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Yes, but in the minds of so many people in California and New York, Kansas doesn’t exist. Having moved to SF from “flyover country,” it’s astonishing to me how

Yes, but in the minds of so many people in California and New York, Kansas doesn’t exist. Having moved to SF from “flyover country,” it’s astonishing to me how many people here are totally unaware of the rest of the country, and have never even visited anything outside of the Pacific Coast other than NYC or maybe DC. If you ask why they don’t move someplace in the Midwest, the answer is they consider it to be a nearly mythological place that they only vaguely know exists and are, frankly, terrified of. It’s bizarre how common that is.

perl4ever 7y ago
I don't think I would consider living in Kansas in this day and age - people are more than vaguely aware of it from the news and it doesn't sound like a good place from the vantage point of CA or NY. You may regard what's in the news about the midwest as distorted or propaganda, but I don't think it's ignored or people on the coasts are unaware of what it's reported to be like. ...but places like DC are practically Kansas from the point of view of living costs relative to SF. So SF to Kansas is the wrong comparison in my opinion. Plenty of other coastal metro areas.
Merrill 7y ago
New York and San Francisco are two of the most provincial cities in the US. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_of_the_World_from_9th_Avenue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_of_the_World_from_9th_Ave...
- ternaryoperator 7y ago
  Provincial != unfamiliar with your preferred area. NYC and SF are about the easiest places for foreigners to integrate. Residents of those cities might not have been to Kansas, but lots of them have been to or come from Latin American or Asian countries--so definitely not provincial, but in fact multicultural.
  - Merrill 7y ago
    2a: limited in outlook : NARROW - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/provincial https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/provincial "Provincial" in the sense of being preoccupied with themselves and not knowing much and caring less about the rest of the country. Admittedly, both metros are more outward looking towards other countries. The elite New York Times readers consider themselves members of a community of international cities like London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, etc. That's not true of the average reader of the Daily News or New York Post.

perl4ever 7y ago

I don't think I would consider living in Kansas in this day and age - people are more than vaguely aware of it from the news and it doesn't sound like a good place from the vantage point of CA or NY. You may regard what's in the news about the midwest as distorted or propaganda, but I don't think it's ignored or people on the coasts are unaware of what it's reported to be like. ...but places like DC are practically Kansas from the point of view of living costs relative to SF. So SF to Kansas is the wrong comparison in my opinion. Plenty of other coastal metro areas.

Merrill 7y ago

New York and San Francisco are two of the most provincial cities in the US. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_of_the_World_from_9th_Avenue https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/View_of_the_World_from_9th_Ave...

ternaryoperator 7y ago
Provincial != unfamiliar with your preferred area. NYC and SF are about the easiest places for foreigners to integrate. Residents of those cities might not have been to Kansas, but lots of them have been to or come from Latin American or Asian countries--so definitely not provincial, but in fact multicultural.
- Merrill 7y ago
  2a: limited in outlook : NARROW - https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/provincial https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/provincial "Provincial" in the sense of being preoccupied with themselves and not knowing much and caring less about the rest of the country. Admittedly, both metros are more outward looking towards other countries. The elite New York Times readers consider themselves members of a community of international cities like London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, etc. That's not true of the average reader of the Daily News or New York Post.