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Tragic Kingdom No More? Are Angelenos Growing Fond of The OC?
Come on, Angelenos: You know you've got a derogatory nickname for Orange County in your arsenal. So how often do you get to use it? If your answer is: "Less than I used to" then your sentiments are perhaps in line with the author of a recently published article in Orange Coast magazine that claims that L.A. residents are softening up when it comes to their next-door neighbor county.
The article cites a few (controversial) reasons why the OC has the advantage over the L.A. from the perspective of the writer's friend, a coming-around-to-the OC Angeleno: F
or one thing, it’s now the one place in Southern California where you can attend a baseball game without a police escort. Plus, Orange County has great public television—something L.A. can’t say since KCET Channel 28 stopped carrying PBS programs and sold its studio to Scientologists.
Still, some tensions hold true: OC is politically conservative (and their leader just a tiny bit racist?), while L.A. is liberal. Mind you, Orange County isn't the most conservative county anymore, so maybe things truly are a-changing.
Now, if you're a sex offender, the OC's parks aren't for you to play in. The freeways still clog up and keep what seems in reach geographically a painful commute away.
Ultimately, the author's theory is that we cling to our preconceptions, even about our own turf. But if we call ourselves out, we might be able to look beyond our own noses and learn to love our neighbors.
Even if our neighbors live in Orange County.
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