Dennis RomeroWe've witnessed people come to Los Angeles from the U.K., the Midwest and all over Asia only to declare they've found true paradise.
What's not to like? We've got the beaches. We've got the red carpets. And we've got the pretty people.
But for many, L.A. will always be Hell A, as some folks in San Diego call it:
Dislike for our town is an American sport. The latest report to conclude that America really doesn't like us is from Public Policy Polling.
Its poll of 900 voters found that L.A. was one of only three cities viewed more negatively than positively by Americans. Los Angeles came in third in hatred — as in, it was a little more liked than Detroit and Oakland.
L.A. was viewed positively by 33 percent of respondents and negatively by 40 percent. Twenty-seven percent were “not sure” how they felt about our fine metropolis.
Strangely, the most-favored cities were Seattle (with 57 percent viewing it favorably) and Portland (52 percent). The dreary suicide capitals of the Pacific Northwest are America's favorite towns?
People watch one episode of American Idol and they want to move here and become pop stars. We listen to one grunge song and know we don't want to be anywhere near greater Seattle.
Credit: Colin Young-Wolff for LA Weekly
But we know why people don't like L.A. It's not the smog, the crumbling roads or the racist notion that it's turning into Mexico.
No, it's just plain haterade. We're hot and they're not.
[@dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]
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