Do you live in a blue state?

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I’ve lived a lot of places in my life, and the one thing I can say is that they are very similar. For the record, Texas is run by older, rich, anglo men. That’s a fact of life in this state since its beginning. Texas is still pretty conservative concerning social issues as well as politically. One thing to think about if you are considering moving to Texas is that the Hispanic population is growing rapidly, and it’s possible that Texas will become a “purple” state soon and a “red” state by 2030. There are a whole lot of issues that come along with this increase in the Hispanic population, such as unemployment, education issues, crime, immigration issues, etc.

Texas does not have a low tolerance for diversity - especially in the cities. Not everyone here wears jeans and boots and listens to country music. The DFW Metrolplex has a great deal of cultural diversity: sports teams, art, music, parks and recreation, etc. Also, know that the west side of the Metroplex is more conservative than Dallas. Finally, know that the Metroplex has a thriving Catholic community (Diocese of Fort Worth and Diocese of Dallas)
 
I live in a blue state in a region of the state that is so blue that the Dem candidate for nearly any office could get caught in the middle of nearly any crime the day before elections and STILL handily beat his republican challenger. (This actually happend recently when Jesse Jackson, Jr. won re-election and shortly thereafter had to resign over corruption that everybody already knew about before the election!) And I say the above fully aware that the republicans are hardly God’s chosen people either…

But you know what? There is still enough critical mass of genuine believers to make a viable life as a believing catholic. I’ll put a shiny dollar coin bet on my kid’s parish school being spiritually the best diocesan catholic school in the entire nation. And it’s right smack in the political stronghold of this country’s worst culture of death president ever.

The light shines brighter in the midst of darkness. Stay and fight. Find a parish where the priest preaches the gospel and believes firmly in the sacraments. Find enough community of believers to support yourself and your family and stand fast.
 
silicasandra said:
I live in Pennsylvania, which is a strange state politically speaking. Where I live (Pittsburgh metro area) it’s about a 50/50 split between Democrats and Republicans. I am not affiliated with either party, though I tend to vote for more Republican candidates than Democratic ones.

The big blue spots are around Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. Philly is definitely bluer than Pittsburgh. The rest of the state is red, but I think overall the state is fairly moderate, though becoming more liberal on social issues. Many people who vote Democrat though don’t do it for the social issues, but because either they or their parents were union. On social issues even the Democrats tend to be more conservative - I don’t think this is the case in many typically blue states but it’s common for pro-life Democrats to get elected at all levels of government. I am not sure what it’s like at the state level (I try not to think about it because it sets my blood to boiling) but definitely at the county and municipal levels here machine politics are huge. Maybe not as bad as Illinois ;), but sometimes I think we must live in the Gilded Age around here. 😛

I am bothered with the trends in the country overall, and there were definitely more Obama signs in our neighborhood than Romney signs, but I get the feeling that politics are central to only a few people. The rest of us are too busy living and raising our families. 🤷
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Interestingly enough, Pittsburgh is another place that we’ve considered. I know that it is technically a “blue” county in a fairly polarized state, but I’ve also heard that Pennsylvania generally is a fairly pro-life, Catholic state. Who knows? I’ve also heard that the Pittsburgh area is fairly unconcerned about national politics and that it’s more socially liberal than you might otherwise expect from a city a stone’s throw from West Virginia (and, also, Steubenville, OH).
 
Colorad007 said:
Thanks for the correction. It looks like Texas ends up being more or less in the middle of the pack in terms of the abortion rate. The point I was making was that Texas doesn’t seem exceptionally virtuous, although it’s politics might make it seem that way.

In terms of the gay population, you’re right that almost every city in almost every state probably has a gay community. But Dallas’ is one of the largest in the country, and not every major city has an openly gay mayor like Houston. The impression I get is that Texas’ cities are generally liberal and even libertine just like any other city, but the rural areas give Texas its “red” flavor. We’re not going to move to a rural area, so that’s why I’m questioning whether city or suburban life in Texas is any different than city or suburban life in any other big city in America.
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I think suburban life in Texas is for the most part very red. For example, I live perhaps 20-30 minutes away from Annise Parker (the lesbian mayor, not sure exactly where she lives), and it’s solid red here.
 
I live in Chicago, Illinois. The thing is that how the city votes dictates what color the state is - it doesn’t really matter if the rest of the state is red and the city is blue. If the city is blue then the state is blue by default.

Being a conservative, both socially and fiscally, in a major city can be very lonely and depressing at times, and I live in a neighborhood that’s considered “hip/cool” and young. The only two “religions” that are respected in the city are anonymity and liberalism; you can talk about anything, but if it’s religion then discourse must be skeptical of it or be dismissive of it. If you’re in favor of it, proclaim that you’re a Christian/Catholic, or show signs of agreement, then don’t be surprised if you’re not invited to a party or if your intramural teammates don’t talk to as much as before. Politics is fine, just so long as it’s Democratic or Libertarian.

The job I do requires me to live in the city and I don’t care much for the car lifestyle - it’s not so much driving back and forth, but the traffic; I’m too impatient and I get road rage for the most petty things so suburbia will not be conducive to my temperament in that sense.
 
I live in Michigan and I love this state. My business is here, and it’s not something I could transplant somewhere else. While there is a lot of blue in this state, there is also a lot of great Catholics around here and a major Catholic community. I’m outnumbered thanks to the unions, but I love this state and cannot bring myself to move. I just have to roll with it. We’re called to be faithful, not necessarily successful.
 
manualman said:
I live in a blue state in a region of the state that is so blue that the Dem candidate for nearly any office could get caught in the middle of nearly any crime the day before elections and STILL handily beat his republican challenger. (This actually happend recently when Jesse Jackson, Jr. won re-election and shortly thereafter had to resign over corruption that everybody already knew about before the election!) And I say the above fully aware that the republicans are hardly God’s chosen people either…

But you know what? There is still enough critical mass of genuine believers to make a viable life as a believing catholic. I’ll put a shiny dollar coin bet on my kid’s parish school being spiritually the best diocesan catholic school in the entire nation. And it’s right smack in the political stronghold of this country’s worst culture of death president ever.

The light shines brighter in the midst of darkness. Stay and fight. Find a parish where the priest preaches the gospel and believes firmly in the sacraments. Find enough community of believers to support yourself and your family and stand fast.
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Thanks for the encouraging words.

Objectively, it seems that moving to a place like Texas that is more pro-life, more family-friendly, more conservative, more religious, etc. is more or less a no no-brainer. The only thing, besides family and friends, that would keep me in a more liberal state is a feeling that, man, I have to stay to evangelize this place until I’m blue (in the face). So as things get worse, and I feel more compelled to leave, I actually feel even more compelled to stay out of a sense of duty, if nothing else. I don’t know if that’s masochism or Christian suffering, but it’s how it all feels. Then again, there are plenty of souls to be evangelized in Texas, too, but they’re not my people, if that at all makes sense.

Also, Chicago is somewhat like Denver, in that both cities are generally quite liberal, and Illinois even moreso than Colorado, but the apostolic activity in each place is unbelievable. God is acting in even these otherwise pagan places with amazing power.
 
Chicago has Cardinal George and good pizza. What more could you ask for? 😛
 
California just voted in enough Blues into the State Legislature to have a supermajority on both houses and with a Blue Governor. Until it changes we have one party rule here at the State level.

In time it will most likely swing back to two party rule when enough voters come to see that, even with one party rule, the problems cannot be solved by MORE government.

Meanwhile, I focus on trying to live according to my Catholic Faith and vote accordingly.
 
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