Grandmas Are Friendly. Our Grandmas Treat Us Well. We Love Our Grandmas Dearly. But No One Young Wants To Live Around A Bunch Of Grandmas All The Time.
Curtis gets it partially right. Yes, Spirited Energy is done. This is a good thing.
But let's not be too hasty about heading back to "Friendly Manitoba". Don't get wrong, it's better than "Manitoba: Better Than A Poke In The Eye", "Manitoba: Still Saskatchewan's Big Brother (Til 2010 or 11 fingers crossed)" or "Manitoba: The Other White Meat". However, "Friendly Manitoba" isn't exactly going to inspire folks to come live and invest here. It doesn't really make you think, "Hell yeah! Now that's the place to be!"
In the end, being known for being friendly above all others traits is a fast track to becoming the Ned Flanders of the world.
Even the most earnest, love-their-neighbours, Wosley-ish hippie people want just a little bit of edge and a dose of cool in the place where they choose to live.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're suffering from a real provincial mindset here in Manitoba. Readopting "Friendly Manitoba" would be just another symptom of that malaise.*
* - Unless we want to be just another provincial burb, forever destined to be a periphery player in the country, least of all the world. But if that is the case, let's a least have a debate about that direction, because that's certainly where we are headed under the current status quo.
But let's not be too hasty about heading back to "Friendly Manitoba". Don't get wrong, it's better than "Manitoba: Better Than A Poke In The Eye", "Manitoba: Still Saskatchewan's Big Brother (Til 2010 or 11 fingers crossed)" or "Manitoba: The Other White Meat". However, "Friendly Manitoba" isn't exactly going to inspire folks to come live and invest here. It doesn't really make you think, "Hell yeah! Now that's the place to be!"
In the end, being known for being friendly above all others traits is a fast track to becoming the Ned Flanders of the world.
Even the most earnest, love-their-neighbours, Wosley-ish hippie people want just a little bit of edge and a dose of cool in the place where they choose to live.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, we're suffering from a real provincial mindset here in Manitoba. Readopting "Friendly Manitoba" would be just another symptom of that malaise.*
* - Unless we want to be just another provincial burb, forever destined to be a periphery player in the country, least of all the world. But if that is the case, let's a least have a debate about that direction, because that's certainly where we are headed under the current status quo.
I don't think it necessarily has to be about Ned Flanders. We could be the anti-New York or Toronto. You can raise a family, start a business and still have time to get to know your neighbours and go to the Lake.
Let the "big city" folk brag about their 18 hour days, crammed commutes and 200 square foot $1 million apartments. To me, Friendly Manitoba could suggest an environment where you can realize your professional goals without giving up on all of the other things that make life worthwhile. Of course, it would then be incumbent upon the provincial government to actually show it's residents it is committed to this by fostering such an environment...
Posted by
Unapologetic Ex-Winnipegger |
10:00 AM
Hilariously, when Saskatchewan started booming, there were (and are) people who maintained in all seriousness that we SHOULDN'T encourage people to move here and, even more bizarrely, shouldn't encourage too much economic growth.
Naturally, this viewpoint came mainly from success-hating NDP types, who couldn't stand the notion of Saskatchewan "becoming like Alberta" (i.e. successful).
We did the whole "great place to raise a family" route too, and it works to a point. But once you get a bunch of oil company junior execs taking you seriously, then you end up with city house prices in the Calgary range and small-town (!) house prices hitting $200K, so it all becomes a moot point anyway.
Ultimately, people follow dollars, not slogans. Saskatchewan had all sorts of slogans and promotions that didn't do a single effin' thing. In the end the only things that made any difference were the world commodity markets.
Posted by
Mentok |
11:05 AM
My dearest Hack,
As a Grandma I would not want to live around you all the time either.
Remember, I was once in your home.
I have lived in other cities, and in other countries. There is no other place I would rather live than Manitoba. The beautiful and breath taking north,wide open spaces, the lakes and of course the people. I found after living in so many places there is truly no place like Manitoba.
Peach's Grandma
Posted by
Anonymous |
2:31 PM
It's very late, but I'll be back to respond in this thread in another evening or two.
Posted by
The Hack |
1:30 AM