Goodbye, Washington DC.

[Anonymous]

And if enough of those people leave, you’ll be underwater on your 1,100 sq ft condo in Shaw, lolz!

[Anonymous]

jsteele wrote:That has got to be the whiniest Goodbye Cruel World post I have ever read.

This guy only came here 17 years ago. He probably spent at least the first 10 of those claiming that everybody in DC was from someplace else. People like him never really become part of the city and he won't be missed.

Exactly. And, anyway, if more people like him would leave, young people could afford rent/mortgages in this city. So go on - don't let the screen door hit you on your way out!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is exactly the kind of white moderate that MLK warned us about.

Letter from Birmingham Jail (ext)
By Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., 16 April 1963
"First, I must confess that over the last few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Council-er or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can't agree with your methods of direct action;" who paternalistically feels he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by the myth of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a "more convenient season."

Shallow understanding from people of goodwill is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection."

He's not a moderate though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The real issue here is not his white fragility but the fact that the latest combination of protests, violence and the huge decrease in the MPD budget will speed up white flight to the suburbs and you will have a lot of wealthier whites leaving. There is going to be a lot of disposable income leaving the district for the suburbs over the next few years and that is not good for an urban area when that money leaves. There are a lot of businesses that are already struggling from the pandemic and the economic shutdown that might have survived but will die over the next couple of years as money leaves the area.

As the owner of a nice single family home on a large lot in a close in suburb who’ll be ready to leave the area in 5-7 years, I applaud DC’s decision to cut police funding.

This will add a couple hundred thousand dollars to my home value by the time I’m ready to leave.


Thanks Maddam Mayor!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People come and people go. That is the nature of cities.

It’s odd how many times he says his departure is DC’s loss. It’s like some creepy guy telling his ex-girlfriend she’ll be nothing without him after she dumps him.

Oh that's right! He really thinks we care if he leaves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:That has got to be the whiniest Goodbye Cruel World post I have ever read.

This guy only came here 17 years ago. He probably spent at least the first 10 of those claiming that everybody in DC was from someplace else. People like him never really become part of the city and he won't be missed.

Exactly. And, anyway, if more people like him would leave, young people could afford rent/mortgages in this city. So go on - don't let the screen door hit you on your way out!

Who’s going to sell or rent those condos or apartments to those young people? The people who paid twice what they’re worth a few years before?

[Anonymous]

“I’ve witnessed the birth of entire neighborhoods: Shaw, 14th Street, The Atlas District, Navy Yard, Ivy City, The Wharf.“

LOL. These neighborhoods existed before 2003. I think the word he is looking for is gentrification. This whole entire rant isn’t about him being a “city person through and through” — a city person who oddly only ever wanted to be left alone and not interact with anyone. It’s about him being butt hurt that he can’t play in an urban playground that’s for affluent white people only. “Who cares?” about injustice, indeed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The real issue here is not his white fragility but the fact that the latest combination of protests, violence and the huge decrease in the MPD budget will speed up white flight to the suburbs and you will have a lot of wealthier whites leaving. There is going to be a lot of disposable income leaving the district for the suburbs over the next few years and that is not good for an urban area when that money leaves. There are a lot of businesses that are already struggling from the pandemic and the economic shutdown that might have survived but will die over the next couple of years as money leaves the area.

You know, those of us who have lived here a long time remember when this city was affordable to live in. I'm not hoping for an economic decline and the last thing I want to see is small businesses go under. But on the whole we survived before and we will continue to survive. A good community is one where people can afford rent and mortgages. I'm not going to cry if there's not another new exciting restaurant opening in my neighborhood. And I especially won't cry if the Goodbye Boy doesn't want to live in my neighborhood. Next!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:That has got to be the whiniest Goodbye Cruel World post I have ever read.

This guy only came here 17 years ago. He probably spent at least the first 10 of those claiming that everybody in DC was from someplace else. People like him never really become part of the city and he won't be missed.

Exactly. And, anyway, if more people like him would leave, young people could afford rent/mortgages in this city. So go on - don't let the screen door hit you on your way out!

Who’s going to sell or rent those condos or apartments to those young people? The people who paid twice what they’re worth a few years before?

Apparently so. And I will feel sorry for them but I will be happy that a new generation gets affordable housing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Great piece. And, I suppose there are many more like him in DC, Seattle, Portland, etc. etc. etc......

The pact we made to live here has broken. What am I paying for? A defunded police force? More murder? More violence? Do the property taxes I’ve faithfully paid for years not protect the CVS I can see from my bedroom—a building which recently had every window smashed and was looted because of “justice”? When the metro was lousy, we turned to Uber. When the schools were failing, parents turned to charter schools. When one area turned bleak another neighborhood popped up. But when chaos and destruction permeate, and an exhausted people asking for relief are told their indifference–not violent looters—is the true culprit, then there is no alternative but to leave.

The protesters may think this is their moment, but there is a deep, dark secret that will crush every disaffected group now demanding “justice” or “awareness” is this: city people really don’t care. We have an amazing, almost unparalleled ability, to be indifferent.

Real city people have no bandwidth to lay down dead in the street or start fires as part of a “protest.” Look at our day: after our miserable commute to work, we have long days in the office, followed by happy hour, client dinners, drinks, maybe a fundraiser or two or having cigars at Shelly’s—and that doesn’t include going to the gym, picking up dry cleaning, seeing our actual friends or spouse, and that miserable commute back home. Quite honestly, we don’t have time for your cause—of which there are so many, so very many causes, so much so that even a city as liberal DC just does not care.

Gay? Black? Trans? No offense, but, so what? We are city people: we have seen it all—literally, all—our entire lives. You are our neighbors, our friends, the president of our HOAs, our coworkers. The great beauty of the city is that we come from all walks of life and we get along. We accomplish this by leaving each other alone.

That’s why, when DC’s Mayor Bowser spray painted “Black Lives Matter” in front of my tea spot, I knew I was done. Not because of the issue itself or the cause (remember I don’t really care) but because through her actions, Browser effectively mandated empathy. This was government-sanctioned compassion. The mayor used taxpayer dollars—the one’s I’ve forked over for years—to force her beliefs on me. And, just like that, the pact was broken.

https://humanevents.com/2020/07/23/goodbye-washington-dc/

Agreed - but you'll get nothing but grief from the intolerant leftists on this thread.

[Anonymous]

So so sad! He’ll just have to take his amazing ability to be indifferent to the suburbs. Tragic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Great piece. And, I suppose there are many more like him in DC, Seattle, Portland, etc. etc. etc......

The pact we made to live here has broken. What am I paying for? A defunded police force? More murder? More violence? Do the property taxes I’ve faithfully paid for years not protect the CVS I can see from my bedroom—a building which recently had every window smashed and was looted because of “justice”? When the metro was lousy, we turned to Uber. When the schools were failing, parents turned to charter schools. When one area turned bleak another neighborhood popped up. But when chaos and destruction permeate, and an exhausted people asking for relief are told their indifference–not violent looters—is the true culprit, then there is no alternative but to leave.

The protesters may think this is their moment, but there is a deep, dark secret that will crush every disaffected group now demanding “justice” or “awareness” is this: city people really don’t care. We have an amazing, almost unparalleled ability, to be indifferent.

Real city people have no bandwidth to lay down dead in the street or start fires as part of a “protest.” Look at our day: after our miserable commute to work, we have long days in the office, followed by happy hour, client dinners, drinks, maybe a fundraiser or two or having cigars at Shelly’s—and that doesn’t include going to the gym, picking up dry cleaning, seeing our actual friends or spouse, and that miserable commute back home. Quite honestly, we don’t have time for your cause—of which there are so many, so very many causes, so much so that even a city as liberal DC just does not care.

Gay? Black? Trans? No offense, but, so what? We are city people: we have seen it all—literally, all—our entire lives. You are our neighbors, our friends, the president of our HOAs, our coworkers. The great beauty of the city is that we come from all walks of life and we get along. We accomplish this by leaving each other alone.

That’s why, when DC’s Mayor Bowser spray painted “Black Lives Matter” in front of my tea spot, I knew I was done. Not because of the issue itself or the cause (remember I don’t really care) but because through her actions, Browser effectively mandated empathy. This was government-sanctioned compassion. The mayor used taxpayer dollars—the one’s I’ve forked over for years—to force her beliefs on me. And, just like that, the pact was broken.

https://humanevents.com/2020/07/23/goodbye-washington-dc/

Agreed - but you'll get nothing but grief from the intolerant leftists on this thread.

Leftists aren’t intolerant. You’re just confused because we won’t tolerate your intolerance. It’s the strangest thing with you people, so desperate for your hate and vitriol toward others to be validated, but it never will be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The real issue here is not his white fragility but the fact that the latest combination of protests, violence and the huge decrease in the MPD budget will speed up white flight to the suburbs and you will have a lot of wealthier whites leaving. There is going to be a lot of disposable income leaving the district for the suburbs over the next few years and that is not good for an urban area when that money leaves. There are a lot of businesses that are already struggling from the pandemic and the economic shutdown that might have survived but will die over the next couple of years as money leaves the area.

I don't want businesses to go out of business and obviously I want the city to have a solid tax base. But I do think DC is suffering in part from too many people with high incomes who only want to spend that money on expensive private services and not on public services. The development in the city over the last 20 years has focused heavily on gentrifying neighborhoods and creating opportunities for businesses that cater to wealthy, single or married-but-childless, professionals with few community ties. I can see why Shaw and the Wharf and NoMa are appealing to 20- and 30-something lawyers and consultants who don't have kids, want a luxury condo with a rooftop pool and a gym (and have no problem paying the exorbitant condo fees that come with it), and lots of bars and restaurants that cater to their budgets and interests. But eventually those people will age, marry, have kids, or just get bored. And like this guy, they leave.

The solution is not to further cater to these people. The solution is to invest in the community. We need to stop granting massive tax breaks an allowances to these giant developers who are gentrifying neighborhoods in a way that only serves young, wealthy, professionals. It's not sustainable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The real issue here is not his white fragility but the fact that the latest combination of protests, violence and the huge decrease in the MPD budget will speed up white flight to the suburbs and you will have a lot of wealthier whites leaving. There is going to be a lot of disposable income leaving the district for the suburbs over the next few years and that is not good for an urban area when that money leaves. There are a lot of businesses that are already struggling from the pandemic and the economic shutdown that might have survived but will die over the next couple of years as money leaves the area.

I don't want businesses to go out of business and obviously I want the city to have a solid tax base. But I do think DC is suffering in part from too many people with high incomes who only want to spend that money on expensive private services and not on public services. The development in the city over the last 20 years has focused heavily on gentrifying neighborhoods and creating opportunities for businesses that cater to wealthy, single or married-but-childless, professionals with few community ties. I can see why Shaw and the Wharf and NoMa are appealing to 20- and 30-something lawyers and consultants who don't have kids, want a luxury condo with a rooftop pool and a gym (and have no problem paying the exorbitant condo fees that come with it), and lots of bars and restaurants that cater to their budgets and interests. But eventually those people will age, marry, have kids, or just get bored. And like this guy, they leave.

The solution is not to further cater to these people. The solution is to invest in the community. We need to stop granting massive tax breaks an allowances to these giant developers who are gentrifying neighborhoods in a way that only serves young, wealthy, professionals. It's not sustainable.

Well said. I applaud developments like Tanner Park, which can be used by everyone in the community for free. I would like to see dizzying investments into improving transit, trash cleanup, and other things that benefit everyone, not just the people who think $10 is a reasonable price for a drink at happy hour.

[Anonymous]

Someone posted this guy’s condo listing on Reddit. I am not surprised he paid $625,000 for a one-bedroom condo in a transitioning neighborhood and then tried to sell it for $50k more a year later. But yeah, it’s the people protesting for social equity who are ruining the city.