I am so happy that "Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee" is back in season. It has become my Thursday afternoon tradition, I get my coffee, plug in my headphones, and take a little break from work at the end of the week. I've waxed poetic about the show plenty by now so I won't go on about that, but, rather something said in the latest episode by guest Jon Stewart. I should preface this by pointing out that early in the episode, Jerry observes that Stewart has never lived in LA. So with that in mind, here are his perspectives on the two cities.
On New York City:
...all these different cultures and they come together and the alchemy of it creates something really vibrant and new.
On LA:
it's all singular and that lack of bass tones and the treble tones...it's just too narrow. It strikes me as like being in Vegas. Everybody's tuned to the same frequency...
As is to be expected, my first reaction is to defend my hometown (or closest major metropolis) from the disdain of the East Coast invaders. At least Stewart has never lived here so I don't need to get to riled up as to engage with my "GO HOME THEN!" speech.
Of course, what he's saying about LA is factually incorrect. According to the 2010 Census, LA actually has a slightly higher percentage of foreign-born residents than NY (39.7% vs. 36%). Don't get me wrong, I am not going to cherry pick demographic statistics to try and prove that the sky is in fact NOT blue. Wikipedia informs me that the term "melting pot" was coined to describe the Lower East Side alone. New York's long history of being an entry point for immigration to the U.S. and facts like this stand in the way of that...
The New York City metropolitan area is home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel.[20] It is also home to nearly a quarter of the nation's Indian Americans and 15% of all Korean Americans[21][22] and the largest Asian Indian population in the Western Hemisphere; the largest African American community of any city in the country; and has now become home to more than one million Asian Americans, greater than the combined totals of San Francisco and Los Angeles.[25]
My point was only to say that LA is incredibly diverse, obviously more so than visitors may realize. And that's where I cut Mr. Stewart a little bit of slack. One criticism of LA that I still can't refute is its vastness, its sprawl, the isolating effect that has on its people. No matter how much the Metro system has improved and expanded, driving around in our own little car pods is still and will always be the most popular way of getting around in this city. For someone who comes into town as a visitor, they are going to have a far more limited and one-dimensional experience than a resident would. It makes sense that they wouldn't get underneath LA's glossy surface of superficiality and detachment to see how people live outside Rodeo Drive and Sunset Blvd. In my personal experience as a resident of Los Angeles, I feel I am constantly surrounded many different nationalities and cultures. In my acting class, I, as an American, am usually the minority. At my office, I work directly with an Irish citizen, a South African citizen, and an Australian citizen--and those are just the ones I can name off the top of my head. At home, I live underneath a Brazilian-Finnish family, across from a Spaniard, next to Guatemalans* and our two buildings just had a huge, joyous paella party on my back patio. The only thing "singular" about this City of Angels is our appreciation of great weather. If your perception of LA is that it "lacks bass and treble tones," then perhaps you should take off your noise-canceling headphones and roll your windows down. If "everybody's tuned to the same frequency," then why do we fight so much? We're not exactly shiny, happy people holding hands over here.
Granted, what Stewart says about New York is valid. Just based on my short time living there in college, I absolutely agree with his description and appreciation of New York's diversity and unique rhythms. But LA does have that in spades itself, granted, less so than New York. But a major, compelling reason for that is because, while in New York it smacks you in the face every time you step onto the sidewalk, in LA it requires the a little bit of effort and curiosity. It doesn't help when East Coasters (even after they've lived here a little while) pass judgment without truly driving down the backstreets and stepping out of their cars.
Also, how dare anybody compare LA to Vegas**! That's crossing the line, Stewart.
VIVA LOS ANGELES!
And still, it was a fantastic episode.
*I am not 100% sure they're Guatemalan. I feel confident they're from some Central American country though and what's more fun than saying "Guatemalan?"
**Cue a Las Vegas blogger taking me to task for slighting their beloved home.
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