I can't picture weather as too much of a problem, either now or in the future. Actually if anything weather and climate might be a plus for here compared to other places. Look at how much less problematic winters are here compared to places just a couple hundred miles north.moorlander wrote:Our weather is not a problem, not the problem.
imperialmog wrote:The example I keep thinking is Birmingham 1960s. They are still dealing with what happened there in that era and the reactionary tone they did there with Bull Connor's actions.goat314 wrote:I think St. Louis was a very fragile region and at a critical inflection point even before Ferguson. Ferguson definitely pulled the scab off of major wounds in regards to race, class, economics, civic and governmental dysfunction etc., but now what is more troubling for me is the total lack of movement on the change front. Its been almost a year since Ferguson, but despite the ticket writing bill what else has been done? It seems like there is little recognition from our leaders that St. Louis need BIG change if we ever want to be a competitive region again. I actually think it will get worse before it gets better for one reason..FERGUSON..unfortunately that will likely define us for a generation. Could you imagine a young person (especially an ethnic minority) having to choose between a job offer in St. Louis vs. Indianapolis, Columbus, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Nashville etc. (not to mention Denver, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston Seattle, any major coastal city etc.)? Ferguson alone would be a major deterrent, because the perception would be hmmm...shouId I take a job in a progressive, growing, clean, modern city or a dysfunctional, high crime, racist, cultural backwater, stagnant/declining central city? nd even though that's not the whole story, perception often becomes reality.
The other issue is that even if the leaders think that big changes are needed, the people may refuse to change. And if that is the case what can you do? I've seen more than a few examples of a reactionary backlash in people's views entrenching in parochialism and whatnot.
That whole meeting at Francis Howell was posted online at the time. Worth a listen if you can find it and have the time. Maybe Stl Public Radio had it?mattonarsenal wrote:Pretty honest and unflattering view of St. Louis in this week's episode of This American Life. Yes, it is St. Charles, but they never say it and I'm not sure it would be much different elsewhere in St. Louis (or most of suburban America). And, they briefly try to make this point. But it is "St. Louis" at the mic, and its not pretty...
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-a ... -live-with
The episode is a detailed look at the Normandy students transfering to Francis Howell School District as a proxy for America not wanting to deal with defacto segregated schools and the poor performance of school districts in predominately low-income black neighborhoods.
Definitely unflattering, but in fairness the narrator/reporter qualifies it all by saying something like "This could have just as easily happened in Boston. Or New York. Or anywhere..."mattonarsenal wrote:Pretty honest and unflattering view of St. Louis in this week's episode of This American Life. Yes, it is St. Charles, but they never say it and I'm not sure it would be much different elsewhere in St. Louis (or most of suburban America). And, they briefly try to make this point. But it is "St. Louis" at the mic, and its not pretty...
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-a ... -live-with
The episode is a detailed look at the Normandy students transfering to Francis Howell School District as a proxy for America not wanting to deal with defacto segregated schools and the poor performance of school districts in predominately low-income black neighborhoods.
