Please get some help for the depression you mention that's got you feeling so down. Balanced chemistry often gives one a new pair of glasses. We have lived in a couple of the places you mention as "best and bright" and have come to believe that the culture there definitely eventually also nurtures depression and bitterness unless one has enough money to perpetuate the fountain of youth and physical perfection. "Plastic", sculpted and shaved bodies; perfected, high dollar fashion; and perpetual smiles are a temporary illusion where natural aging isn't tolerated. People go about the business of making nice with the ebb and flow of style and culture. If one place or another isn't your style, great to recognize. Please stop with the finger pointing and do something for yourself and the others in your company besides attack.
Alena | Burleson, TX | Report Abuse

out of my experiences in dozens of cities across the country, people from Boston are by far the grumpiest, meanest, most arrogant people I have ever come across. I went to school in the middle of downtown boston for two years and I lived in the North End for one of the years and what surprised me the most was how racist the city was. You would think that a big metropolis would be progressive, but it is the opposite. Im surprised that the state always goes liberal because everyone i was in contact with hated obama and liberals. people in the city and the suburbs thinks boston is the best place on the planet. 95% of the people who say that have never been out of New England which makes me laugh. Im from Cleveland, which is not the best place in the world. It's poor and in awful shape, but one thing i can say about it is how there is not nearly as much racism and people are so much nicer. Ive been to florida, texas, and illinois several times and those places are nicer than Boston(just a few states off the top of my head), and dont even get me started on the sports fans. No knowledge and biggest bandwagon fans anywhere in the country.
Dan | Beachwood, OH | Report Abuse

I agree. The area of Boston, Massachusetts, is very terrible. I lived here for many years and it is torture and brutality. The majority of people are not friendly at all and they have a very negative mind. Everywhere I go, it feels very intimidating and very uncomfortable. When I greet Bostonians, they do not reply and that is their ignorance and stupidity. Boston area and its surroundings are so extremely very expensive that only the super rich can afford. Also, Massachusetts has a very corrupt state government and very high taxes and the public education system is very terrible and very corrupt.
George | Haverhill, MA | Report Abuse

JOE From your post, this is what I have learnt: You dont like boston because: 1)People are untidy and wearing wrinkled clothes 2) They wear smelly winter coats full of cat hair 3) People have long untidy hair 4) They have sour faces 5) People have facial hair 6) They have nasty moles 7) They have crooked teeth 8) They also like butter on everything (Darn butter! I cant believe them!!) 9) Don't have money for make-up, manicures, or perfume. (Losers!!! Why would you spend money on anything else??!!?!?) 10) No one has any cash in their pockets. 11) Doctors and lawyers live in small old buildings without elevators, central air or parking. These 11 reasons were a cut/paste from your post. You go on to say (paraphrasing): Move to LA to find friendly people. Yes. LA. Known for its friendly people and honest friendship. Can we rename your post to: "If you're superficial and fake, you'll appreciate my perspective on Boston'? Unless you truly believe your post can be useful to anyone else? Do you? I actually thought your post was going to be intelligent and offer some negatives about Boston. Maybe the schools, nightlife, public transport etc. Nope, you told us the horrors of CAT HAIR and CROOKED TOOTH!! OMG!!! Of course you didnt tell us about public transport because only the poor moldy people use that. You certainly have different values than myself. Butter and facial hair dont bother me unless combined in my breakfast. Unfortunately, JOE, it seems you are just a bitter person who is not happy with yoursef in general and are blaming the city you live in. I dont think you would be happy in many other cities because there are always CRAZIES going around with moles on their faces!! I should stop typing now though. Its going to ruin my manicure.
Jonathan | Bellevue, WA | Report Abuse

I grew up in a big city in TX, and have lived in Iowa, Missouri, spent time in Montana, Oregon, CA, and road-tripped all over the US. I moved to MA ~20 years ago, living in Allston initially (a college town & suburb of Boston), and remember the feeling my first year here. Sick - I felt sickened by the unfriendly, unpleasant, rude, angry, repressed drudges that seemed to be all around. It was culture shock. I'd never seen such unfriendliness elsewhere in the US. If I even made eye contact with someone passing on the street, they gave me a wide berth or took it as a threat, a challenge, "what are you looking at?!". Heaven forbid I actually *smiled* at anyone. That's an indication you're a crazy person. Even if you're just having a good day, smiling to yourself, people look at you like something's wrong. (Recognize, in TX where I grew up, you didn't just make eye contact as you pass a fellow human being, you also frequently give them a polite nod or a "howdy" - given they're the only person you're likely to walk past for miles. Yes, really! The only people who were friendly or animated came from India, China, other countries or regions where kindness, openness, and personality aren't quite as repressed or frowned upon. When I've talked w/natives of MA about why the culture here is so socially conservative they've chalked it up to Puritan roots. It simply isn't proper to be too cheerful, to express who you are for fear someone will be put off by your lack of reserve. The dress is reserved, socially conservative just like the people. Personal style might block you from getting/keeping that job you want. Someone with colorful hair, cheerful attire, or anything visibly playful about them gets the stink-eye. They must be nuts, or just extremely immature. This is not the time or place to be yourself. How to survive - limit yourself to just one piece of color or personal expression each day. (People will still comment "I wish I could get away with that look.") Why do I stay? I moved here for work, and that has been something there is no shortage of in the Boston area. People take work very seriously, and you will work as hard as a New Yorker here. You quickly learn to adopt a neutral expression, avoid eye contact, and STOP ASKING people why the place is so glum. They don't understand the question. There is little diversity here, and most of the native New England white population has almost no experience with the rest of the US. Expensive international trips to major metropolitan cities aside, this is all they know. It is Normal. If people elsewhere in the country seem friendly, happy - the assumption is they are FAKE, disingenuous, and they probably have an angle or want something from you. That's rubbish, but you'll never convince a dyed-in-the-wool native that a smile comes free, or might simply be *polite* acknowledgement. :) Logically speaking, the population density here makes it virtually impossible to acknowledge individuals in the mass of people you pass each day in the city. I can understand why a smile stands out. But a single smile from one stranger has the power to lift the mood a little. That's a secret that hasn't made it to this part of the country. You do learn coping mechanisms for dealing with the gloomy nature of the place. It isn't where I'd want to be forever, since the mood can be so emotionally draining. However, one positive is that New Englanders will help each other in moments of crisis. If your car goes off a snowy road, someone will be kind enough to stop and haul you out. Neighbors push other neighbors' cars out of icy ditches, and if a tree comes down in the street, residents up and down the road bearing chainsaws will break it up and clear the path. The stoic self-sufficiency of the region includes looking out for each other, and winter emergencies bring everyone together. It's about the only time you say hi to your neighbors or have a sense of community & contact with your fellow Man, however thin the interaction. I have trouble believing the Brits are this reserved, unless they're very upper crust. I also can't blame the weather here for all of this gloom and doom (I mean, look at Finland's happiness quotient!). If you can find work elsewhere, I don't recommend NE to transplants from other parts of the country. However, each one of us living here might bring a little brightness to the area. For me, a smile has come to mean "you're not from around here, are you?"
Janet | Cheshire, MA | Report Abuse

I did post a complaint about mass before, but to be fair there are some nice things also. People abide by the rules a lot more in t heir living quarters. In california, apts are loud and plarty late at night. Here people are more considerate. Also very rare to wait in lines in mass because poele are so efficient at work and in life. I just think mass needs a revival spiritually. A lot of people are lost and lonely i think. We need to pray for mass. There are nice poeple but spiritually dead. California has good and bad points and mass has good and bad points. I guess thats true of all things.
david | Peabody, MA | Report Abuse

I have to agree. I moved here from Southern California and this place and the people are miserable, ignorant, uptight, bitter, think they're all very special simply because their professional sports team(s) are doing well. The hits just keep on coming here. When I first moved here everyone told me how I would like it here because people are "up front and honest to your face" and I've discovered the complete opposite. These people, a majority, are clanish and will turn on their mother if that could get them ahead to make a buck.
Steve | Middleton, MA | Report Abuse

I have to agree with Joe, new englanders I think are so negative because of the cold weather. I grew up in Boston and well you simply can't beat the southern california people and life style after living in New england. Also, new englanders are so patriotic about either their state or city that you simply can't anything negative abou tit with out getting shut down. Nice thing about cali is that if you still like the snow, you can always be there in 1 tah 2 hours.
Tyler | Barstow, CA | Report Abuse