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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I moved from DC to Vienna three years ago for more space (and also because my work moved completely remote). I thought that the tight-knit sense of community would appeal to me and my two kids (late elementary school), but that hasn’t really been the case.

I feel like a fish out of water. I’m a single mom, and already I feel like that separates me from the family-oriented nature of Vienna. I also don’t really fit into the suburban soccer mom stereotype that Vienna is known for. [b]I’m not super interested in playing politics with my neighbors. I’m pretty vocal about social injustice and I curse a lot — I don’t really buy into the “don’t rock the boat” ethos around me. [/b]

The competitive nature of the other parents and the Type A pressure cooker of the schools also concern me. I’m a psychologist and I’ve seen WAY too many teens in this area break down because of the intense pressure, and I sometimes feel like I should’ve chosen a “lower performing” school that doesn’t have the relentless pressure to succeed.

The tightly-wound nature of the other parents bother me, and sometimes they make comments about how I’m not “pushing” my kids by putting them in travel sports or extra academic enrichment. It just seems like most of the people around me are Type A rule-following lawyers, which feels really weird as someone who spent my teens and twenties going to punk shows and making lots of (bad) art…

[b]And the conservatism of the area is unsettling. I don’t really find any Trump supporters/far-right people in the area, but there is a general social conservatism and intense conformity that feels uncomfortable. [/b]

Is this just what living in the suburbs is like? Or is it intensified in Vienna? Is there another NoVa/Moco/DC neighborhood where parents like me congregate? [/quote]

A lot of people in this area have political beliefs that you wouldn't know about. I know a ton of people on both ends of the spectrum including social justice types that keep a low profile because of their work or their spouse's work. Come on. Think about where we live.

Just because people don't shout it from the rooftops doesn't make them what you're assuming they are.

Get over yourself. [/quote]

I am the PP who used to live in Vienna who has OP's back.

The issue isn't that there are people on both ends of the political spectrum who live in Vienna or other places in the area.  The issue is that, in other places, you can generally engage in a political discussion with others that acknowledges you may well have different perspectives.  Hopefully it doesn't end in shouting, and perhaps sometimes it even does, but topics (as opposed to confidential information) aren't off-limits.

In Vienna, you run the risk of being shunned for "bad form" because you've brought up controversial political issues at all, when you should have known the acceptable topics of discourse were (1) VYI sports, (2) the Madison HS band, (3) AAP, (4) the local Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts troops, (5) slots on local PTA committees and (6) whether Caffe Amouri has gone downhill.  [I'm exaggerating slightly, but not as much as you might think.]

[/quote]

DP.  Do you know how many people in this area spend most of their hours working on social justice and a myriad of other policy issues? After spending ten hours on Capitol Hill or at a think tank or law firm debating and writing, the last thing these people want to do is talk about those issues in the few hours they have to spend with their family and friends. It *is* rude and “bad form” to insist on talking about things other people don’t want to talk about. Certain political issues are controversial because they are complex and don’t lend themselves to easy solutions. I really don’t want or need to stand around at a neighborhood party being “educated” on topics I’ve spent my adult life studying and discussing 40+ hours a week. So, when you bring it up, I’m going to politely change the subject. If you continue, I’ll find an excuse to walk away and probably avoid you in the future. So, yes, I will “shun” you, and it doesn’t mean that you’re just too “edgy” and “passionate about social Justice.” It means I’m tired and want to find out what’s been going on at my kid’s school or scout troop or whatever while I’ve been at work. [/quote]

Nice try but few people in Vienna are working on cutting-edge social justice issues.  To the extent they get involved in policy, it's about things like coal subsidies or increasing defense appropriations.  If they don't want to talk about it, it's because they know it's mundane and anything but progressive.  And then, if someone tip toes around the issues of the day, they get shunned as a rabble-rouser.  [/quote]

“Coal subsidies?”  You just proved that you have no idea what you’re talking about. [/quote]

https://www.eesi.org/papers/view/fact-sheet-fossil-fuel-subsidies-a-closer-look-at-tax-breaks-and-societal-costs[/quote]

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