Nimby

[SmallTown]

I rarely take a peak at the local Enterprise newpaper because nomally it is just so depressing. But an article in Friday's edition caught my eye, but suprisngly for the same reason that I DON'T buy it. Just a couple of days ago I was watching a George Carlin show where he talked about the biggest problem in america is that we suffer from NIMBY- Not In My Back Yard. Talks about how we all want new things, but just don't build it near me..

The article in the Enterpise that caught my eye concerned having a hiking/bike path in part of the county. That in itself caught my eye because this is something we REALLY need here. But then the depressing part comes up, with a local resident yelling out "Not in my back yard!". Apparantly the trail would be near some houses along the way, and the locals are upset. They feel crime would increase in their neighborhoods. They have this belief that drug dealers and prostitutes will hang out on the trail and do business. Sorry, they are nomally pretty much pansies and tend to do their work out of hotels, not nature.. So go and have the Hampton Inn banned, not a nature trail.

Funny how where I come from, it was an ADVANTAGE to live near such a trail.. In home ads, you would often see things such as "Close to SuchAndSuch trail", or "Backs to SuchAndSuch trail". When you saw those words, you knew what would be behind you. And people liked it. They liked being able to walk out of there back yard and onto a nice trail. Most communities TRY to have such a trail built in their neighnorhoods because it gives the since of community.. But no.. Not here.. I suppose these people feel it is better for parents and kids to ride their bike on 235, a sadistic version of Survival of the Fittest.. If you get hit by a car, you deserve it for trying to go out and enjoy nature and be healthy.

 

[Heretic]

Those aren't haking or biking trails, thats just the path where they take their sister in the woods to bugger her.

 

[Heretic]

I came here because I was asked to hmmmmmmmm

 

[Heretic]

Its really part of a top secret government plan to wipe out the SMIB population. here are the details.

1) Move in a bunch of people to atleast breed out some of the SMIB Genes

2) Make route 235 a death trap so that any SMIB adventerous enough to try to cross it by foot or ride a bicycle on it gets terminated

3) Get all the imports to complain, bitch and moan to the point that the SMIBs feel persicuted so all the SMIBs that are left over will leave like the Pilgrams left merry old England. This part of the plan leads into another government plan. Hoping the SMIBs will get on a boat and travel afar they will land in the middle east and wipe out the Arabs like the English settlers wiped out the American Indian.

4) Now that the area is SMIB free maybe the government can move more of its Navair type yes men down here without them complaining about things, to facilitate this hundreds of stripmalls must be built with a Sheetz and Wawa on every corner.

There you have it. Resistance is futile.

Or atleast thats what they told me when they came to my college recruiting.

 

[SmallTown]

Up until recent history, this area has been mostly a blue collar fishing town. Nothing wrong with that at all, except for the fact that the percentages have changed and you have more and more white collar engineers and managers living here. However, the people who have been here for awhile can not handle change very well which is why you end up with people complaining about things such as a bike trail..
I guess if you are used to having nothing, having something seems pretty strange.

 

[Sharon]

Keep it up

 

[Heretic]

Its really hard to tell when JetMonkey is serious or not but in all seriousness the day I arrived here I start hearing crap about not being from down here. I got news, unless your naitive american you have no more right to be here than me.

I really dont care what "Navair People" did or said to you, there are alot of them that I don't like either.

My first day I heard someone say something about them not being able to get a promotion but how new engineers get bonuses, well if they could do the same job they wouldnt have to worry about it.

No Im not bitter or anything most people here are great but its the few that ruin it that cause all the crap.

I pay taxes here so I have every bit as much right as anyone else that pays taxes here to complain about the endless road construction, the new stripmalls and the hundreds of stoplights. Just because I wasnt born here doesnt mean that I dont have any right to make a suggestion to better things either.

If the base wasn't here I doubt many of the "naitives" would be either.

 

[Sharon]

Originally posted by Heretic
Its really hard to tell when JetMonkey is serious or not

4XSMIB --that ought to tell you something.

 

[SmallTown]

Kinda funny about jetmonkey saying that other people are bitter. Lets just stick to the facts.. Nobody said this was a complete redneck town before the base started expanding. I only said it was a small blue collar fishing village. They exist all through the northeast, and very few of them are complete redneck communities. There are those here who should have thought twice before dropping out of the third grade, but that is a whole different story. But the people here today are different than the people who were here 30 or 40 years ago. You can blame it on the base or the simple fact of human reproduction causing people to move here to find more land. Funny how the locals always complain about all the developing, but they REALLY enjoy taking the checks to the bank when they sale their land for a GREAT deal more than what it was bought for. Maybe if these people had not been so greedy and sold all the land, there would not be such an influx of people now.. Maybe you should blame the ones who sold the land, not the ones who bought.

I know it is hard to see or admit some of the bad things around here when you have always lived here. It the way you have always known it and you don't want to see it changed. But we have to all understand it is the base that brings people here.. The people are here now, and there are more coming. Creating a bike trail will not cause more people to come nor crime to increase. Adding a bookstore will not bring more people to the area, simply give the people already here a little bit of enjoyment. Adding new places to eat will not bring more people nor increase crime. The locals have this distorted version of reality that if we have nice things here, the flood gates will just open up and we will be overflowing with people.. This is simply not the case.. The base is the driving force behind people coming here. Enjoy the rewards of having highly educated people with high salaries in the area.. Only brings more credibility to the area.

 

[SmallTown]

One thing that is always assumed is that when the term SMIB is used, it is a blanket word for everyone who is more than a 1st generation resident of the county. Not so. If you take offense to the term, then you need to look at why it offends you. Kinda like if you're 6'1" and weigh 175 pounds and someone blurts out "you're a fat slob", would you care? I think not. if they talk about SMIBS in front of you, then obviously you are not one of them so they are not making asses out of themselves one bit.

And how does the fact that I went to college POSSIBLY play into the reasoning behind certain locals to not want a bike trail? So basically you are saying that (in your words) only arrogant, snobby, whiney asses enjoy riding bikes and exercising? It doesn't take an engineering degree to walk or ride a bike, either.

And we (well, I can't speak for someone else) I never said there was any thing wrong with other careers besides engineers. I fully understand that without Butchers, I wouldn't be able to enjoy the steak I eat. Without fisherman, I would not be able to enjoy the fish I like. Without mechanics and auto builders I wouldn't be able to drive the car I drive. But these people also need to understand that without engineers, would not be so efficent with getting the animals to their shops (someone had to design the trucks and planes) ,they wouldn't have there nice fishing boats to go out on, they would not have cars to work on or to build on the assembly line,etc. So it is a definate two way street.

I'm not going to sit here and apologize for getting formal education and persuing my dreams. And this whole "I'm a hard working man so I deserve more respect" is so 1970's. You choose your own course in life. If you're doing what you really want to do, theres no need to "command more respect" because of it. Self satisfaction is plenty.

 

[Susan]

I enjoyed reading the previous posts... i even laughed a little, which i needed. Jet, you are to the point and quite witty. Are you sure u are not from New York?
I agreed, to some degree, with all of your posts. Everyone certainly has a point of view.

Do i dare mention that i ''transplanted'' to this area 15 years ago. I came from a big city -- a place where there wasnt anymore room for change.

I do understand how change effects all of us now, but its inevitable; so everyone needs to adjust and accept the new comforts of home.

 

[SmallTown]

no, the n word is based on color, for the most part. SMIB is about a way of life. It has no color. it does not have a pre-defined education level. It has no gender. It has no specific occupation.

Quit trying to change the subject. If you recall, the original discussion was about some people not wanting a bike trail because it would raise crime in there area. If you have a response concering that subject, we all want to hear it. Somehow that got twisted into the fact I should rename myself SmallMind and I am arrogant. For sake of argument and to allow this discussion to get back on course, I'll be flattering and say I am small minded, educated, arrogant. Still doesn't change my question as to how a bike trail is such an evil thing in the area.

 

[SmallTown]

The article in the paper was from an un-biased writer reporting about a meeting with residents and commissioners that was held to discuss the issue. Many of the people who owned property near the proposed trail we're against it, stating reasons such as increased crime.

On the many bike trails that you mention, do you ride in fear of murders, rapist, drug dealers who lurk on the trail?

 

[SmallTown]

Originally posted by jetmonkey

You either miss or ignore every point I establish.

The word ****** and the acronym SMIB are both based on one group enjoying feeling superior to another, and trying to insult the other group and make them feel bad about themselves.

Ok, if that is the way you feel, fine.. Doesn't quite explain the "n" word being used in daily life in the black community, but again, off subject and if you want to discuss this start a new thread.

Originally posted by jetmonkey


You might think the subject is trails, but I think the subject is the condescending, insulting attitudes exhibited by people like you, heretic and people who use terms like SMIB.

No... The subject IS trails..

 

[Heretic]

There are plenty of people local to southern maryland that are not SMIBs.

MY interpretation of a SMIB is someone not very smart, suspecious and resentful of anyone that isn't a local, they think they are owed something just because where they were born.

Every place has them, most just dont have a name like SMIB to call them.

For someone to take offense at the term SMIB just because they are a southern maryland local is just being overly sensitive. Thats like all white people taking offense at the term redneck.

Its real similar to the situation I found in a small town in Texas, everyone born there was wearing their pride on their shoulder and treated you differently if you weren't. You were either a "fancy city person", a bean eater/wetback, a foreigner, or one of the boys.

 

[SmallTown]

In the past, if someone was complaining about something new, it was usually from the "locals", those who have been here for several generations. So you are correct, I may have jumped too quick to assume who the guilty parties were. But even that does not explain people's notion that a bike trail would increase crime, which is the whole basis of this thread and an idea that keeps getting skirted over. So lets please get back to the topic. If you want a SMIB/ANTI-SMIB thread feel free to start one elsewhere. This is not about personal attacks, it as about community togetherness which seems to be a tough pill to swallow.

 

[SmallTown]

Originally posted by jetmonkey

Hey, SmallTown, ever heard of an oxymoron?

Ever heard of people reporting facts about what they see or hear? How does one's being biased have to do with people yelling "Not In My Back Yard" and "That will raise crime in the area" when refering to new bike trails? Once again, you go out of your way to find excuses. Lets PLEASE stick to the topic at hand.

 

[SmallTown]

Originally posted by jetmonkey

Another fine argument whities use to justify their use of the word ******. You and SmallTown may have degrees, but it doesn't seem that you got much of an education.

You really do live in your own little world, don't you?

 

[SmallTown]

The proposed trail is a rather long one, and it is all on government controlled land. But now that we are actually discussing the issue instead of a flame contest, I have started a new thread titled Bike Trail because if someone were to come and see this thread, they wouldn't know what to think of us.

 

[Azura]

Originally posted by SmallTown


And how does the fact that I went to college POSSIBLY play into the reasoning behind certain locals to not want a bike trail? So basically you are saying that (in your words) only arrogant, snobby, whiney asses enjoy riding bikes and exercising? It doesn't take an engineering degree to walk or ride a bike, either.

I've been following this thread and it's driving me nuts! Jet wasn't the one who mentioned college.. that was YOU SmallTown........

Originally posted by SmallTown
The locals have this distorted version of reality that if we have nice things here, the flood gates will just open up and we will be overflowing with people.. This is simply not the case.. The base is the driving force behind people coming here. Enjoy the rewards of having highly educated people with high salaries in the area.. Only brings more credibility to the area.

Your whole argument is that poor stupid "locals" don't want a bike path because they are ignorant morons who fear what they don't understand. Those dumb SoMd locals... They don't know any better since they've lived in the stone age for so long.. If they only UNDERSTOOD what a bike path was, they wouldn't fight against it! What they need to do is shut up and be THANKFUL that they have some highly educated people with high salaries to teach them about this and the many other innovations of modern civilization.

HELLO

So some neighborhood doesn't want the freaking bike path. Big deal. Who cares?
WHat i don't get is why you assume that this argument would be split down the middle between, transplants and "locals".
You're convinced that all transplants would be for it and "locals" would be against it yet you have NO IDEA who stands where on this issue.

I can't believe you are surprised that this thread got out of hand.

You want to make ignorant assumptions about people and expect everyone here to jump right on board with you.

I can do that too ya know.. make uninformed assumptions.... Here's mine... (keep in mind, i'm going on the same amount of info as you had when you wrote your post) how does this sound?
===============
Probably the uptight transplants from Navair are the ones throwing a fit over the bike trail. They come in here and act like they own the place! The locals want to have nice things, foster some community atmosphere, but the transplants are so paranoid about the SMIB criminals that they don't want to take ANY chances. They feel that if the path comes through their neighborhood, that means, the low-life locals will be coming in. Of course any area in this county that is popluated by the locals will have a high crime rate. So, in order to protect their families and their property, the transplants feel the bike path is a bad idea since it will bring the crime loving locals into their neighborhoods.
====================

See how easy that is?