Topic: Minnesota Nice
3 June 2008 03:22![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dancingstellaI think I have found a new message board to read.
I was searching something about Minnesota on Google when I found the MB. I've spent the better part of three hours reading threads that touch base on the term "Minnesota Nice" in some fashion. 0mfg, I have been howling with laughter from the get-go. There are some good debates and conversations about the topic, but there have also been, in true MB fashion, crass and stupid comments as well. No real flame wars, sadly. Heh, joking. Man, but I sure do miss my days on the DATV.com boards now and again. Good times.
Anyway, My two favourite posts:
I would talk more about all of this but I need sleep. Maybe later.
I was searching something about Minnesota on Google when I found the MB. I've spent the better part of three hours reading threads that touch base on the term "Minnesota Nice" in some fashion. 0mfg, I have been howling with laughter from the get-go. There are some good debates and conversations about the topic, but there have also been, in true MB fashion, crass and stupid comments as well. No real flame wars, sadly. Heh, joking. Man, but I sure do miss my days on the DATV.com boards now and again. Good times.
Anyway, My two favourite posts:
It means if you are in need of help, somebody will probably help you. If your car needs a jump start, somebody will happily do it. If you drive off the road into the ditch, somebody will probably help pull your car out. If your car dies in the middle of the road, people will stop and help you push it. If you need directions, most people will gladly give them to you. Your neighbors might clear your driveway with their snowblower if there was a big snow storm and they see you out shoveling by hand. People will usually be friendly and polite to you, even if they do not know you.
It does not mean these same people will instantly become your best friend and invite you in to their house for coffee and cookies after jump starting your car, as some non-natives seemed to expect in previous threads on this subject. ;)
There really are very few places in America (except maybe Alaska) where people will welcome you with open arms into their world. We don't share a great deal in common with each other anymore. We watch 500 cable channels instead of 3 networks. We lack shared experiences. We hardly get involved in our neighborhoods or towns anymore. We still wave at our neighbors. We don't hang out with them though. We don't have the legions of neighborhood moms at home being involved as the center of family social activities anymore. We don't have as many kids to form the same connections. We don't have many parties and social drinking is taboo. We don't have as much fun with the simple things in life. We don't have as much fun period. We all work. We drive home. And we cocoon in our own little world. You can call it Minnesota Nice or whatever nice. Our society is really no longer connected in a physical sense. This forum is our 1960's cocktail party. We type words to each other with cute little smile faces instead.
I would talk more about all of this but I need sleep. Maybe later.
