| Topic Name: |
New Haven is the best city in the world |
| Message Name: |
continued... |
| Date Posted: |
01/22/2000 |
| In Reply To: |
I am absolutely sick of Connecticut politics. Each of the 165 or so towns
fights for itself, and they don't tend to work together. If all of the
towns in Connecticut merged into one city, they would form a city the size
of San Diego (in land area and in population) and would be the nicest,
richest, best-educated city in America. Next year, I am going to start
writing my thesis paper on Connecticut politics. I am going to take
advantage of the high-speed train which will connect Boston, New Haven and
New York City and put each within a short train ride of each other.
Connecticut is the richest state in America and has the #1 public education
system. It is also the most convenient state to New York City and Boston.
These are indisputable facts. In my opinion, Connecticut is also the
prettiest state. In New Haven alone, 17% of the city's land is dedicated to
a large city park system, and the city's public tree planting program (the
oldest in America) has paid off as New Haven's streets are lined with
beautiful shade trees. Out of all of New England, New Haven has the
sunniest days and warmest January temperatures. It also has milder summers
and less rain than Boston.
Connecticut and New Haven are in an economic revival. In a survey cited in
Business Week four months ago, the New
Haven-Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury-Waterbury metropolitan area was selected
as the third "most desirable" area in the country to earn and save money,
he says. (The winning areas were chosen for the combination of high
household income, high job quality and low unemployment, among other
factors.) |
| Message: |
And the New Haven/Meriden area placed second in New England --
just behind Boston -- in a Forbes magazine ranking of America's best places
for businesses and careers. There are still disadvantaged areas of New
Haven and some areas of minority concentration (now commonly termed "ghetto
underclass"), but they are much smaller and more understandable than what
you will find in most cities. But there are excellent schools being formed,
and wonderful people are involved in the community life (including over 2/3
of Yale University students-- compare that number to Princeton students or
Stanford students). The people in these neighborhoods are friendly, and you
have to admire them for fixing up their houses in the last few years and
virtually driving all violent crime out of the area. There are problems
that remain to be solved. Wherever you go, you will find problems that call
for the attention of bright, young minds. With all of the enthusiastic
people around, places like Boston and New Haven are among the best places
to get started. Individuals who are sheltered their whole lives in la-la
lands like Princeton, Ithaca, and Palo Alto are typically doomed to be out
of touch with the real world.
I have to concede that some of the bad reputation of New Haven started back
in the early 90's when a couple of Harvard graduates wrote GQ articles like
"The Death of Yale" etc etc... I am embarrassed by them to the point that I
think they should have their diplomas revoked. Most Harvard students are a
bit more realistic, especially the ones who know anything about
Connecticut. All those posts about SAT averages, Yale=1470, Princeton and
Stanford=1440 are true... and anyone who didn't already know Yale was
better in everything from sciences to humanities is likely to be very
provincial, or biased in some way. These are also the people likely to say
things about New Haven even without knowing anything, like the Harvard
graduates I mentioned.
New Haven, along with many other places in Connecticut, is an awesome place
to go to college. Within a few blocks you find the city government, major
national theaters, a music conservatory, art school, internationally-known
drama school, dozens of award-winning restaurants (authentic ethnic food
that is MUCH better than restaurants in Cambridge-- there are two Ethiopian
restaurants within ONE block next to the Shubert Performing Arts Center),
one of the world's most influential research universities, one of the
nation's best undergraduate colleges, top architecture, law, and business
firms, federal courthouse centers, and a safe, thriving downtown
environment. New York City is a short ride away on the commuter railroad.
Boston is a nice town, but frankly I prefer the vitality of New York any
day of the year.
Anyone who thinks otherwise doesn't know New Haven or Connecticut very well
at all. When I was in high school, I used to go down to New Haven all the
time, and everyone else in the town did too. Hartford was closer but wasn't
even considered as a place to go. The summer arts and jazz festivals on the
New Haven Green (next to Yale's frosh dorms) are without equal among most
cities. They don't call New Haven Connecticut's cultural capital for
nothing. It is a cultural capital for the entire nation. Even if it wasn't,
it would still have one of the finest (if not the finest) universities in
the nation at its center.
Next time you enjoy some pizza, think about it.
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