. Charlotte, NC. I love it here. eom

[TlalocW]

33. Tulsa, Oklahoma

Just kidding.

TlalocW

[NightWatcher]

35. Amsterdam, Rotterdam , Brugges????

[elehhhhna]

61. + 1,000

[safeinOhio]

36. Ann Arbor has to be

close to Detroit. referred to Moscow on the Huron to others in Michigan.

[steve2470]

37. funny ! nt

[nashville_brook]

51. posted in wrong place - delete

[MadHound]

38. Rather than clustering all the liberals in one area,

Spread out over the country, convert your neighbors. I moved out into a huge red county, and while I am surrounded by conservatives, they are basically decent people who are willing to listen if you approach them in the right way. Hell, I even wound up getting more than a few votes for Obama.

[bvar22]

46. !

:thumbsup:

They key is "approach them in the right way".
Anyone who goes there (comes here?) with an attitude of "Changing those ignorant Red Neck Bigots because I'm smarter and know better" is going to be met with Catastrophic Failure.

Proselytizing, Insulting, Arguing, and Oppositional Stances won't work.
The subtle routes are much more effective.
Kindness, Tolerance, Being a Good Neighbor, caring for The Land, asking FOR and Accepting Help even if you don't need it, showing Up when others need help (First Responder/Fire Dept), and finding areas where we are the same work best.
Absolutely AVOID the Wedge Issues and refocus on Economic concerns immediately.

My wife and I were effective at giving some of our neighbors permission to quietly vote FOR the Democrat in the last election based solely on our acceptance as "Good People", and Economic considerations. We changed more votes here than if we stilled lived in Big Blue Minneapolis.

[provis99]

40. UC-Berkeley has the largest College Republican organization in America.

frankly, the best place for a progressive these days is in a cabin, waiting for the Republican-induced Armageddon to blow over.

[smalll]

41. Probably places too expensive these days for most of us to live in. /nt

[madrchsod]

43. madison , wisconsin

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

48. Portland, ME n/t

[GreenPartyVoter]

55. Agreed :^)

[nashville_brook]

52. if anyone knows of a progressive area in Florida, please let me know! :)

[Fla Dem]

57. ROFLMAO........Florida and progressive in same sentence is a joke.

Moved here from Boston 11 years ago and still feel like I moved to a different country. Met some kindred spiris, but most of the people my age (senior) are so wacked out right wing it's depressing.

[steve2470]

58. city of Gainesville (University of Florida) might be best bet nt

[crazyjoe]

56. Venezuela

[Barack2theFuture]

59. Weasel's Bunghole, Oklahoma

Kind of red. They could use a good liberal.

[Cairycat]

60. Iowa

First in the nation caucuses mean you have a chance to meet presidential candidates early and often. Then, at caucus time, you can have some influence over who keeps running. Iowa is blue in the east and red in the west, so you can have your pick. Good schools, low cost of living. The weather takes more than a little getting used to, and though the countryside is very lovely here, you have to be open to its beauty.

[mmonk]

63. Amsterdam?