Would you live in Georgia?

[Doctor_J]

I have a lead on a job in GA, that's reasonably live. It's near, but not in, Atlanta. Given that that state just passed a law to try to keep blacks from voting, would that state be livable? Or is reinstatement of slavery just around the corner?

[RebelOne]

1. Well, I live in Georgia, just northwest of Atlanta.

And it is a great place to live. So far, I haven't seen any signs of reinstatement of slavery.

[roguevalley]

12. I hear the cities, the big ones, are progressive, no?

[RebelOne]

59. It is fairly progressive in Atlanta itself, but not in the outlying

areas. Where I live northwest of Atlanta, it's pretty much of a red area.

[Sequoia]

2. No beer sales, etc. until after noon.

Yep, that's right you heard me. At midnight no alcohol sales until after church on Sunday. At least it was like that recently. Have family that live there but the driving is horrid. Pretty city though and at least you have things to do.

[Doctor_J]

4. The job would actually be in Rome

and blue laws don't really bother me. I'm just worried that the sstate is too strange for me, what with overthrowing the Voting Rights Act.

[ulysses]

27. I think Rome is pretty conservative.

Couple of fundie-esque Bible colleges there. But it's pretty.

I've lived in GA for going on 15 years. I like some areas better that others, but on the whole, it's not so crazy.

[William769]

5. All of South east Kentucky has dry Counties

no alcohol at all, but thats doesn't mean it can't be had.

[kentuck]

11. Pineville just recently voted to go wet...

First time in 60 years, I think .

[William769]

18. I read that in the Middlesboro Daily news awhile ago

But were there not stipulations?

[RebelOne]

6. No alcohol sales at all on Sunday except in restaurants.

[William769]

3. I must have missed

"that that state just passed a law to try to keep blacks from voting" :shrug:

I used to live in Dahlonega (60 miles N.E. of Atlanta, very pretty), I may go back someday.

[Doctor_J]

9. That Poll Tax thing

very strange, very backward, very heavy-handed

[William769]

16. Can you please explain this to me.

I have no Idea what it is.

[Doctor_J]

19. my error - see reply 17

[William769]

21. thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

:)

[kentuck]

7. Georgia is a beautiful state...

and is where the heart and soul of this nation is located... It is the center of the South and all its history.

[peekaloo]

8. Athens.

[napi21]

10. I live in Georgia, about 45 mins north of Atlanta.

It's a nice place to live. The law you're referring to requires all voters to present a "state issued" photo ID. It used to be you could present a utility bill or a number of other forms of ID. The complaint is that there are many poor, rural people who would find it very difficult to get to a location that issues a state ID, and the cost of just a picture ID is $20 which places an undue burdon on some of our citizens. I believe this new law is still being reviewed by a court.

The only complaint I have about living in Ga. is that Dems are definately in the MINORITY! I did however find a fairly large group of very nice Dems during the last campaign. We had monthly meetups and still remain friends.

[Jawja]

30. I've always had to present a photo ID

in Georgia to vote.

Don't know how this takes away the voting rights of minorities. :shrug:

[napi21]

44. The argument is that most poor, rural people are minorities.

The don't have a car, and find it difficult, if not impossible to get to a drivers license facility to get a state ID card. Aparently the State has closed a lot of the sites. I know some Kroger stores used to have a place inside where you could get your DL license renewed at least. I don't know if you could get an ID there or not. The other complaint is that the cost is $20.

I can't drive anymore and have a State ID. It was a PIA to get the first one because the lines were VERY long and I had to wait almost 4 hours! But it was much quicker when I got it renewed this past summer.

The other complaint I heard was that since this law requires a STATE issued ID, they will accept student ID's from UGA, but NOT from some of the private colleges (many of which are black colleges.)

I can understand the photo ID requirement, but I guess I don't understand why it must be a State issued one.

[RebelOne]

32. I live in Cherokee County, and I don't think there are any Dems

here. At least, I haven't met any. Cherokee is totally red.

[bunkerbuster1]

13. Depends on where you're coming from.

It was a big adjustment coming from the Northeast, for me, but I've managed.

Still shocking, though, just how HUGH!!!1!! fundamentalist Christianity is around here. You never stop being reminded of it.

You say the gig isn't actually in Atlanta. Most of the 'burbs outside of Atlanta are very, very red.

Not saying they'll always be that way--there are plenty more where you and I came from--but you have to deal with it at present.

[Lochloosa]

28. Interesting web site while googling Rome, GA

http://www.romegeorgia.com/

be sure and click on "Under God"

[EstimatedProphet]

38. Sieg heil

[bunkerbuster1]

40. Disgusting stuff.

Can't say it surprises me though.

[davidinalameda]

45. great attitude

It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore I have a very hard time understanding why there is such a mess about having "In God We Trust" on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance. Why don't we just tell the other 14% to Sit Down and SHUT UP!!!

[Doctor_J]

48. COuntry is also 70% white - should we tell the "minority" to

sit down and shut up?

Country is 51% female. Maybe they should tell us to sit down and shut up. :eyes:

This is the kind of thing I worry about when contemplating a move to the south.

[AspenRose]

62. Did you look under "rotten politics?"

Yikes

[fujiyama]

65. That's fucked up

Sit down and shut up?

How tolerant.

[MercutioATC]

14. It's an ID law, not a "law to try to keep blacks from voting".

I realize that ID laws aren't popular here, but there seems to be a big difference to me.

[Doctor_J]

17. You're right, that's different

I thought it was a Poll Tax type thing. I still worry about living in a place that sees Smirk as being the guy who will lead the country somewhere great.

[MercutioATC]

20. Some people like to call ID laws "Poll taxes"...

...because there's usually a nominal fee involved in obtaining an ID.

...unfortunately most of these same people wouldn't back a Federal ID, even if it was provided at no charge.


Catch-22, anybody?



That said, my father lives in Atlanta and he's been very happy there.

[Divernan]

15. It is brutally hot in the summer-can you afford 24/7 air conditioning?

Have you ever lived in a very hot climate? When I went there for a week for the Olympic Games, it was referred to as Hotlanta. We were constantly drinking bottled water to stay hydrated, wore these frozen water thingies in scarves around our necks and gratefully parked ourselves in every one of the many mist tents on the public streets and venue sites. Oh, and used umbrellas to protect us from the sun when we sat in outdoors stadiums. Atlanta has some great restaurants, a nice museum, hub for Delta making for travel convenience, beautiful old neighborhoods. However, you won't be in the city and could find yourself stuck in an extremely red, conservative community. I would check out the area where you'd be living - look at their political landscape. It is, after all, the state that rewarded that draft-dodging slandering jerk, Saxby Chambliss for his unconscionable political attacks on Max Clelland.

I have a friend who had worked most of her professional life in D.C. and Philadelphia, with a little time in Charleston and Houston. She liked all those areas. She recently took what she thought would be a dream job in south Florida and is very unhappy - just not the urban activities and amenities that she now realizes were very important to her quality of life.

[Sgent]

31. Good advice in general

But I would point out living in North Mississippi (about the same lat as Atlanta) that my summer bill is higher due to AC, but I use very little heat.

Most homes in the area are heated with electric, as the difference in cost for a boiler or feul based system just isn't worth it.

[RebelOne]

35. But at least our summer only lasts a few months.

I moved up here from South Florida where summer is year 'round. And you don't know what a brutally hot summer is until you have been in South Florida. It's not so much the heat, but the high humidity will do you in. People complain about the humidity here in Georgia, but they don't know what real humidity is.

[demnan]

22. My brother and his wife just retired in NW Georgia

They got a beautiful big house about 70 miles NW of Atlanta, for the same money as their one-story bungalow in SW Florida, so if all other factors work out for you, I think that you'd be moving into a buyer's market in real estate.

[Nutmegger]

23. I have relatives who live in Georgia

Kennesaw to be exact. Very nice state / area. And it's true what they say about southern hospitality; the nicest people I have ever met.:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[tenshi816]

54. Isn't Kennesaw the place that passed a law

some years back requiring every resident to own a gun? Or is that an urban myth? Either way, it even made the news in the UK.

[RebelOne]

55. Yes, the law is still on the books, but not enforced.

Kennesaw has one of the lowest crime rates in the metro Atlanta area because of that law. I lived there when I first moved to Georgia in 1989.

[bunkerbuster1]

60. It's a silly, silly law.

You're required to own a gun, unless of course you don't want to.

[Nutmegger]

61. Wow - I never heard of this!

Well, the people are so nice it's hard to believe that they would own guns!

[ladjf]

24. I live in Georgia. The situation here is similar to the other

red Southern states. Segregation, not by race but, by party affiliation is being reconstituted.
In the 19th century, the whites in the South regained political power by systematically making sure that the blacks could not vote. Today in the South and elsewhere the exact same type of thing is happening. Yes, Democrats can still vote. But, everything possible is being done to minimize the effectiveness of the Dem votes, i.e. gerrymandering, ID voter laws, rigged voting machines and various other nefarious operations.

In the South today, and that would have to include Ohio, the Republicans are the same group that rigged politics in the 19th Century. All the rest of us are being denied our Democratic rights. Yes, we can still vote, but in a rigged process that erases your vote. I live in a county in GA that had not a single locale Democratic politician. You are in with a "W" sticker on your car. But, if you put a Kerry sticker on you car,you might get your window knocked out. Political thuggery.

[murray hill farm]

25. I live in Georgia most of the year now.

Spend, usually, the colder monthes in Mexico, but i really like it here..i live in Brunswick..which is nice for the beaches, etc....and not all that cold in the winter..although the summers take some getting used to..the heat is horrid..ha! I was warned before moving here about the southern fundamental baptists, etc., but have not found it to be a problem at all...no church visitors trying to convert or such..at least so far. Whereever you live...even in Georgia, you will find like minded people if you look for them...i have here...and they are glad to find you too. The area of Georgia you are talking about is really beautiful...and not all that far from Ashville,NC...where you will find a wonderful area of artists and way left liberal thinkers if you feel the need to immerse yourself completely...on occassion.

[Divernan]

26. Glad you're around, Mexicoxpat, after that hurricane.

I was offline for awhile right after that and I know people were waiting to hear from you.

[murray hill farm]

29. HI..and thanks!

I came back to Georgia near the end of November...when most of the repairs were almost completed on my house on Isla Mujeres. I am headed back down the second week in Feb to check it all out...and to stay for a few months. It meant more than words could ever say that i had sooooooo much support during the hurricane from all of you here at DU. Thanks!

[Dob Bole]

33. I live in Georgia...wow.

Reinstatement of slavery? Are you serious?

I'm kind of mixed on whether you should come to Georgia. I think it's a great state...with some problems, but overall a great state. But if you seriously have those kind of preconceived notions about our state, maybe you shouldn't come.

[wishlist]

34. 27% of population is black and proportionally represented in government

Last I checked at least 27% of the Georgia population is black and they are represented in about that proportion in government positions (both elected and merit) so I think suggestions of extreme racism are highly exaggerated.

Here is profile of Atlanta's mayor:

http://www.atlantaga.gov/Mayor/Meet.aspx

[EstimatedProphet]

36. I have lived in GA, in Atlanta and Columbus

Atlanta's very liveable, so long as you like traffic. Columbus was like a Baptist revival made into a town.

[sandnsea]

37. Lemme get this straight

You're from Illinois, which has plenty of racial problems of its own, with a Native American mascot as an avatar; and you're wondering about slavery in Georgia??? That's kind of a pot-kettle moment, doncha think?

The south is different, clannish different, tradition different, slower, more mannerly. And yes there is racism. But then my extended family is from St Louis, and it's different there too. It's all what one chooses to adjust to I suppose.

[jarab]

39. Lived in Gwinnett County and Auburn GA for 2 years ...

Miss it very much now, too.

...O...

[Cleita]

41. I don't like most of the southern states because of the climate.

The tropical humidity and big bugs that thrive in those climates keep me out of them. I have never worried about the locals anywhere I live. When people get too insular and homogenized it's time for them to get some outsiders in there to challenge their ideas. You might be surprised to find many like-minded people to you even if they aren't in the majority yet.

When I lived in Idaho, you could hold a Democratic meeting in a phone booth. Since then many liberals have started moving in, many who are Green Party environmentalists. They are making a difference in how business is done there.

[edbermac]

42. Not after I saw Deliverance...

You sho' got a purty mouth...

[WI_DEM]

43. Georgia has been growing increasingly conservative, but Atlanta

is still a progressive city. If it's a good job--go for it--the state can use more progressives.

[mcar]

46. Love the state, hate the traffic around Atlanta

We live in Central Florida and love vacationing in the Georgia mountains. We frequently talk about moving there but neither of us could deal with an Atlanta commute. If we could find jobs in Dahlonega or Clayton, we'd go in a heartbeat.

We just spent a week in a cabin on top of a mountain near Clayton. I'd guess the area is quite conservative, just because it's Georgia. But the entire time we were there, I didn't see one *Bush related bumper sticker. In fact, I didn't see a bumper sticker at all on any cars, which is definitely strange. It gave me hope. No mega-churches either and there was a good mix of churches -- they weren't all Baptist and Church of god.

[stanwyck]

47. Come on down! Lots of liberals here

despite our embarrassing senators. We DO have Cynthia McKinney (my district). My 22-yr. old uber liberal daughter lives in Decatur, Ga. Very bohemian, old hippie, young earth muffin crowd. (an Atlanta suburb).
We have all kinds.
And we need you.
We really need you.
Remember, Jimmy Carter is a Georgian.
And the amazing Roslyn.

[Solly Mack]

49. Born there. Raised there. It's a beautiful state. I miss it's beauty

I miss the smell of honeysuckle in the early evening. I miss road side stands of produce and pecans. I miss the hills. I miss the calming sounds of the woods. I miss the soothing sounds of the creeks, rivers and brooks that run through the mountains. I even long for the smell as you approach Savannah, the noise of Atlanta and that lazy hazy feeling on a hot sultry day.

My family goes back hundreds of years in Georgia. Our bones are laid to rest there. One day I'll be laid to rest there too.

The older I get the more I think about going home. But not yet...not yet.

[Loonman]

50. Awful hot

But sure.

[RebelOne]

57. Only awful hot during the summer months.

The rest of the year it is really pleasant.

[Loonman]

58. Hotter, the better for me

I like it hot, I'm sick of New England.

[depakid]

51. That would depend on where you live now

I'd NEVER trade the West Coast or Northeast for Georgia- not in a million years. I have relatives in the state- so I've been there enough to know I'd be utterly miserable there.

On the other hand, if you live in say, Texas or Alabama- not too much difference, IMHO- and if they show you the money....

[tenshi816]

52. Where in Georgia?

I was born and raised in Georgia. Luckily for me, my parents left the rural county in NE Georgia where they were from to go live in Atlanta when they got married so I grew up there and still love it.

Atlanta is blue, as is Athens and a couple of other places. You could happily live in Georgia and not have too much to do with the red bits, depending on where your job is. There are several Georgia DUers who would probably be happy to give you advice. Have you thought about posting in the Georgia forum?

Edited to say that one big plus about Georgia is that it has a low cost of living compared to a lot of other states. When my British husband worked there (where I met him), he was astounded at how cheap everything was compared to other places he had been in America. He had a high old time in Atlanta and still saved enough money to put a substantial deposit on a flat in London when we moved to the UK.

[RubyDuby in GA]

53. Sure I'd live in Georgia. Oh wait - I already do

Rome is an incredibly conservative area, but there are pockets of liberals spread throughout the countryside.

It does get warm in the summer (ahh...I can't wait for summer....), but we have incredibly mild winters. It was 76 at my house yesterday afternoon.

Come on down. We need all the help we can get.

[StellaBlue]

56. I live in East Texas and, yes, I would live in GA.

Especially Atlanta or Savannah.

[in_cog_ni_to]

63. Only if I could be

Mike Malloy's next door neighbor.

No. I would not live in Georgia.

[jeffrey_X]

64. I would live in the city, preferably midtown...

I come from Chicago and think the city of Atlanta is great. Very diverse and much different from Chicago in the aspect that many more African Americans have transcended class there. It may be because of all the transplanting, but I think the city is more progressive than Chicago. The state however is a different matter.

[DemBones DemBones]

66. I live in Georgia, as do many other DUers.

Where is the job you're looking at?

[DemBones DemBones]

67. Look for a PM that I sent you. nt