alanwright wrote:
Wow. Your rant, though boring and predictable, deserves to be deconstructed.

Quote:

So who exactly is that helping, defenitly not the average folk that lived here pre gentrification.

Yes, it is. It means cleaner streets, more property taxes for city schools, and a better quality of life. That's a terrible thing, I know. We should go back to the good old days of ramshackle housing, cold water flats, and aldermanic wards. The 20s were great! Jersey City also had a lot of child labor, so we should hold onto that too.

But let's suppose it wasn't helping the so-called average folk. So what? Real estate is not static, and federal law protects every person to live wherever they please. If you want to go back in time, you're hopelessly naive. IT'S TIME TO GET ON BOARD, because there's nothing so powerful as an idea whose time has come.

I'm not going to sit here, play defensive, and let your inertia or whining interfere with positive changes for this community. I will not be complicit with your out-moded thinking to protect the many, many Jersey City residents who moved out long ago.

Quote:

And when was the last time (lets just call them yipsters) were seen at a regular pizza joint or bodega that has been here for years, besides the fact that they wanted to be ironic or flashy with there friends by going to a "hood" bodega.

Maybe yesterday when I got a decent slice at Carmines, or when I bought fruits and vegetables at Tender Shoot Farm. I also went to Wonder Bagels, 2nd Street Liquors, and the laundromat. But I also posted all these super-hip activities on my YouTube site to show off how edgy I am. It was so cool that next time I'll do it on a skateboard.

If you're sad inside because Yuly's Place or your corner store is having trouble, then I guess you should start eating there. I will not. I also won't go to bodegas that don't carry good product. High fructose corn syrup does not a balanced diet make.

Quote:

And if it was so obvious dont you think everyone would have bought up as much property as possible knowing they'd get a cool mill for it?

Perhaps they were content to live in cruddy town. It seems like the idiots on Columbus drive want to urinate all over their front porch and make people uncomfortable. That's the sort of lifestyle that we should protect no matter what, right?

Anyway, it's much more likely folks were unequipped to buy, though many did. The "average joe" should not prevent Jersey City or Newark or Asbury Park from becoming a pleasant place to be... especially when his averageness is part of the stumbling block.

Quote:

And then best off all you call it dirty and say all the people that got kicked out should just move along... if JC is so dirty and backwards to you why dont you be the one to pack up and shuffle along.

I said it was cruddy and shabby, and that I didn't want it to be dirty. You have to read without getting so emotional.

Nobody got kicked out by gentrification. Private action by landlords may have done so, but not the boogieman you call gentrification. I'm here because I like this place, though it is definitely shabby. You must have gotten used to it.

Quote:

I dont even know why I took the time to reply to this garbage.

Because you're scared and you're flailing. I correctly predicted that in my post. Reread it.

So who exactly is that helping, defenitly not the average folk that lived here pre gentrification.

And when was the last time (lets just call them yipsters) were seen at a regular pizza joint or bodega that has been here for years, besides the fact that they wanted to be ironic or flashy with there friends by going to a "hood" bodega.

And if it was so obvious dont you think everyone would have bought up as much property as possible knowing they'd get a cool mill for it?

And then best off all you call it dirty and say all the people that got kicked out should just move along... if JC is so dirty and backwards to you why dont you be the one to pack up and shuffle along.

I dont even know why I took the time to reply to this garbage.

crushthedemoniac wrote:
Quote:

alanwright wrote:
Fathom wrote:

Quote:

Especially since neither are actually bad for a corrupt city filled with potholes and crime... Hipsters, yuppies, condos , artists whatever and whoever comes here are better then muggers, and theifs.

This thread is mostly asinine, and the forced choice/ comparison is absurd. Cheers to Fathom for putting it straight. Both hipsters and condos are good for this town, but just not for everyone in it. The old-guard, the chipped-shouldered ones, and the poor are the only folks who should truly object to the changes in this town. I doubt they're all on JCList, or have any real power to slow the changes, so they're scared and are flailing.

So-called hipsters help occupy and demand better real estate, whether rental or not. They also support small businesses (restaurants; art galleries; bars; cafes; vintage stores; grocers; organic bakeries; DIY clothing; Vespa stores) and probably are not too hard on the environment (many don't have cars). Many are trustafarians, and occupy the condos.

Condos are often converted apartments, which should thereby impact the rental market - until/unless the condos return to rentals. They raise the price and the stakes for local housing standards. That's great in a cruddy old town like this. If you oppose it, it's either because you will feel the impact personally or because you have a political ax to grind for "affordable housing" in a shabby downtown despite the market demand for so-called gentrification. As downtown changes in terms of housing, those who cannot afford downtown will move to somewhere else. So what? Perhaps they should have planned for this twenty years ago. Everybody knew this was coming, so God bless you as you pack up and shuffle along.

P.S. I'm neither a hipster nor a condo-owner. I'm reluctantly a yuppie: a student who doesn't want to live in dirty, corrupt, backwards town stuck issues of street-cred and small-mindedness.

This post is the one thats absurd. You say the hipsters and yuppies (or whatever other tools move here) help start and or patron small buisnesses? Uh news flash organic bakerys and gourmet whatever didnt exist until they all got here. So who exactly is that helping, defenitly not the average folk that lived here pre gentrification. And when was the last time (lets just call them yipsters) were seen at a regular pizza joint or bodega that has been here for years, besides the fact that they wanted to be ironic or flashy with there friends by going to a "hood" bodega. Your whole post is mind blowing. I really dont even know where to go with this. You also mention how the people that lived/rented downtown were supposed to know this was going to happen 20-25 years downt he line? Not everyone has a crystal ball my friend. And if it was so obvious dont you think everyone would have bought up as much property as possible knowing they'd get a cool mill for it? And then best off all you call it dirty and say all the people that got kicked out should just move along, this has to be the biggest B.S. ever, if JC is so dirty and backwards to you why dont you be the one to pack up and shuffle along. I dont even know why I took the time to reply to this garbage.

alanwright wrote:
Fathom wrote:

Quote:

Especially since neither are actually bad for a corrupt city filled with potholes and crime... Hipsters, yuppies, condos , artists whatever and whoever comes here are better then muggers, and theifs.

This thread is mostly asinine, and the forced choice/ comparison is absurd. Cheers to Fathom for putting it straight. Both hipsters and condos are good for this town, but just not for everyone in it. The old-guard, the chipped-shouldered ones, and the poor are the only folks who should truly object to the changes in this town. I doubt they're all on JCList, or have any real power to slow the changes, so they're scared and are flailing.

So-called hipsters help occupy and demand better real estate, whether rental or not. They also support small businesses (restaurants; art galleries; bars; cafes; vintage stores; grocers; organic bakeries; DIY clothing; Vespa stores) and probably are not too hard on the environment (many don't have cars). Many are trustafarians, and occupy the condos.

Condos are often converted apartments, which should thereby impact the rental market - until/unless the condos return to rentals. They raise the price and the stakes for local housing standards. That's great in a cruddy old town like this. If you oppose it, it's either because you will feel the impact personally or because you have a political ax to grind for "affordable housing" in a shabby downtown despite the market demand for so-called gentrification. As downtown changes in terms of housing, those who cannot afford downtown will move to somewhere else. So what? Perhaps they should have planned for this twenty years ago. Everybody knew this was coming, so God bless you as you pack up and shuffle along.

P.S. I'm neither a hipster nor a condo-owner. I'm reluctantly a yuppie: a student who doesn't want to live in dirty, corrupt, backwards town stuck issues of street-cred and small-mindedness.

Especially since neither are actually bad for a corrupt city filled with potholes and crime... Hipsters, yuppies, condos , artists whatever and whoever comes here are better then muggers, and theifs.

Fathom wrote:
whats worse is people set on finding a group to hate on. Especially since neither are actually bad for a corrupt city filled with potholes and crime. Its a step up no matter how edgy and cool you think you are for living in a pre or post gentrified area.
Hipsters, yuppies, condos , artists whatever and whoever comes here are better then muggers, and theifs.
Lastly, haters of all kinds are worse then hipsters and their glasses tattoos and recycled clothes. Or did i make that point already. fIND SOMETHING WORTH COMPLAINING ABOUT, LIKE INCOME TAX OR STANDING AT A CONCERT AND BEING PEE'D ON.

Willy_Lopez wrote:
JC's 'hipster scene' is rediculously small compared to the meccas like Williamsburg, Philly, Austin, SF, Seattle, and Portland. We don't see 20 fixed gear bikes locked up outside every bar and coffee shop just yet.

wibbit wrote:
i still dont know what a hipster is or the difference between a hipster and a yappy. [...]

pistolpacknpitbull wrote:
And the only way to seem edgy is to march in lockstep with the heaving right-wing bible-thumping flag-waving masses.

ALL UTIL. INCLUDED!!! THIS IS THE ONE YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!!
Date: 2008-07-11, 2:53AM EDT


GORGEOUS 10 x 14 BEDROOM, DRENCHED WITH LOTS OF AFTERNOON SUNLIGHT, GENEROUS CLOSET SPACE, CLEAN BATHROOM, NICE COMMON SPACE AND STORAGE. W/D IN BASEMENT (COIN-OP ALTHOUGH LANDLORD IS IN PROCESS OF MAKING IT FREE!) AND ELEC/COOKING GAS/HI-SPEED INTERNET/TRASH PICK-UP INCLUDED IN RENT. STREET PARKING. CLOSE TO HOSPITALS AND SOME SHOPPING.

LIVE WITH TWO QUIET ROOMMATES BOTH STUDENTS (ONE INTERNATIONAL)
NO DRINKING/DRUGS, CALM LIVING ENVIRONMENT FOR RIGHT INDIVIDUAL
WITH REGULAR HOURS.

THERE IS ONE SMALL CATCH THAT HAS NOT BEEN A PROBLEM AT ALL WITH PREVIOUS TENANTS. BEDROOM MUST BE SHARED WITH APPROX. 700 LB. ADULT MALE SILVERBACK GORILLA. THIS IS AN EASTERN LOWLAND GORILLA WHO IS FAIRLY DOCILE ALTHOUGH HE DOES NEED TO "STRETCH HIS LEGS" FROM TIME TO TIME. HE FEEDS ON FRUITS AND LEAVES AND HAS SOMEWHAT OF AN INTENSE SEXUAL APPETITE.

BIG KITCHEN WITH BREAKFAST AREA. BEDROOM WINDOWS FACE REAR COURTYARD NO TRAFFIC NOISE! SOMEWHAT LOW CEILINGS BUT GUT RENOVATED WITH HARDWOOD FLOORS AND ORIGINAL MOLDINGS.
NOT RAILROAD! SEPARATE ROOMS WITH TWO ENTRANCES. SECOND FLOOR WALK-UP.

YEAR LEASE REQUIRED.
FIRST AND LAST PLUS SECURITY. TOTAL OF $1155 MOVE-IN COST.
THIS WILL NOT LAST. NO BROKERS PLEASE.

* Location: BUSHWICK
* it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

So you've just moved into a new "gentrifying" neighboorhood that's full of urban culture, cheap(er) rents, and wonderful friendly people. An odd lack of organic food stores and greenmarkets, but you can't have everything. So one day you're doing something #OOPS#ING RETARDED like walking back from the store alone at 1 am or walking home from the subway while texting your sorority sisters back in the #OOPS#ing midwest or something while SIMULTANEOUSLY listening to an ipod with the bright white headphones and you get #OOPS#ing mugged. Congrats, YOU'RE A #OOPS#ING DUMBASS. No, it's not 1990, when men where men, crackheads would #OOPS#ing cut you and the robbery rate was about a billion times higher than it is now, but it's still new york and you were still #OOPS#ing dumb enough to think that paying $1200 for a studio in a shitty neighboorhood is somehow hipper than moving to #OOPS#ing Queens.

Anyway, here's some helpful tips for the next time someone jacks your shit.

1) Pay attention. Granted, you weren't paying attention to start with or you wouldn't have gotten mugged, but now that you've been hit from behind / had a gun shoved in your face, pay attention.

2) Follow directions. Give the friendly mugger what he wants. Don't talk back or fight. In all likelyhood, you're a pussy hipster retard, and are, by NYC law, unarmed.

3) You've been paying attention right? Remember some simple things in this order: sex, clothing color, clothing type, headwear, and direction of flight.

4) Congratulations! You've just been robbed and you're still alive. What now? Well, don't go back to your apartment and call the cops thirty minutes later. Don't call your mom in Kansas and tell her first. CALL THE COPS AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. You'd be amazed at how many people #OOPS# up this simple step. Pay phones still exist as do 24/7 bogies. Go there, call the cops.

5) It may take a while for the cops to show up. The 911 system, at best, will result in a five minute wait before we're even notified. Then we have to drive there without killing anyone. Be patient. For that matter, tell the 911 operator exactly where you are. Nothing makes a responding cop happier than having to scour the area for your dumb ass while the perp gets away.

6) Resist the temptation to curse/complain/bitch about the cops while you're waiting for us to show up. We're probably busy. Even if we're not, don't expect us to come tear-assing across the precinct lights and sirens to get to you 2 minutes sooner. I have no intention of broadsiding a livery cab and getting fired just because you got your sidekick took.

7) When we do arrive: get in the car, tell us what they looked like and where they went. Something simple. "AGE/RACE/RED HOODIE/BLUE JEANS/NORTH ON BROADWAY" Really all we need.

8) We are now going to "canvass". Get in the #OOPS#ing car. We aren't going to get you shot you #OOPS#ing pussy. Also, comments like "I can't believe this happened to me" or "I'm in shock" or "OH GOD WHY"- shove it. Save it for the bar later. If you haven't actually gotten shot, shived or stomped grow a #OOPS#ing pair and close your mouth.

9) We are now going to drive around and try to arrest someone. Quick con-law refresher for the lib hippy types: if you're in my car, and have given me a description, THAT MEANS WE ARE STOPPING PEOPLE WHO FIT THAT DESCRIPTION. If you told me they are violent or armed, it's probably going to be a felony stop. So when you tell me it's a 15 year old black kid in a red hoodie with a silver pistol, don't be surprised when the car slams to a halt and we jump out and stop a 15 year old black kid in a red hoodie. I am not violating his rights, I am not hassling him because he's a minority. I'm stopping him because YOU GAVE US HIS #OOPS#ING DESCRIPTION. If the kid is not the one who robbed you, he'll be on his way in five minutes. On the other hand, if he is the one who robbed you, he may decide to run/fight/pull out a gun - you don't stop suspected armed robbers by asking pretty please. If this offends you, get the #OOPS# out of my car and go find the guy who mugged you yourself.

10) We failed to find your robber. No surprise: they've probably done this before and had an escape route all planned out. They were probably back in their apartment / subway / taxi before you even called 911. Don't bitch. It happens. This isn't Law And Order.

11) Yes, you are coming back to the precinct to make a #OOPS#ing report. I'm sure the CO, Kelly and Bloomberg would be #OOPS#ing thrilled if you didn't make a report as this helps the compstat stats (you watch the Wire, right?) but if I did all this #OOPS#ing work, you're taking 30 minutes out of your day to make a god-damn report. Also, after you've finished venting about how we're all corrupt, racist, incompetent morons who probably got bullied in High School, you'll remember that you need a police report for your credit card companies, and you'll show up the next morning with a sheepish expression and ask to make a report. Let's do this now while the memory is still fresh.

11a) "You'll never catch the guy", "I don't remember much" and variations thereof are just insulting. Our detectives have been doing this job for years, and despite what TV/Movies taught you, only a small fraction are burned out alcoholics. They probably are going to catch this guy... eventually.

12) No racial language please. The odds are good you just got robbed by a black or hispanic male, and your buried-deep racism may be bubbling to the surface (especially if you're an out of town transplant / college student). The majority of the co-workers on my shift and in the DT squad are minority. It's embarrassing when you use racial slurs in front of them. Amazingly, most cops aren't racist, although we do have a universal contempt for crackheads, gang members, and dumbass white people.

In conclusion: Don't be stupid, pay attention, call the cops, and don't be a dick.

brian_em wrote:

Over the last few years, I've seen so many of my hipster acquaintances come and go. They bounce around 3-4 apt's in brooklyn for 2 years, and then move to LA, SanFran, or Portland... Just last week I was told how "Portland is where it is at right now." I laughed to myself, tipped my yankee hat and bid farewell. But took that information, and logged it for future hipster encounters... Next time a hipster complains about "This place getting too played out", I will simply tell them how "Portland is where it's at right now", in hopes that it's one less hipster that decides "JC is the next brooklyn".

It's the one thing that really annoys me about the hipster culture is the lack of commitment to their environment. They will move to Bed Stuy and not even know who Peter Stuvesant is...The fashion is so poser it has no REAL commitment. It's whole concept is based on trying to out-do the person next to you with obscurity and randomness. There is no loyalty to music, it's whatever is the new sub-genre of indie music is. And they love to just add the word PUNK to the end of it's classification to give it street cred. Like, IndieClashDiscoPunk.

I blame the hipsterfication of music on my good friend, the internet. Back in the day, the only way you could hear about new bands is by actually going to shows. Nowadays, you can just cruise for bands on myspace. You can just buy band tshirts without ever getting your a$$ kicked in the pit. You can go online and read 2 or 3 photoshop tutorials and call yourself an artist... The hipsters just latch on to anything new, without committing to anything real.

GrovePath wrote:

aoao wrote:
i have a question: when did all these hipsters start moving in? seems like a total epidemic down there? i currently live off of the continent and i'm just baffled by all the hipster comments.

when did they all move in? is it really that bad? just downtown? not lincoln park?

someone get back to me with this.

designknob wrote:
Oh god, it's a FAD!

tommyc_37 wrote:
I am neither.