Suburban Life in America SUCKS

[jamesbond]

We live in a reasonably large metro area in the US. Sucks for a number of reasons but is borderline tolerable. Since leaving high school I've always lived in a large city. I am now visiting some family in suburban Chicago before I fly to Asia next week to meet up with my wife and her family.

Holy SHIT am I reminded of how much suburban life sucks. I'm bored out of my f***ing mind when I'm done "working from home" and hanging out with family.

You need to drive literally everywhere. Coffee? 10 minute drive. McDonalds? 10 minute drive. The only thing I can see if I walk outside is an endless pool of cookie cutter homes. Streets are deserted and sidewalks are totally empty. While my wife was still here a few days ago we figured we'd go to eat out. I googled "restaurants near me". Applebees, TGI Fridays, Outback Steakhouse, Pizza Hut - nothing but the usual shit. Endless strips malls all filled with the same f***ing stores like GNC, Dollar Store, Subway, Dry Cleaning etc. I can't tell this suburb apart from 1000s of others in the US. No soul, no character, stuck-up people...

Here is a good video going into depth regarding the boring and lifeless structure of suburbs in the United States.

[NPCslammer]

We live in a reasonably large metro area in the US. Sucks for a number of reasons but is borderline tolerable. Since leaving high school I've always lived in a large city. I am now visiting some family in suburban Chicago before I fly to Asia next week to meet up with my wife and her family.

Holy SHIT am I reminded of how much suburban life sucks. I'm bored out of my f***ing mind when I'm done "working from home" and hanging out with family.

You need to drive literally everywhere. Coffee? 10 minute drive. McDonalds? 10 minute drive. The only thing I can see if I walk outside is an endless pool of cookie cutter homes. Streets are deserted and sidewalks are totally empty. While my wife was still here a few days ago we figured we'd go to eat out. I googled "restaurants near me". Applebees, TGI Fridays, Outback Steakhouse, Pizza Hut - nothing but the usual shit. Endless strips malls all filled with the same f***ing stores like GNC, Dollar Store, Subway, Dry Cleaning etc. I can't tell this suburb apart from 1000s of others in the US. No soul, no character, stuck-up people...

Here is a good video going into depth regarding the boring and lifeless structure of suburbs in the United States.

I’ve tried walking and biking in many of those kinds of places, and it really sucks. Plus drivers look at you like you’re crazy. But like he said, not everybody owns a car. So you got to get around somehow. He’s also correct about the soulless, corporate, fast food chains all over the places that dumbass Americans seem to think is just normal food. That’s one thing I was always really disgusted by. I have no problem with fast food or eating it myself. But the sheer amount of it, its abysmal quality and the fact that many people view it as a standard diet is what’s messed up. I had always thought that fast food was something you get every once in a while or when you are pressed for time. But all of it exists because there is a very high demand for it. Ironically enough, I think I would enjoy talking to that dude about how crappy the suburbs are, while driving in car to get some Popeyes chicken.

[Outcast9428]

I don't get what's so terrible about having to drive 10 minutes. I see it as a nice music break. Suburbs are meant to be peaceful places to raise families in. Sure they don't always provide the best opportunities but at least they're peaceful and stable.

Maybe its American cities particularly, but I can't stand the atmosphere of cities. They're crowded, they're congested, trying to drive and park in cities is an absolute nightmare and you have to pay half the time you want to park your car. You have to pay exorbitant prices for a crappy apartment or house. The worst part of cities is the people though. Cities are filled with the worst of humanity. Cities are filled with criminals, degenerates, rude people, and left-wing progressives. All the kind of people I dislike the most.

Also, cities in America at least aren't really any more pro-social then the suburbs are. The same thing people complain about with suburbs in that people don't know their neighbors or don't talk to them unless they need something are 10x worse among city folk. People in cities are cold and downright rude. Suburban people may be stuck inside their houses all day but city people have a ice shield around them all the time. Even if you can physically see them that doesn't make them any more approachable then suburban people are. Suburban people definitely have a very "I'm gonna mind my own business" kind of attitude but they don't act hostile or rude towards you if you do talk to them.

Also, not all suburbs are the same. I've seen some suburbs where its still like it was in the 80s or 90s where the kids play outside a lot and go into each others' houses without worrying about whether they are invited or not. I've seen other suburbs where people never talk to one another. When it comes to politics, suburbs are also much more balanced between liberals, progressives, and conservatives whereas cities are almost entirely just progressives and liberals. I think the whole reason why some right-leaning liberals become so passionately Republican and think of themselves as staunch supporters of the Republican Party despite being liberals is because city environments are so left-wing that being a liberal actually makes you right-wing relative to the people around you.

Rural areas I mainly dislike for practical reasons. I don't like all the empty space because it makes me feel isolated and often times there really is nothing around. The people in the rural areas seem good though. But cities are terrible for both practical reasons and the people who live there. I'd argue the people who live there make it even worse then the practical problems with living in cities.

I think I might enjoy a small or medium sized town though. Small to medium sized towns tend to have good community, much more conservative values, alongside being fairly developed and not being isolating the way rural areas are.

[jamesbond]

Here he talks about how commute culture makes American cities lifeless.

[kangarunner]

Here he talks about how commute culture makes American cities lifeless.

This is a great video and so are the comments. Cities in Southeast Asia such as Bangkok, Saigon, Hanoi are awesome and have a great vibe. Tokyo is a fascinating city, but it does have a soulless vibe to it when I walked around different parts.

[jamesbond]

This guy didn't want to raise his kids in the suburbs, so he and his wife and kids moved to Amsterdam.

[jamesbond]

There's something wrong with suburbia.

[jamesbond]

This guy explains why he hates living in the suburbs.

[kangarunner]

America is a place where your soul is farmed. America is a giant plantation and we're all being farmed.