I have no desire to move to a small town or rural area. Sure, for vacations. But I really am a city girl and I have young kids who need either services or competitive sports. I wouldn’t mind living in a slightly left of center city either. If it’s big enough anyone can find a way to make it work. But I don’t like living where I have to keep my beliefs quiet or my whole family is ostracized. I have a maga hat but if I ever wore it I’d be in danger or at least waylaid and called names all day in front of my family. When it’s time to sell my family’s place here, I’m out too. Still looking at Nashville or Denver areas.
Yaelle, I used to think of small towns like that, but I’ve changed: big cities have lots of choices, but it’s like having 500-channel cable versus 4-channel over-the-air TV. You just choose whatever you like the most from the available options, and mostly you forget that that there’s anything that might be slightly better. Maybe small towns don’t have oboe competitions, but a good piano teacher will give him what he needs, for instance.
In any case, there’s the whole outdoors to choose activities from, and those are healthier and they teach self-reliance. I’m afraid the constant drumbeat of Godless gender identity, etc, is worse in the cities. Even in states that mandate the teaching of perversion, small-town folk just ignore the insanity. So in my opinion kids are better in small towns overall.
When my son and I go to the Carson Valley, NV for a visit we never have to hide out MAGA opinions or signs. Here in Silicon Valley, I’ve had to replace my car signs several times. Finally, a supposed ideological soul-mate at church said my innocuous Trump sign was racially dismissive of Latinas, and emotions won over reason and logic. Can’t see that happening in conservative areas.
Just my opinion....