Something tells me you've never been to LA before....
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First, Deity, I'm a no worship you! Secondly, where you at? Again with the classifications- here's yet another one who is Los Anjealous..
As to whether we're a "full service" alpha well, we don't have a mercantile or stock exchange that I can think of. We're not a particularly huge banking and finance center, though we are the king of small business.
We don't get the respect we deserve when people talk about multi-culturalism, yet we are the most ethnically and culturally diverse area in the world and we've held 2 Olympic games- both successful, in terms of history and turning a profit! The '84 games was the first summer games to turn a profit (over 225 million) since the '32 games-when Los Angeles was, again, the host!
Probably the largest film industry? Too easy...
How 'bout ..the County. You are correct about the 11 million count, though that does include illegals but I don't know if illegal immigration has ever driven up real estate. The county is probably at 11.6 million, including illegal immigrants, maybe more!Pollution, sure! Lotta cars, biggest port complex, temperature inversions. But we're the number one city in 'green' building! The port, LA/LB, is by and far the busiest in the nation and the country's only superport. We lead in measures to cut pollution and have the strictest anti-pollution laws in the country. We also stopped smokers from smoking in restaurants before anyone else did- something else we don't get credit for. Trend-setting is about as relevent as fashion, but trend-setting is a much larger and more diverse realm, covering lifestyles as well as all forms of entertainment and the progressive cultural developments of everyday life. When Los Angeles is not included in lists of stylish or 'cool' cities, (yes, they have polls like those) I tend to have a good laugh! Los Angeles carries an awful big stick of Wood, made from the Holly tree. The effect Los Angeles has on the everyday world is immeasurable. Tokyo, Paris, London, New York, Milan, Sydney, Berlin? Come on, really? I don't think so...
Transportation is something we're working on but I have to bust your saliva bubbles on a point of pride: New York does not have the world's best public transportation, Hong Kong does! New York moves 4.5 million on their subway system, Hong Kong moves over 7! Paris moves the same amount as New York, for example, but has more stops and shorter distances between stations, therefore, it's better!
There's another class, the Global class. In that class, Los Angeles comes in third, behind Tokyo and New York, in global GMP (Gross Metropolitan Product)
Hey, this is stupid, fake, shitty little L. A. :banana: Keep watching television and listening to music. Go to the Disney Parks in Tokyo, Paris and Hong Kong! See the celebs in the various film festivals around the world dedicated to the culture of US! We're just lousy Los Angeles!
By the way; Jane Jacobs looks like she has a big butt and actually thinks The San Fernando Valley is just OUTSIDE Los Angeles! That chick only has one more strike left! Where are you from?
Hmm, at least some people take pride in LA, unlike most of my friends who currently live there who think it's a ****hole.....
I've been to Los Angeles once, for about a week. I may not now the city in and out, but I got a general idea of how it is. There isn't a lot of people walking the streets in most areas, probably cause everyone drives. The only places that I saw that were booming with people walking was at the Santa Monica pier area and Venice beach. Even downtown Los Angeles feels empty.
Possibly, but I believe it's fairly accurate for the most part. Except for L.A.'s rank of course, which is why I made this topic for discussion.
True, I think it should be Paris>L.A.>San Francisco. Although San Francisco is an awesome city.
milquetoast, I'm from Toronto. You can bash T.O. all you want, not a big deal to me. Toronto, like many other cities, has flaws.
Los Angeles may have one of the most racially diverse populations in the world, but it also has racial tensions going on as well. I read in this news article how illegal immigrants are driving real estates prices up because they are making housing (affordable at least) run out.
Okay I admit when I visited Los Angeles, I did not visit/pass by the harbor cities (Long Beach, San Pedro). Long Beach I believe is the 2nd largest city in LA County, so it plays a role in the economy.
I believe you when you say the city is big on anti-pollution. I heard the air was almost unbearable in 70s, and only it's starting to be decent quality. The pollution's still bad though and L.A. is going to have to rely on mass transit to really make a difference. But a lot of people in L.A. don't want to give up their well established car culture. I mean, they banned the use of using tax money to fund subways in LA! Many cities (including my city, Toronto) would DREAM of having state funding for rapid transit. Furthermore, when I was in Los Angeles and asked for bus/subway directions to get to places, people gave me a "WTF" kind of look when I asked. One guy was like, "You can't take public transit to Hollywood" and Hollywood has its own subway!
I ranted on public transit for L.A., but like I said for a "world class" city, Los Angeles deserves a lot better. That map by Damien Goodman looks good, here's the link:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a278/Imyurdada/final-1080.gif
I'd say it's totally subjective when it comes to whole "L.A. is full of fake people, trendy etc". It depends on your perception and experience to believe something like "girls in L.A. living off daddy's credit card". For me, I didn't meet anyone "fake" in Los Angeles, I met some awesome people there. There's rich, snobby people in Toronto as well, so thinking that L.A. is full of them (in my opinion) is unfair.
I've never been to Paris or Hong Kong so I can't really say if it's better than New York. I was just saying if transportation plays a huge factor in the world city rankings, then Los Angeles should ranked much lower. As we all know, LA's public transit system is not as good as HK, NY, or Paris'.
Dude, Jane Jacobs is already dead, how can she have another strike! I can see why people from L.A. don't like her. I read Jacobs' book "The Death and Life of American Cities" and yes, she is harsh towards Los Angeles, using L.A. for everything bad about city planning. But she knows her stuff, most of what she says is true.
LOL.
True. But as milquetoast said, Los Angeles is number one in green building (in the United States). The city is working to clean up Port LA/LB, a major polluter in the region.
True, again. But keep in mind, we only began building Metro Rail in 1990. And now, 18 years later, we've come a long way with 73.1 miles of rail. No other US city has accomplished that much in so little time. The NYC Subway was built a century ago, not having to face the political challenges of today (i.e. NIMBYism).
Since 1990, there was never a time where we stopped expanding our rail system. Currently, there are two rail projects under construction - the Gold Line Eastside Extension (began construction in 2004) and the Expo Line Phase 1 (began construction in 2007). That's a total of 14.6 miles of new LRT by 2010! Furthermore, two more LRT projects already have funding in place (Expo Line Phase 2 and Crenshaw Corridor); the Foothill Extension has the political support; and plans for the "Subway to the Sea", Downtown Connector, and Gold Line Eastside Extension Phase 2 are progressing. Honestly, we don't get enough credit there.
As for road infrastructure, Los Angeles is famous for its complex labyrinth of a freeway system (450 miles countywide). In fact, it's the world's most extensive. We've been doing our best to combat congestion by providing more and more carpool lanes. In 1980, we only had one carpool lane. Today, we have the largest carpool lane system in the US. Most recently, there's been consideration of adding toll lanes.
LACMTA operates the second largest bus system in the country with the second highest ridership. There are 35 miles of dedicated bus lanes and 2,000 clean fuel buses.
Crime and gang culture has been steadily declining for the past five years or so, Compton included.
The fact that Los Angeles urbanized less than 100 years ago (early 1900's) and is now considered an alpha world city is respectable. At that time, NYC was about 10 times as large as Los Angeles. And what about urban centers like London and Paris? How much older are they?
As much as Los Angeles is ridiculed for its traffic congestion and high pollution levels, it is setting the modern standard for transit development and going green.
I am aware of NYC's status on the world stage. Los Angeles is far from being on NYC's level. I have never grouped Los Angeles with NYC.
As for multiculturalism, I can say that Los Angeles is one of the most diverse cities in the world (more so than London, even). The city has large populations of Armenians, Iranians, Jewish, Russians, Koreans, Mexicans, Japanese, Chinese, Salvadorans, Guatemalans, Nicaraguans, Cambodians, Vietnamese, Thai, Filipinos, Pacific Islanders, Ethiopians, Persian Jews, and Native Americans.
As time progresses, "Los Angelize" will take on a completely different meaning.
Los Angeles is a diamond in the rough. Loads of beauty, ugliness, chaos, joy, and frustration. It is a complex, multifaceted place. That's what I love about. It's multifaceted. It's like abstract art - it evokes several emotions. Ultimately, you decide what you want to make of Los Angeles. You decide how it makes you feel.
Also, the geographic setting is incomparable. I mean, what other city has mountains, beaches, deserts, forests, valleys, islands (Channel Islands), hills, sweeping panoramic vistas, palm trees, coastal bluffs, and 330 days of sunshine?
At the end of the day, Los Angeles has a lot going for it, but is still a ways off from joining the elite group known as the "Big Four" (NYC, London, Tokyo, Paris). But with Port LA/LB, the most significant superport in the Western Hemisphere that handles 40% of the goods entering the US; LAX, the world's fifth busiest airport and second largest worldwide hub for the new Airbus A380; extensive freeway system; extensive bus system; rapidly expanding rail system; top notch schools like Caltech (ranked #6 worldwide), UCLA (ranked #13 worldwide), USC, and Claremont Colleges; top notch cultural institutions like LACMA, Disney Hall, Getty Center, Getty Villa, Hammer Museum, Huntington Library, Norton Simon Museum, MOCA, Colburn School, LA Music Center, LAUSD High School #9 (opening in 2009), and the abundance of museums (more museums per capita than any other city in the world); strong influences in motion pictures, television, recorded music, video games, and media; growing influences in art, architecture, fashion, and the performing arts; large center for aerospace/astronomy; large manufacturing base (largest in the US); huge population of 18 million; and extreme multiculturalism make it a major global player.
But LA is not a major center for global business and finance. And it needs to find more effective solutions to combat crime, gangs, and pollution; improve education and zoning laws; and hammer out a long range transportation plan (already done). This decade has really been a transition phase. The next decade (2010-2020) looks bright for Los Angeles. I can't wait to see what's in store.
Toronto? I like Toronto
^ The big smiley faces are really creeping me out (no, they really are). Would it bother you if I kindly asked that you no longer post them? How about instead?
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