Are cities no go zones for you?

[citizen a]

Crime, trash, graffiti, vagrancy, civil unrest, all around unpleasantness. Are major cities turning into no go zones for suburban and rural dwellers? I find myself actively avoiding going into Portland. Even when traveling, I can't wait to get away from any major city and back to the burbs.

I've never been a huge fan of crowds, but I miss the great American city at the same time. Am I being too dramatic?

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[ma96782]

LOL...
I went to Portland, OR today.
Well actually, it was the 82nd Ave. side.
I saw plenty of the "homeless tents" along I-205.
And, since it's still "Portlandia."
It counts.



Rrrrright?

Aloha, Mark

 

[WAYNO]

And I see Tigard, Beaverton, Gresham, Vancouver and many of the other metro areas as part of Portland, and just as disgusting.

Even Oregon City, which prided itself in not being Portland, is being overrun with tweekers along Hwy 99E.

I stay away from the metro area as much as possible, but with doctors and hospitals, and the VA, sometimes I have no choice.

 

[Nosferatu]

Seattle might as well be Mogadishu as far as I'm concerned.

 

[TTSX]

It's not just the major cities. It's anywhere that will tolerate it. My city of 150k has tons, and I mean TONS of homeless. We're so famous for it, Bender Bending Rodriguez made a joke about them. And then there's the scum which are becoming more and more common. Just this weekend there was a meet and greet with armed "guards" in black I went to. They are not my kind, nobody wanted to say anything to me. Must have been the Carhartt gear. And the no mask..... Finally I had to walk around sidewalk poop downtown today. Because we're being inclusive.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

Less and less reasons to venture into portland other than for work.
405N and I5 north are a disgusting joke. Trash and tent cities everywhere. I wouldn't really care about the tents if folks acted accordingly and picked up after themselves.. but every single tent has a trash heap or a 30-50ft trash heap radius. Went thru this last weekend..looks like a literal dump.
And the graffiti is getting ridiculous.. Portland is now a visual and physical representation of their enabling, overly tolerant policies.

 

[Caveman Jim]

I boycott Slezzattle, Tacoma, King, Snohomish and Pierce counties in Wa.

 

[2ndtimer]

The ONLY reason I go to Seattle is Virginia Mason Medical Center, for follow up appointments after my prostatectomy. Thankfully, it is located right off the freeway with a quick trip back to I-90 to return to the right side of the state.

 

[trunner]

I don't think you're being dramatic. I'm also actively avoiding Portland, to the extent possible. I suspect many of us miss taking a meal out, going to a sporting event or whatever your urban enjoyments are/were. But, is it worth it anymore? Do city outings enhance, or detract from, your life experience?

To me, trips through Portland are now a sad reminder of the steep decline of a formerly clean and pleasant city.

 

[cigars]

I had to go to NE the other day. On the way back, I decided to take the "scenic route", I-84 to 82nd and then down Powell and out Capitol Hwy to Tigard. 82nd was a bit tame but SE Powell does not disappoint. The mayor and city council must be proud of their accomplishments. Hard to believe that people are still moving into Portland. I guess it's progressive bragging rights now to have a tent pitched and a pile of crap on the other side of your fence. There are tents and bum camps everywhere. You just don't see it to that extent out in the suburbs. The only problem with the suburbs now is that they are all starting to catch the blue virus.

 

[Nws679]

I stick to the small towns!

 

[Diamondback]

Trapped in the Puget Sound mess, but try to avoid Everett-Seattle-Tacoma as much as I can.

 

[gmerkt]

I stay out of major city areas as a matter of personal safety. Lately I've even changed financial institutions so as to avoid annual trips into town.

I wouldn't really care about the tents if folks acted accordingly and picked up after themselves.. but every single tent has a trash heap or a 30-50ft trash heap radius. Went thru this last weekend..looks like a literal dump.
And the graffiti is getting ridiculous..

All of the above. It's all about lawlessness. Has anybody else put two and two together about the rise of grafitti corresponding with permissiveness resulting in overt homelessness/tents. Rascals and scofflaws figure this out. They see enforcement becoming lax, they test the limits. The more they are allowed to get away with, the more they push. When I was growing up in the old neighborhood, the phrase was, "Give 'em an inch and they'll take a mile." Still applies.

If they are homeless and skint for money, how do they afford spray paint? Oh, I know, shoplifting. Because even if the theft is noticed, stores won't detain or stop shoplifters. Police reponse is near nil.

And even out in the 'burbs, the amount of trash and litter carelessly thrown about has gotten noticeably worse. It's starting to look like businesses with parking lots have given up. I lay the blame for this in part on differences in cultures. People coming to the US from many foreign countries, well, in some of those places there is trash everywhere. They bring that part of their culture with them. Young people are particularly bad about this.

Sanitation is a real worry with the homeless tent camps. Wherever there are humans, there is human waste. It has to go somewhere. It doesn't take much imagination to figure that most of it generated by the camping homeless isn't being propertly disposed of.

Years ago, I was paid a small stipend to participate in the PR response to a clean water agency that was being pitched. It hasn't gained much traction since then. But one of their major points was pollution run-off from pet waste in backyards. I'd like to know what these same people now think about untreated waste from homeless squatter camps.

 

[User 1234]

As someone said, we are in an era of reverse natural selection.

 

[Diamondback]

As someone said, we are in an era of reverse natural selection.

Sadly, I expect that to change horribly and soon... Darwinism can only be delayed not denied, and when the pendulum swings it will be brutal with the Big Collapse or war with China.

 

[No_Regerts]

I may drive through the city, but I don't stop. There is no need, whatsoever, that I couldn't fulfill somewhere else.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

i avoid them as much as possible

 

[P7M13]

I grew up in an absolute sheitehole. Most places are pretty nice by comparison.
It leaves a lasting impression and a street sense that seems to have worked well for me.

It's all about lawlessness.

You are absolutely right, like the RAD teen testing limits. I'm surprised no one has visited the camps with improvised flame throwers.

 

[USMC-03]

I shall be a bit of a contrarian in this case. Portland is a fantastic city; Saturday market, food carts, Powell's, Forest Park, plus lots of other points of interest. In recent years I've traveled throughout the US and there are numerous cities that are far worse - Detroit for example.

That said, I completely agree that Moscow on the Willamette has more than its share of problems and areas I wouldn't take my family to. Even the lovely and gracious Mrs. USMC-03 (solidly in the blue camp) has been very concerned with the growing number of homeless camps and deteriorating neighborhoods.

My biggest concern, living on the edge of the Metro area, is hive mentality. If and when there is an extended crisis event - financial collapse, grid down long term, supply chain breakdown - the meltdown is going to be brutal and spread outward in short order. Little different than in any other major metropolitan region.

So, get your local security and communication network organized now; a dozen core individuals with a basic emergency plan will make all the difference in the world when conditions deteriorate and people are frightened.

Para Proelium

 

[theewashman]

I live in SE PDX and only 15 or so minutes from being in downtown Portland. Individual neighborhoods are clean and pleasant, still safe even (mine is at least, lucky enough to be in a nice part of town). But if you get anywhere near Powell Blvd, main streets, or highway "intersections" there are more tents and trash than you can imagine. The amount of garbage that is allowed by the city is something else.

You'll see an upstanding business, trying to stay afloat through the ridiculous Multnomah county taxes and the ridiculous "shut downs". Paying property tax, income tax, homeless tax, etc. Then right next door you'll have a small tent village of people who get to live for free and spray paint anything and do whatever they want with zero consequences. Heck, I even saw a group of homeless people leaving a garbage can out on the curb to be picked up. Think they are paying for that service?

It infuriates me and and I feel sorry for the businesses and good people that have to deal with it on a daily basis.