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Just moved out of the midwest.. I was originally from the East coast and moved back. I'll just say this, being a minority, I was shocked at how much contempt p

Just moved out of the midwest.. I was originally from the East coast and moved back. I'll just say this, being a minority, I was shocked at how much contempt people had towards middle-easterners and black people. On numerous occasions people have said they've been "dirtying up the neighborhoods which is why they moved to another burb... they need to take better care of their lawns, etc". Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. People are put down in unfortunate ways. it's really fucking hard to climb up the corporate ladder than either coasts Pay is crap.. people have been clamoring that the midwest is going to be the next silicon alley. There's a reason why Chicago was the only major city to drop in population the last couple of years. There aren't that many interesting projects happening, it's not conducive to start-ups. i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. there's a lot of people averse to change.

rayiner 9y ago
> i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. there's a lot of people averse to change. That is, in contrast, what I love about the Midwest. The other day, I was snaking around the line barriers at the airport security, even though it was empty. At the end, there was a man and his young son waiting for me. He explained somewhat embarrassed that his son had wanted to walk under the guide ropes, which they did, but then they waited because he didn’t want to cut me in line. Being from DC, where people treat trying to merge as a personal insult, that made my day.
jetti 9y ago
>There's a reason why Chicago was the only major city to drop in population the last couple of years. There aren't that many interesting projects happening, it's not conducive to start-ups I would say it has more to do with the Illinois rather than the city itself. People are leaving Illinois, not just Chicago. Also, the startup culture is different in Chicago but to say there there aren't that many interesting projects happening is entirely subjective. Also, startups aren't the only companies doing interesting work as well. There is a ton of interesting work in the finance sector. There are also a bunch of very interesting startups such as Uptake and Tempus. >Pay is crap.. people have been clamoring that the midwest is going to be the next silicon alley. Cost of living is also significantly lower as well.
- EADGBE 9y ago
  > Cost of living is also significantly lower as well. Especially outside of Chicago. Literally any midwest 'burb. Most of us have no problem driving 30 minutes to work. That vastly opens up the options, even working in a city.
- throwaway15814 9y ago
  |There is a ton of interesting work in the finance sector. I agree.. and I'd probably recommend any friends who were planning on moving to Chicago to focus on that area as there are a ton of really good financial companies.
Kurtz79 9y ago
"i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. there's a lot of people averse to change." People are averse to change that might negatively their impact livelihood, such as taxi drivers not being great Uber fans. Since most of the innovations in recent years have meant less jobs and worse condition for the area, it is understandable they might have such a position.
EADGBE 9y ago
> Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. I'm really sorry you had such a polarizing experience. But just to give an anecdote of my own, in a much smaller midwest hub, over five years and two jobs I've worked with: - A young woman from Russia - An African American (29% of the population, a hair under Chicago's) - An Indian (this isn't extremely uncommon, though) - A Malaysian - Multiple women over 50 All these people were/are great developers. Most of them worked above me. Your experience was completely unlike my own. I'd hate for it to be so hastily packaged together as one.
- ejnulls 9y ago
  I grew up in the Midwest in a suburb of a small city. Looking at census data, it was 95%+ white while I was growing up. The most common profession for the minorities' parents I went to school with seemed to be...physician (mostly Indian, Middle Eastern, Asian). Minorities were not really looked down on where I grew up, though there was certainly racism around. There were just not many minorities to be racist towards! If you go into the "big" cities in the Midwest it's a different story (I've heard all sorts of racist anecdotes from friends in Chicago and Indianapolis), but out where I grew up it didn't seem to be a thing. Personally, my parents were much more judgmental of non-Christians (Judaism, Hindu, Islam). Dating people of other skin colors was a non-issue, but when my brother brought home a nice, white Jewish girl my father certainly wasn't pleased.
liveoneggs 9y ago
I watched with amusement at my own midwestern family who thought moving south was the same as practicing racism and then later became quite racist as their own neighborhoods became more diverse. I watches with less amusement as the evangelical right wing stuff eventually made its way into their thinking and churches as well. I thought Homegrown Democrat by Garrison Keillor was a nice exploration of the demise of the midwest "culture".
dsfyu404ed 9y ago
>I'll just say this, being a minority, I was shocked at how much contempt people had towards middle-easterners and black people. On numerous occasions people have said they've been "dirtying up the neighborhoods which is why they moved to another burb... they need to take better care of their lawns, etc". Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. People are put down in unfortunate ways. it's really fucking hard to climb up the corporate ladder than either coasts Welcome to any "nice" suburb on the east coast for that matter. Also it sounds like you moved to the Chicago area. Large metropolitan areas are generally their own culture bubbles (and resented by the rest of the state/region but that's a different discussion).
cableshaft 9y ago
I've worked in the Chicago area most of my career. I've had multiple Indian, Asian, Black, and Women developers on my teams. My current team has two Indian people, one woman, and one Asian guy, and we only have 7 people on our team right now. I agree that the pay and number of opportunities aren't that amazing here, though. I've been fighting that for a long time.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
mikestew 9y ago
Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. The only black software engineer I’ve worked with (as in, on my team and writes code) since moving was the guy I hired. And I live in Seattle and I’ve worked at Microsoft. It’s a big shock moving from Indiana, where I’d had several black coworkers over the years. So I’ll see your Midwestern Rednecks anecdote, and raise you a Coastal Snobs Shocked That Midwest Has Internet. i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. Buncha rubes, not going gaga over an unprofitable company getting Federal subsidies so that rich people can buy new toys. So you’re saying you absolutley lack the ability to fathom why someone might not share your enthusiasm?
- throwaway15814 9y ago
  Why'd you move out of Indiana my friend? |So you’re saying you absolutley lack the ability to fathom why someone might not share your enthusiasm? Also I can empathize why people are against Tesla, it's just the general mindset in the midwest when it comes to new technologies. There's no wrong or right it's just the way life is out there.
  - mikestew 9y ago
    One -27F January day, I looked at my wife and said, “this is America, and we don’t have to live like this.” So we moved to North Carolina, then eventually got a gig with Microsoft. Haven’t worked at Microsoft in twelve years, but Seattle area suits us so we never left. Also I can empathize why people are against Tesla, it's just the general mindset in the midwest when it comes to new technologies. More than just the politics are conservative. :-)
    - SimbaOnSteroids 9y ago
      They also tend to ignore that Tesla payed back their subsidies with interest.
      - 9y ago
ams6110 9y ago
> There's a reason why Chicago was the only major city to drop in population the last couple of years. It's because it's a shithole. Expensive, but salaries are midwest-grade; weather sucks almost year-round; the government is as corrupt as a two headed snake; one of the most segregated cities in the world; and has a huge violent crime problem.
- tptacek 9y ago
  It's "expensive" relative to the rest of the midwest, but far less expensive than SFBA or NYC. It's a huge city with all of the features of a huge city where you can get a nice apartment in a trendy neighborhood for $1500. It's not a place to live if you want SFBA weather patterns, that's true.
- selectodude 9y ago
  >and has a huge violent crime problem I hope you're not comparing it to San Francisco where I'm 1.2x as likely to be jumped with a deadly weapon, 1.3x as likely to have my house broken into, 2.3x as likely to have my phone stolen and 2.2x as likely to have my car stolen. And the best part is the worst neighborhoods in SFBA aren't even in San Francisco, and it's still scary as shit. Let me know when they finish cleaning all the human shit out of the escalators on the train.

rayiner 9y ago

> i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. there's a lot of people averse to change. That is, in contrast, what I love about the Midwest. The other day, I was snaking around the line barriers at the airport security, even though it was empty. At the end, there was a man and his young son waiting for me. He explained somewhat embarrassed that his son had wanted to walk under the guide ropes, which they did, but then they waited because he didn’t want to cut me in line. Being from DC, where people treat trying to merge as a personal insult, that made my day.

jetti 9y ago

>There's a reason why Chicago was the only major city to drop in population the last couple of years. There aren't that many interesting projects happening, it's not conducive to start-ups I would say it has more to do with the Illinois rather than the city itself. People are leaving Illinois, not just Chicago. Also, the startup culture is different in Chicago but to say there there aren't that many interesting projects happening is entirely subjective. Also, startups aren't the only companies doing interesting work as well. There is a ton of interesting work in the finance sector. There are also a bunch of very interesting startups such as Uptake and Tempus. >Pay is crap.. people have been clamoring that the midwest is going to be the next silicon alley. Cost of living is also significantly lower as well.

EADGBE 9y ago
> Cost of living is also significantly lower as well. Especially outside of Chicago. Literally any midwest 'burb. Most of us have no problem driving 30 minutes to work. That vastly opens up the options, even working in a city.
throwaway15814 9y ago
|There is a ton of interesting work in the finance sector. I agree.. and I'd probably recommend any friends who were planning on moving to Chicago to focus on that area as there are a ton of really good financial companies.

Kurtz79 9y ago

"i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. there's a lot of people averse to change." People are averse to change that might negatively their impact livelihood, such as taxi drivers not being great Uber fans. Since most of the innovations in recent years have meant less jobs and worse condition for the area, it is understandable they might have such a position.

EADGBE 9y ago

> Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. I'm really sorry you had such a polarizing experience. But just to give an anecdote of my own, in a much smaller midwest hub, over five years and two jobs I've worked with: - A young woman from Russia - An African American (29% of the population, a hair under Chicago's) - An Indian (this isn't extremely uncommon, though) - A Malaysian - Multiple women over 50 All these people were/are great developers. Most of them worked above me. Your experience was completely unlike my own. I'd hate for it to be so hastily packaged together as one.

ejnulls 9y ago
I grew up in the Midwest in a suburb of a small city. Looking at census data, it was 95%+ white while I was growing up. The most common profession for the minorities' parents I went to school with seemed to be...physician (mostly Indian, Middle Eastern, Asian). Minorities were not really looked down on where I grew up, though there was certainly racism around. There were just not many minorities to be racist towards! If you go into the "big" cities in the Midwest it's a different story (I've heard all sorts of racist anecdotes from friends in Chicago and Indianapolis), but out where I grew up it didn't seem to be a thing. Personally, my parents were much more judgmental of non-Christians (Judaism, Hindu, Islam). Dating people of other skin colors was a non-issue, but when my brother brought home a nice, white Jewish girl my father certainly wasn't pleased.

liveoneggs 9y ago

I watched with amusement at my own midwestern family who thought moving south was the same as practicing racism and then later became quite racist as their own neighborhoods became more diverse. I watches with less amusement as the evangelical right wing stuff eventually made its way into their thinking and churches as well. I thought Homegrown Democrat by Garrison Keillor was a nice exploration of the demise of the midwest "culture".

dsfyu404ed 9y ago

>I'll just say this, being a minority, I was shocked at how much contempt people had towards middle-easterners and black people. On numerous occasions people have said they've been "dirtying up the neighborhoods which is why they moved to another burb... they need to take better care of their lawns, etc". Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. People are put down in unfortunate ways. it's really fucking hard to climb up the corporate ladder than either coasts Welcome to any "nice" suburb on the east coast for that matter. Also it sounds like you moved to the Chicago area. Large metropolitan areas are generally their own culture bubbles (and resented by the rest of the state/region but that's a different discussion).

cableshaft 9y ago

I've worked in the Chicago area most of my career. I've had multiple Indian, Asian, Black, and Women developers on my teams. My current team has two Indian people, one woman, and one Asian guy, and we only have 7 people on our team right now. I agree that the pay and number of opportunities aren't that amazing here, though. I've been fighting that for a long time.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

mikestew 9y ago

Out of all the companies that I've worked in the midwest, I've ever had a co-worker that was a black software engineer. The only black software engineer I’ve worked with (as in, on my team and writes code) since moving was the guy I hired. And I live in Seattle and I’ve worked at Microsoft. It’s a big shock moving from Indiana, where I’d had several black coworkers over the years. So I’ll see your Midwestern Rednecks anecdote, and raise you a Coastal Snobs Shocked That Midwest Has Internet. i've had more arguments in the midwest with people that think tesla is a POS company for not following the rules. Buncha rubes, not going gaga over an unprofitable company getting Federal subsidies so that rich people can buy new toys. So you’re saying you absolutley lack the ability to fathom why someone might not share your enthusiasm?

throwaway15814 9y ago
Why'd you move out of Indiana my friend? |So you’re saying you absolutley lack the ability to fathom why someone might not share your enthusiasm? Also I can empathize why people are against Tesla, it's just the general mindset in the midwest when it comes to new technologies. There's no wrong or right it's just the way life is out there.
- mikestew 9y ago
  One -27F January day, I looked at my wife and said, “this is America, and we don’t have to live like this.” So we moved to North Carolina, then eventually got a gig with Microsoft. Haven’t worked at Microsoft in twelve years, but Seattle area suits us so we never left. Also I can empathize why people are against Tesla, it's just the general mindset in the midwest when it comes to new technologies. More than just the politics are conservative. :-)
  - SimbaOnSteroids 9y ago
    They also tend to ignore that Tesla payed back their subsidies with interest.
    - 9y ago

ams6110 9y ago

> There's a reason why Chicago was the only major city to drop in population the last couple of years. It's because it's a shithole. Expensive, but salaries are midwest-grade; weather sucks almost year-round; the government is as corrupt as a two headed snake; one of the most segregated cities in the world; and has a huge violent crime problem.

tptacek 9y ago
It's "expensive" relative to the rest of the midwest, but far less expensive than SFBA or NYC. It's a huge city with all of the features of a huge city where you can get a nice apartment in a trendy neighborhood for $1500. It's not a place to live if you want SFBA weather patterns, that's true.
selectodude 9y ago
>and has a huge violent crime problem I hope you're not comparing it to San Francisco where I'm 1.2x as likely to be jumped with a deadly weapon, 1.3x as likely to have my house broken into, 2.3x as likely to have my phone stolen and 2.2x as likely to have my car stolen. And the best part is the worst neighborhoods in SFBA aren't even in San Francisco, and it's still scary as shit. Let me know when they finish cleaning all the human shit out of the escalators on the train.