DC and Pretentious People

[dutchbrodymoss]

This weekend I was in DC for a job interview. After my interview was done, I decided to take a stroll around the National Mall.

And what I realized was that; well the impression I got was that people in DC were rather pretentious. I don't know why. But after my epiphany, I decided not to work for the Think Tank I interviewed for.

Any how, I'm just wondering: Why are people in DC so pretentious?

If you agree with me, propose some hypotheses as to why people in DC are so pretentious.

If you disagree, tell me why.

Thanks. I'm just really bugged out because I imagined DC to be a really great city to it turned out to be just a bunch of pretentious people. People who think they're self-important, or else they're conservatives who try to act like they're liberals but they're really just rich conservatives in a state of rebellion.

Okay that's it. Thoughts?

[nothumb]

So, you took a quick stroll around the city and made a snap negative judgment based on a few personal impressions, and you're making a major career decision based on this?

Too bad, that kind of logic is right at home at PNAC...

NT

[dutchbrodymoss]

True. Good point.

The Think Tank job is one of the many jobs that I'm looking at.

I've heard from other friends of mine that DC can be a pretentious place.

So what is DC really like.

And what NPAC...?

[nothumb]

Okay, to answer your question, DC is filled with people who mainly get to have a job because they convince shmucks everywhere else that it's necessary. (Government and bureaucracy.) So, it follows that there might be some pretention floating around.

You really thought DC was going to be a cool town? I hope you're thinking of working for a fast food think tank because you might be a little naive for politics.

PNAC = Project for a New American Century

NT

[wacki]

Your response is needed here nothumb. (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=2622709&page=0&view=colla psed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1)

[Jersey Nick]

[ QUOTE ]
I decided not to work for the Think Tank I interviewed for.

[/ QUOTE ]
Brag post about interviewing for a think tank = pretentious.

[ QUOTE ]
If you agree with me, propose some hypotheses as to why people in DC are so pretentious.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hypothesis: Regardless of which side of the political spectrum they fall in, they all think that their views are the only correct ones, and if you don't agree you're a dope.

[jakethebake]

Half the people in town are in politics. The other half elected a crackhead jailbird mayor. What exactly was your expectation about people in DC?

[slickpoppa]

[ QUOTE ]
This weekend I was in DC for a job interview. After my interview was done, I decided to take a stroll around the National Mall.

And what I realized was that; well the impression I got was that people in DC were rather pretentious. I don't know why.

[/ QUOTE ]

First of all, the majority of people walking around the national mall are tourists who dont live in DC. Furthermore, it is ridculous to reach the conclusion that an entire city is pretentious based on walking around and looking at people.

[sfer]

This reminds me of a conversation I had with a friend a couple of years ago. He joined the Army after college. He tried out for special forces. He made it. But he was almost denied because his psych exam pinned him as potentially having a superior attitude and being prone to fits of anger.

He said to me, "WHO THE FCUK DO THEY THINK THEY ARE TELLING ME I HAVE A FCUKING TEMPER!"

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
This reminds me of a conversation I had with a friend a couple of years ago. He joined the Army after college. He tried out for special forces. He made it. But he was almost denied because his psych exam pinned him as potentially having a superior attitude and being prone to fits of anger.

He said to me, "WHO THE FCUK DO THEY THINK THEY ARE TELLING ME I HAVE A FCUKING TEMPER!"

[/ QUOTE ]

We don't want an elite military unit made up of people that either know they're elite or have violent tendencies.

[meep_42]

If it's the people at the Mall you thought were pretentious... they're almost all not residents. We've all seen the mall before and hardly ever go.

-d

[Publos Nemesis]

[ QUOTE ]
If it's the people at the Mall you thought were pretentious... they're almost all not residents. We've all seen the mall before and hardly ever go.

-d

[/ QUOTE ]

Especially at this time of year when it is friggin 95 degrees out and muggy. The only people who are outside in DC in the summer are tourists.

[Publos Nemesis]

[ QUOTE ]

I'm just really bugged out because I imagined DC to be a really great city to it turned out to be just a bunch of pretentious people. People who think they're self-important, or else they're conservatives who try to act like they're liberals but they're really just rich conservatives in a state of rebellion.

Okay that's it. Thoughts?

[/ QUOTE ]

There are a lot of cool people in DC, and a lot of a**holes, just like any city in America. The city is a lot more friendly than NYC but not as charming as some cities in the south. It is much faster paced than some western US cities (take San Francisco for example), but it is not nearly as faced pace as many northeastern cities (e.g. NYC or Boston). It is a blend of Southern and Northern cultures.

Some people in DC are very opionated, but I don't think it is different in other cities. You might find people are more willing to talk about politics in DC, but similair things happen in other cities. In San Francisco, for example, people love to be liberal, so people love to talk about how Bush sucks and why the Iraq war was a big mistake. In Tuscaloosa, AL, all they talk about is 'Bama football team, church, and taxes. In both towns people have very strong opinions and they are willing to express them.

I am not sure how you knew these people were pretentious in DC if you didn't talk to them. But being conservative or liberal and acting a certain way does not mean they are pretentious. Labling a whole town as such without actually offering any examples seems a little ridiculous.

[asofel]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
If it's the people at the Mall you thought were pretentious... they're almost all not residents. We've all seen the mall before and hardly ever go.

-d

[/ QUOTE ]

Especially at this time of year when it is friggin 95 degrees out and muggy. The only people who are outside in DC in the summer are tourists.

[/ QUOTE ]

those morans. the mall is hell in the summer.

[meep_42]

I'd also like to add that I hate tourists.

-d

[jojobinks]

people who call others pretentious tend to be anti-intellectual, in my experience. it says way more about you than it does about people in DC.

[dutchbrodymoss]

Actually, I also went to Dupont Circle, and I felt that people there were trying a little bit too hard.

But I could be wrong though. I guess Dupont circle is filled with tourists as well?!

[wh1t3bread]

[ QUOTE ]
I also went to Dupont Circle



[/ QUOTE ]

This was mistake number 2 of your trip.

Did you even talk to people? Or are you just going with they "way that they looked"? If you walked around the Upper East Side all day you're going to think New Yorkers are a little pretentious too.

[Publos Nemesis]

[ QUOTE ]
This weekend I was in DC for a job interview. After my interview was done, I decided to take a stroll around the National Mall.

[/ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]
Actually, I also went to Dupont Circle, and I felt that people there were trying a little bit too hard.

[/ QUOTE ]

lol. get your story straight & then complain.

[Brainwalter]

[ QUOTE ]
people who call others pretentious tend to be anti-intellectual, in my experience.

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
people who call others pretentious tend to be anti-intellectual, in my experience.

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[/ QUOTE ]

No. Just anti-intellectually-pretentious.

edit: Or is that anti-pretentiously-intellectual?

[slickpoppa]

[ QUOTE ]
Actually, I also went to Dupont Circle, and I felt that people there were trying a little bit too hard.

[/ QUOTE ]

Trying too hard at what?

[dutchbrodymoss]

Any how, you guys are right. I made an uninformed conclusion based on a small sample size.

Either way, I just don't think DC is my style.

Thanks for the input though. Greatly appreciated.

I guess next time I visit a city, I should visit every single part of the city and talk to every single person so I don't make ridiculous conclusions.

[wh1t3bread]

[ QUOTE ]

Either way, I just don't think DC is my style.



[/ QUOTE ]

So you didnt get offered the job, huh?

[dutchbrodymoss]

I actually did.

But at this point, it don't matter no mo.

[nothumb]

Hi wacki

Politics is a zoo and I just took a long hike, so I might not make it over to that thread for a while. Or at all. But the problems I have had with PNAC and other right-wing think tanks (what most people would call 'neo-cons' I guess) is two fold.

(And please, let's not start talking about this).

1. Too much faith in the transformative power of democracy and the free market in societies not prepared for either one. Especially when coupled with a willingness to work closely with illiberal, undemocratic regimes in other parts of the world when it suits them.

2. Glib and superficial incorporation of 'historical' arguments that are often taken out of context or deliberately misconstrued.

One of the biggest offenders in this area is a guy like Robert Kagan, who has become a leading voice among movement conservatives. If you want I'll send you some criticism I've written of his strategic writing, but I won't clog up OOT anymore.

NT

[ElSapo]

I've lived in D.C for coming up on six years now. The town, like all of them, has some assholes.

It also has more than it's fair share of great people and places and things which make it a unique place to live.

If you're prone to judging something too quickly, then on behalf of a half-million District residents I'd like to thank you for not choosing my town.

Personally, I love this place...

ElSapo