Community descriptions

[nclib]

Since we're asking all the demographic questions, I figured this question would be interesting. Yes, I realize we all have state avatars. But that doesn't tell the whole story. For example, NC is pretty conservative, but my community is quite moderate.

I figured I'd list the options for Europeans separately because the liberal-conservative standards there are different.

[dazzleman]

My community is probably best defined as moderate Republican.

All of our representatives at the state level, in the State House and Senate, are Republican.  Not the kind they have down south, but Republican nonetheless.

Democrats can win here only by talking like Republicans.  There is no constituency for traditional Democratic issues here.  It is a largely white community, and on average upper middle class, although the income levels run from lower middle class to wealthy.

The town budget is mainly dedicated to education, police, fire, recreation, etc.  Only the most minor social programs are administered at the town level, and social issues are really not applicable.

[Bleeding heart conservative, HTMLdon]

I say moderate because there is a good balance of ideologies here and we are kind of a 50/50 county.  Memphis is mostly Democratic because of the high African-American population, but that is balanced by the heavily Republican outer county.

37% White conservatives - Socially conservative, Fiscally conservative Republicans - make up most of the population in suburban and incorporated areas.  Will Support anyone but Mayor W.W. Herenton or Harold Ford. Fans of George W. Bush.

26% African-American Herenton Supporters - Socially conservative, Fiscally liberal Democrats who are allied with the white moderate "Commercial Appeal" voters.  Support Mayor W.W. Herenton. Fans of Wes Clark.

22% African-American Ford Supporters - Socially conservative, Fiscally liberal Democrats who are allied with the white moderate-to-liberals.  Support Congressman Harold Ford, Jr.  Fans of John Kerry.

13% White moderate "Commercial Appeal" voters - Vote overwhelmingly Republican in county elections, mixed for state/federal elections.  Socially moderate, Fiscally conservative, live inside city limits of Memphis.  Vote block tends to reflect Editorial page of The Commercial Appeal, our major daily newspaper.  Grudglingly support both Herenton and Ford with no credible opposition.  Fans of Lamar Alexander.

3% White moderate-to-liberals: Socially moderate, Fiscally liberal Democrats.  Vote Republican in county elections, but Democrat for everything else.  Over-represented in state legislative delegation, protected by the white Democratic establishment in Nashville.  Grudglingly support both Herenton and Ford but wish Steve Cohen would run for Congress again.  Fans of Al Gore.

[Demrepdan]

I'd say my community is moderate conservative. Republicans win the vast majority of elections. Although, this county seems to swing back and forth for Presidential elections.....and has voted for the Democratic Presidential candidate since 1992....but has always voted for Republican Governors. So yeah..I'd say my area is moderate to moderate conservative. Republicans usually carry the county within 53-56% of the vote. Democrats can carry it by 51-54%.

However, the area I used to live in...was straight conservative. And they have been for a long time. Even looking at Dave's atlas maps...I noticed that the old county I used to live in has NEVER voted Democratic....not even for FDR. Republicans tend to carry that county by no less that 65% of the vote.  

[minionofmidas]

Well, the neighborhood I right now live in is about 50% Islamic and thus automatically anti-BJP and, if you want to try and translate Indian standards to Europe left-of-center. Like much of Muslim India its lower middle or skilled working class. Those who are not Muslims are mostly Tamils, including a large minority of Christians. These people tended to vote for the Janata Dal (Muslims in Bangalore and most other areas vote Congress) but it seems many of them are drifting towards the BJP right now.
The neighborhood I used to live in in Frankfurt is highly immigrant, inner-city, poor, liberal. The area where I grew up is not quite as immigrant, not poor though certainly not rich either, and even more liberal. (Used in the American sense here)

[© tweed]

Very conservative Republican area here.

[Beet]

Probably the most liberal community of anyone so far. High proportion of government employees.

[Gustaf]

My area is rather wealthy and heavily conservative , in the European sense. On economy that would be as conservative as in the US ('the taxes are awfully high, we had to sell our second Mercedes the other day...'), but socially liberal, like most of Sweden.

[nclib]

Very conservative Republican area here.

Long Island? Really.

[© tweed]

Very conservative Republican area here.

Long Island? Really.

Yeah...we haven't elected a non-republican councilman in 56 years or something..

[elcorazon]

moderate.  Probably votes democratic more than republican but generally people are not for a lot of changes around here.  Of course, I believe that democrats tend to be moderate and republicans tend to be quite right wing most of the time, so maybe that skews my response.

[Dave from Michigan]

My area is moderate but usually votes republican for local and state elections. Bush won my city by 61 votes out of 4700. compared with the rest of the county it's republican because i live in the same county as Detroit.

[migrendel]

Very liberal. Keep in mind Bush was in third place behind Nader in Cambridge.

[© tweed]

Very liberal. Keep in mind Bush was in third place behind Nader in Cambridge.

Upperclass, liberal area

Almost as bad as an upperclass conservative area.

[PD]

I would have to say mine is in between right of center and very conservative. More towards very conservative, though. Almost there, but not quite.

[Michael Z]

I live in what is basically a commuters' area in the northeast of London. Most people here grew up in the East End which is traditionally working class and socialist; during the Thatcher era they worked their way up into the suburbs and as a consequence voted conservative in the 1980s. These same people were eventually turned off by the incompetence and bigotry which epitomised the John Major era and switched to Labour in the mid-90s - in 1997 this was one of many constituencies across south-east England which saw a massive swing to Labour. So all in all, I would say my area is left-of-centre.

[PD]

Very liberal. Keep in mind Bush was in third place behind Nader in Cambridge.

Upperclass, liberal area

Almost as bad as an upperclass conservative area.

Hey, watch it. I live in a high class conservative area.

[NHPolitico]

It's a barely Gore county.

[migrendel]

What an unpleasant thing to say, Miamiu. It is not one's tax returns but the content of their character that determines their worth within society.

[MarkDel]

The area I live in is slightly right of center, but definitely a great example of the "gender gap" in American politics. It's a suburban area, and most of the women are the "save the whales coffee house crowd" while most of the men are the "my foursome tees off at 11:05 crowd"

[© tweed]

What an unpleasant thing to say, Miamiu. It is not one's tax returns but the content of their character that determines their worth within society.

Most people with high tax returns see the incomes below them as a lesser species.

[MarkDel]

Miami,

Your honesty is somewhat frightening, but I think you are more on target than anyone else here will care to admit. The extreme right wingers in the upper tax brackets could care less about the poor, and the extreme left wingers in the upper tax bracket only care about the poor when it's politically expedient, and even then, it's in some paternalistic sense that is disgracefully patronizing.

[© tweed]

Liberals and Conservative, alike, at the top could give a flying crap about the other 99% of people in the country.

[Gustaf]

I live in a highincome area, and I don't know if people are consciously that cold-hearted...but of course it isn't a coincidence that people talking big about how people should take responsibility and how the poor should work harder are usually rich enough to not ahve to worry about it themselves...it is a common attitude among young people, who are generally less moral than their elders. I go to school woth lots of them, and it's really fun to tease them... and most of them can handle it, which I take as a good sign...

[migrendel]

You speak from a lack of experience, Miami and Mark. There are many people of inspiring compassion in my social class, and for you to make a judgment about a broad group of people shows just how resentful you are.