Hey Cape Breton, Why so Cynical?

Rory Andrews Follow Me

Posted this 2015-06-12 2:00 PM ADT (updated 2016-03-12 5:19 PM AST)

For those of you that only came for the cat picture.

A lot has been said recently about Cape Breton cynicism, from knee-jerk negative reactions to new ideas to the endless skepticism of corporate interests. Maybe it's just me coming into the collective mass euphoria of Cape Breton Springtime, when we all leave our bunker holes and squint at the light of day for the first time in 5 months, but honestly, I sure read about Cape Breton cynicism more than I actually hear about it. But then I read things like this...

Hey, what an interesting article! I wonder where Sydney lands?

Cape Breton is a City? Oh MoneySense, ya big dummy!

So ok, this post won't be about all the sunshine and rainbows that is living in Cape Breton. Let's see why we're the fifth last "city" on MoneySense's list. Hmmm, high unemployment, stagnant population growth, high taxes, and apparently we all drive old cars? I had no idea anybody kept track of that. Well let's look on the bright side. I live in Canada's 5th worst city and don't lock my doors. If I lived in America's 5th worst city (I'm looking at you, Gary, Indiana) I wouldn't leave the house.

Gary, Idiana. The post-apocalypse of tomorrow, TODAY!

Bright side #2: We beat Truro.... Yay? So ok, there are things to be cynical about in Cape Breton. We've had a rough go the past, um, 40 odd years, and we've taken a fair share of hard knocks and lies in that time, and that can make anybody cynical. Just take a look at the Cape Breton Rant Room on Facebook, and you'll find tons of people that are chronically allergic to optimism. I would take a look, but I don't want to curl up in the fetal position and fall into a sobbing depression coma in my cubicle.

The Cape Breton Rant Room: Where hope and grammar go to die.

Still though, as much as I read negativity, I hear very little, and I think I figured out why. It seems to me the cynicism of Cape Breton really revolves around two narratives most people have come to believe. The first, that businesses are closing all around the island and you have to move out west to make something of yourself. The second, that there just isn't anything to do on this island. Personally, I haven't found either to be true, and it has it has way more to do with the people I surround myself with than the reality of the situation.

George Street. 2015.

Narrative #1 : Businesses and Jobs in Cape Breton are the Stuff of Legend

Yeah, we have a high unemployment. I'm not disputing that, and nobody should. But it seems a lot of people see this:

Not you again...

And that's where the story ends, but there's so much more than that. Like MediaSpark , for example (the office I'm sitting in right now). When I tell people I work for MediaSpark, they usually ask "Where is that?" and "What do they do?" Well, we're in the old Sydney Video building on Charlotte Street and we make educational games and simulations, and we also make this super neat new thing called goCapeBreton.com you might have heard of.

I'm pretty happy to be a part of the growing tech community around Cape Breton, that despite our efforts, has remained strangely invisible to the community at large. So when everybody else is bemoaning the fact that there's no good place to buy fedoras in Sydney anymore, I'm hearing stories about the latest piece of steel Protocase is shooting with lasers to blast into space. I'm reading about Marcato going down to Coachellaroostock (or whatever new music festival I'm not hip enough to know about) to organize bands I'm not cool enough to listen to. I'm watching presentations on how Mimir Networks is keeping China from shutting down my precious Reddit, and downloading homegrown apps like PizzaGo! and Shout that won the Spark Competition .

All of these people are cooler than me, and they have a dog. I accept that.

Maybe our small tech boom is guilty of not getting the word out there ourselves. None of these companies really sell their products to locals, so why would they market locally, right? But there could be a more sinister reason people are unaware of these recent successes. These stories don't fit the Cape Breton narrative of a failing economy, so the community chooses to ignore them to keep believing what they think is right. Hey, I'm new around here, but I'll call em like I see em.

No caption necessary.

Narrative #2 : There's Nothing to do in Cape Breton.

Yeah, Cape Breton is a small place. 150,000 people isn't really enough to support an amusement park, Imax theatre, or pro-hockey team. Let me tell you though, I lived in Atlanta, Georgia and Beijing, China, and the same kind of people that complain about having nothing to do here were the same kind of people complaining about having nothing to do there. Whether it's a city of 5 million, 25 million, or an island of 150,000, the first step to finding out what's going on is stepping out your front door (or checking out goCapeBreton.com's handy-dandy events calendar ).

When I first came here 15 months ago, I was new and didn't really know anybody. It was hard to meet people because in a small community like this, why would locals call the new guy on a Friday night when they could call the person they've been hanging out with every Friday night for the last 20 years? I'm not going to lie. It was a rough go, but then I started acting.

When you're acting, you can kiss girls who aren't your girlfriend, and it's totally okay!

Just like the tech community killed the first narrative for me, the theatre community killed the second. What am I doing on Thursday night? Rehearsal. What about Tuesday? Rehearsal. How's about Wednesday? That's actually my macrame class.

And if theatre terrifies you, the fencing class at the Y is great. Art classes at New Dawn. Local bands playing at nearly every bar. Running clubs. Hey, even just go to The Capri on Saturday night. I won't judge.

I'll say this about The Capri: It knows what it is and doesn't try to be anything different. I can respect that.

Now that I think of it, Cape Breton really isn't lacking much compared to those bigger cities I lived in. Add in all the nature stuff I didn't mention, and it isn't hard to keep yourself busy. Speaking of outdoorsy stuff, head out to the Dunvegan campground in September and walk in the grass in bare feet. It's softer than carpet. I have no idea why.

It's like walking on the hair from a Pantene commercial. Wait, no. That's weird.

In Conclusion:

Cape Breton can be a tough place to live. There's no denying that. MoneySense was right when it mentioned the unemployment, the household income, the rainy days, and even the old cars. It's all true. But the way I like to see Cape Breton is like a losing sports team.

Yeah! Just like that one!

See, when a team is winning, everybody comes out to cheer them on. Everyone's optimistic and having a good time, and it's easy. When a team is losing though, a lot of those fans go home, stop watching the games, and make up stories about how bad they are. Not all the fans though. Some fans hang in there, hoping for things to get better, supporting the team even when it's crushing and embarrassing, with a loyalty people on the outside just don't understand.

Oh, you're a Maple Leafs fan? I'm sorry for...um....your life?

The folks out there starting new businesses, acting in plays, teaching classes at the Y and New Dawn, are the fans that stick with it even when it sucks. They're who I see around town, because the fair weather bandwagon fans who only buy tickets when the playoffs are in sight stay home.

In the end, it's easy to be cynical. It's fun, and picking apart every new idea can make you feel smart because "you can't be a critical thinker without being CRITICAL!" And after everything we've been through, after 40 years of declining population, declining salaries, plans that fell through and saviors that never showed up, it's easy to expect things to just stay the same.

You might think my optimism comes from a place of ignorance. I'm young and haven't been here long. Maybe I just don't know the realities of the situation, or the political patterns that repeatedly loop around every decade or so. It might be true that I'm not experienced or wise enough to know the difference, but I do know there are stories around Cape Breton that aren't being told, or are being willfully ignored. I also know there's a hell of a difference between a community that has given up and one that has taken some hard knocks and keeps it's head held high. In the end, a lot of the negativity is true, but a lot of it's not.

Posted by Rory Andrews
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Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-12 3:22 PM ADT Reply 4 0 Hey now, don't make fun of the Cape Breton Rant Room, it's a source of great material for my online comedy tour! By the way Rory, I don't typically hear there is nothing to do......my circle of friends complain more about how to finance the cost of raising family and maintaining a residence. Yes, I get a bit frustrated by topics I read that make no logical sense to me, for example the Province giving money to large established firms while new entrepreneurs struggle for scraps. But hey, just today I was introduced to a guy out of Texas who raises capital for new businesses. I intend to introduce him to a company in B.C. that is heading to a Series A round and that same B.C. firm I connected with a company in Europe that has products that align nicely with these guys. In short, there are a great deal of things that happen around here that simply don't focus on the local market. I love what I have been reading about Cape Breton as a startup hub.......and I have been sharing the news across my networks. For example, I'll never know if 45 Drives ever got a call the result of my LinkedIn posts and I was kicked off "The Real Cape Breton Rant Room" for promoting goCapeBreton as an alternative to ranting for the sake of ranting. No great loss! In short, we have a vehicle for distribution that no longer depends on others dictating the terms of distribution. It a big first step! We will always be annoyed by politics and the weather, but for the most part, there are lots of positives being tossed around also.
Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-12 3:56 PM ADT Reply 4 0 I think we have a collision of extreme sample spaces here, if we align the startup community to that of the rant rooms. These are not the middle of the Cape Breton bell curve on ideology. Meanwhile, of recent relevance, isn't much of this pigeonholing us as having excessive negativity or cynicism being advocated by our clear community leaders (as in Mayor Clark, commenting about the "cheap seats") or the nebulous leaders like Barry Sheehy of the "Harbour Port Development Partners" whom we don't know much about but he's asking for us to cut him some slack? So when you have community leaders positioning us as negative, I guess they're not giving the community much of a reputation to live up to. But just because they have a bigger platform doesn't mean they are correct in their assessment. Perhaps they are simply running a public relations campaign, or perhaps they are overly sensitive to warranted criticism. The startup community is young and vibrant and seeing some injection of capital. It's no wonder they have a more positive outlook - if you ignore for the moment some of the TechLink employees that are having to confront some very complex career and life choices right now. However, that community - though vital to the future of Cape Breton - isn't representative of the typical Cape Breton person. It's an emerging niche, but a relatively small community. We're savvy enough with our digital marketing and frequent enough in our various events to leave a large footprint, and gain a disproportionate level of media interest (a good thing). The rant rooms on the other hand are at the opposite side of the spectrum. Many of the people here are represented by those most affected by the socioeconomic struggles for the region. When they have a disproportionate level of complaint (or "rant"), for many it's because they experience a disproportionate struggle. And foul as many of them may be, it doesn't mean we can ignore the contributory economics.
Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:06 PM ADT Reply 4 0 The MoneySense data, though it can be argued has an arbitrary evaluation algorithm, gives us a quantitative assessment of the state of living here. It's hard to look at that data and ranking, and make an argument that people are cynical if they make observations about any of those failing categories that contribute to the low placement. I believe that is called being realistic. The difference for me is not pretending that we don't have issues, but instead committing ourselves to trying to come up with solutions. Constructive criticism. And that does not mean that we just put that job on community leaders, giving them carte blanche. The big political and economic development argument here centers around the Sydney container port development. Smart economic minds (including our business academics at CBU) have pointed out the issues with this, and we've had feasibility studies paid for by the CBRM that indicate that it's not something that is viable. Now if we start to think of the CBRM as the Toronto Maple Leafs and we just become super fans, it means they'll always have fans, but it doesn't necessary mean they will ever make the playoffs again. What we need to be is not the big shirtless guy with the blue painted body and beer can hat. We need to be the guy from Moneyball. We need to start assessing what are the key factors and resources that we actually have going for us, and how can we put them together to get an otherwise unexpected result/ROI. Every NHL team this year kept their "stick on the ice". But that didn't mean they all made it to the playoffs. The ones that got there had the right team doing the right things to get there. And in all sports (as should be in all business or politics) when the team isn't producing, it either needs a change in strategy, change in team members, or change in leadership. Rory Andrews My Post Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:24 PM ADT Reply 1 0 You're right about higher strategy and decisions involved in making Cape Breton work. I usually don't hit on those things because I don't know enough about them, and would end up sitting in the comments section like a toddler learning my ABC's about all these really complex issues. But even with little knowledge I have about the hot topics around here, there seems to be a rash skepticism to new ideas. Maybe that was a better word than cynicism. Skepticism. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:54 PM ADT Reply 1 0 I grew up here, but I've been away for a long time as well. So I'm just coming up to speed slowly on the local politics. On some of the big political stuff we hear about the skepticism is definitely warranted, IMO. It's really to our detriment not to question things. In the startup world, my favorite companies are those that "disrupt", which I think of as simply innovating and vastly improving the way we do things... to the extent of making older stuff obsolete over time. Uber versus the taxi cartels, that kind of thing. But the key factor in making any iterative improvement is starting by identifying the issues. > Mr. Mayor, I have concerns about project x, because of reasons r1, r2, ..., rn. > I suggest this might be improved by trying new project y, with modifications m1, m2, ..., mn. Some of y'all geeks will be more appreciative of me breaking it down this way. Others, please forgive me. :P Just requires objectivity. However, there are strange dynamics at work here. I actually think this is one of the most interesting economies. The comingling of EI, social assistance, and Western income return, etc. And the impact of V8s and cigarettes (culturally influenced, non-productive, income eroding expenditures). I do like call centers and particular operations like Slyce (data processing, support). I think we need to duplicate the Slyce presence (low skilled tech employment) about 10 more times. ;) Disclosure: I'd much rather live in Florida, but I'm here for family. I figure if I'm here, then I'd like to share some ideas about how I'd like to see things as well. Definitely happy to see a startup community forming, and companies starting to do neat things like the Marcato recruitment video they promoted this afternoon. :) Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-12 6:05 PM ADT Reply 1 0 I have always endeavored to bring business to Cape Breton, a personal mission with some small success. Regarding call centers, they are interesting starting points for people as they expose them to a number of different businesses as well as technologies. There are some great people and companies doing some great things and I intend to keep on supporting them behind the scenes. As I learn about them, I will promote them.
Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:10 PM ADT Reply 4 0 With all that said, Rory is giving a much better presentation on the state of good things happening here than I've seen elsewhere. And that's what we need. Instead of shaming or instructing people on how they should feel, we should be sharing and persuading by changing their perspectives, not forcing them. I hope that the communications officer for the CBRM sees this post, and sees how positively people are responding to how well Rory is presenting the good things that we have here as we transition from old economics to new.
Eric Lortie Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:44 PM ADT Reply 3 0 I'm a big fan of the sports analogy. That sums up the psychology at play quite nicely. It should also be noted that plenty of folks are familiar with a great many of the local festivals that Marcato works with: Celtic Colours, Lumière and the upcoming Ribfest are a couple, but there are plenty more. You may not buy a product from us, but many people on the island have bought products from, or engaged with, our clients. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-12 4:58 PM ADT Reply 3 0 When I first heard of Marcato, I was thinking: Ok, so an event management platform. Who else does this? What are they competing with? How's their UI? As soon as I found out who some of the clients were, no further questions required. Obviously doing some big things. Landing some huge old man in the sea size catches in terms of clients (without the shark's eating it part). :)
Colin Clarke Follow Me 2015-06-12 11:42 PM ADT Reply 3 0 I dig your point of view here and can see your opinion and arguments. I think part of the issue at hand is that the workforce is changing here (very slowly). You are moving from a work force that included groups from the relatively uneducated to the trades and higher ups. There would be many uneducated workers, fewer in the trades and fewer still in office jobs and the like. All that system has been phased out, but a lot of the society and population structure that this structure creates is still in place. Your emerging tech sector is fantastic and anyone would be foolish to dismiss its effects on the local economy. However, this new workforce is butting heads with the society set up by the previous generation. Your tech folk are very educated and modern. You are young. So much so that many folk don't seem to have families yet. The ideas of what services and structures these people want from a city isn't necessarily going to be similar to those that the previous generation's workforce had. In addition we have this crazy overlap of people who are holding on to old ideals of how the island was and therefore should be while the world has changed around them. I realize I'm generalizing and making assumptions here, but so is your article, so let's run with with that concept. Im guessing a lot of the previous generation and their younger followers have little to no aspiration in acting in theater or even going to a play. Maybe they have a young family or are older themselves and the idea of going to a bar after 8pm for music makes them cringe. Maybe their family is poor and they can't drive to a nice campground or beach for a walk. These are assumptions, but with an aging population and high unemployment they are as much of the reality of the Cape's situation as the excellent youth-driven startups. The cynicism is real and, I agree, tiring at the best of times. Still, we need to accept some realities in living here and realize that cynicism can be grounded in truths. James MacKinnon Follow Me 2015-06-21 9:57 PM ADT Reply 1 0 Could not agree more on the clash of the emerging tech demographic and entrenched .. let's say nostalgic .. ideals. History has a pattern of an older generation raising contention with the new up and comers, but I think circumstances in Cape Breton really polarizes the demographics involved in the issue. On one end of the spectrum you have the aging populace who are now at the point where their experience gained through years past now dominates their world view. Their ability to accept change has narrowed as priorities shift as you grow old. On the other end, you have the young (or sometimes not so young) tech savvy demographic who often embrace change, the next new thing, as a big part of their life. Notice I made sure to not restrict this to not only the young of body, but more so the young at heart? Cape Breton's special circumstances (in my opinion) raise from most of the middle of the spectrum migrating off island. Where normally you would have a larger buffer between the ideologies, you see middle aged skilled labour (which benefits both new tech and learned experience) heading to where the jobs are. The gap left is like removing the keystone from a bridge, leaving both ends (young and old) to crumble into the Atlantic. (Continued below) James MacKinnon Follow Me 2015-06-21 9:58 PM ADT Reply 1 0 I fall into the young geek category, so I may be biased, but it really blew me away when the mayor announced his plans to reinvigorate Sydney. It seemed the completely gloss over the available (and growing) technical skill that has managed to remain on the island, and the blossoming startup and small business scene that has started to sprout up through the cracks in the pavement. Web/technology based startups and workers represent a untapped resource for improving the local economy, and our jobs, abilities and talents really help overcome shortcomings which can plague other local business. Electricity, a decent Internet connection, and Kenny's on speed dial is 50% of the infrastructure needed to get a tech startup off the ground. The ability to collaborate remotely means less pothole dodging and more business building, as well as the ability to incorporate off-island talent without trying to convince families to move to one of Canada's lower rated cities. You can even turn the population demographics into a strength as you have an ideal testbed for products addressing healthcare, education gaps, and hyperlocal features in an entrenched small community before scaling up. tl;dr (too long; didn't read for those of you who prefer English over acronyms): Cecil, why you no Sydney.app? Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 12:50 AM ADT Reply 0 0 Bravo, James. That's one of the best assessments and practical outlooks I've seen expressed in a long time from anyone 'round these parts, I reckon. :) Will look forward to seeing more stuff from you. We need thinkers like you, big time! Refreshing read! Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-22 8:34 AM ADT Reply 0 0 James, this post delivers a great perspective and one I can't disagree with. I will now ask you to visit the CBRM website, review the Councilors that represent the community and assume what their perspectives are. If I could ask each of them two questions they would be: When you personal computer is giving you problems, who do you call to fix it? When your economy is failing, who should be fixing it? Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 9:37 AM ADT Reply 1 0 There is no way Best Buy is going to fix this economy Christian! Kidding. :) James MacKinnon Follow Me 2015-06-22 10:08 AM ADT Reply 0 0 Yikes, I checked out the site on a whim and tried seeing if any of them at least had a twitter account (I figured even small town politicians would jump on extra PR angles). Eldon MacDonald seems like the only one leaning towards technical understanding :\ Not totally unexpected, but the council photo depicting a majority of old white men certainly play into a certain stereotype. Still, when there is potential $$$ to be made, I like to think old dogs can still learn new tricks. Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-22 11:16 PM ADT Reply 1 0 I've asked this question in the past and I will ask it here. Does an aging population result in an aging perspective on our economic expectations? James MacKinnon Follow Me 2015-06-22 11:27 PM ADT Reply 0 0 The older you are the less time you have to recover from bad choices, so you're likely to see things like risk adversity in investments or cautiousness with economic plans hinging on more modern tech/practices. You obviously have different responsibilities in your 50s and 60s than teens and 20s (family, etc) as well as more accrued assets meaning more to lose. You also have the experience of time in which you've witnessed how far the rollercoaster can go between highs and lows, whether on a local or larger level. Not to be completely ageist however, as personal values and mindset play a huge factor. There are risk takers and play-it-safers across many demographics. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 11:48 PM ADT Reply 0 0 When it comes to our local leadership, however, the only direct impact for themselves may be their outlook for the next round of their political career or legacy. Bureaucrats seem to have excellent career prospects slinking into one look-busy role after another - the political cucarachas. They don't actually have to create anything themselves. They take the purity, speed, and physical power of the 100 metre dash and see how many hurdles and banana peels they can put out there on the track to hinder the process. (Fill out one form for each banana found). Replace the CBRM council with a majority of innovative thinkers and less risk averse minds, and you'll get a grand experiment. "Mr Gorbachev - tear up those NDAs" (oops, not Gorbachev, I meant Clarke) :P An overwhelming percentage of the population isn't paying attention to politics beyond headlines, and the bias imposed by partisan complainers on all sides. Water cooler stuff. Want to mix things up? Get a majority on council. Rory Andrews My Post Follow Me 2015-06-22 10:27 AM ADT Reply 1 0 I totally see the clash created by the economic shift around here happening much faster than our culture can keep up with it. I recently started spending a lot of time in Louisbourg, and it's a perfect example of what's going on. For hundreds of years, as someone growing up there, they didn't need a high lever of education. Even in the 1970's, why would I finish high school if I can get a job on a fishing boat at 16 and make enough for a family and life? Same with the coal mines. In these places, a high school diploma or college just wasn't necessary, and could have even been seen as a poor investment. Then, in the span of 20 years, the whole place tanked, and we expect a new generation to just smarten up and go get Master's degrees for the first time in history. That's not how culture works, and I think that has a lot to do with the Westward Alberta migration. The oil fields is an economy that makes sense to that culture, and small tech companies is an economy that doesn't. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 11:36 AM ADT Reply 2 0 If you look at each extreme of the old industry versus new tech focus, both are a bit unrealistic, though still having a "possibility" (however unlikely it may be). For example: It's very unlikely the CBRM is going to pull together a deal to get an operational container port in Sydney. Yet, it's equally unlikely that any local startup is going to pull off a Snapchat in the near future. But we are able to pull off small level successes. Compare Slyce in New Waterford with the rebooted mining operation in Donkin (dirty energy concerns aside for the moment). One great model in the startup world is 37Signals. They are one of the companies that created a product that had value for which people were willing to pay for. They didn't have a business model that said "Well, it has to be either ads or getting acquired by Facebook or Google for a Billion... we'll figure it out after we get $50-100 Million in VC funding to scale and see what we have then". For 37Signals, a good local parallel is probably the startup Marcato. Targeting a marketing niche, delivering value by creating software to help manage a complex process. The port development is just as much an unrealistic unicorn as is the local startup guys who think they are are a sure thing for building a billion dollar startup out of nowhere. Screw the unicorns. Let's get down to finding niches and delivering value. Both types of business ecosystems can do well in this way. It's when we start putting the extreme cases of either against one another that create the clash of perspective. It creates a huge gap that is bound to draw partisanship and predictable criticism. When old industry folks see investment in tech as wasted money, sometimes they are right on the mark. We've had some silly investments go through at times. But we're also seeing some silly investments in old industry too. When we start doing more sensible deals, we'll get less push back from either side. Mathew Georghiou Follow Me 2015-06-22 11:52 AM ADT Reply 3 0 A 1% improvement repeated 100 times will result in 100% improvement. Many small wins are what will save Cape Breton and most communities in decline, not home runs. The all-or-nothing approach to economic development is old-school thinking that has repeatedly failed. It's a lot easier to just buy lottery tickets and get it over with. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 12:03 PM ADT Reply 1 0 Absolutely, and if that 1% improvement is on the new conditions with improvements added in, iteration after iteration, it will exceed 100%. :) Enough RBIs and we don't need Barry Bonds. #MoneyBall Mathew Georghiou Follow Me 2015-06-22 4:44 PM ADT Reply 1 0 #MoneyBall exactly. Coincidentally, in an upgrade later this week, goCapeBreton.com will automatically hotlink hashtags and make them searchable when clicked (on this site). James MacKinnon Follow Me 2015-06-22 12:55 PM ADT Reply 3 0 Love the 1% bit, as well as Joe's unicorn analogy. There are plenty of local issues that touch different demographics and groups, that not even a unicorn could make everyone happy. Likewise, your lottery ticket strategy is apt, as huge success stories are often just as much luck as hard work. Just ask Bill Gates. Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-22 4:15 PM ADT Reply 1 0 LOST Unicorn: I lost my Unicorn, if found stop doing drugs! I read this a ways back so I can't take credit nor can I give it!
Alexander Belvedere Follow Me 2015-06-13 4:37 PM ADT Reply 0 2 I'm not surprised a lot of Cape Breton Island has been cynical for as long as it has. When you have a sizable group of people who enjoy setting fires, smashing windows, slashing tires, stealing cars, driving drunk, shoplifting and illegally dumping, its usually a natural reaction . All of these criminal acts are typical of a place plagued with apathy, racism, cowardice and a widespread attitude of contempt towards others. One of those places is Cape Breton Island. Putting criminal acts aside, the local gentry who drive like idiots, act aggressively in public, litter, dress like pigs, spread gossip, stare, point, treat newcomers and visitors like lepers, won't control their nuisance dogs, won't control their anti-social children, want everything for nothing, mooch off the government and generally can't control themselves are ALL hammering more nails into the Cape Breton coffin. Frankly, it's just difficult for anyone to feel any other way. Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-06-22 8:55 AM ADT Reply 0 0 Alexander, I am confident your assessment is fundamentally incorrect. I personally spent a large portion of my life working with the general public and to be quite frank, 98% of the people are "Good People" simply seeking to live good lives, raise families and find happiness. The situations you describe are the result of a small minority,unfortunately that same minority tends to stand out in our minds.....humans are hardwired to internalize those things that "hurt" us so that we might avoid said hurt in the future. The people and situations that don't hurt us fade quickly albeit the vast majority of the incidents in our lives. For example those small moments when a child hugs you or hands you a flower. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-06-22 9:33 AM ADT Reply 1 0 I'd say Alexander overstated these things, and was one sided in his focus, but these things do persistently occur here. It's just that anywhere with similar socioeconomic conditions is going to have similar problems. Alexander Belvedere Follow Me 2015-10-24 8:21 AM ADT Reply 0 0 I'm wrong ? What "98%" of people did you actually talk to? Unfortunately, I had to grow up in Cape Breton, and spent the better part of 25 years of my life there. I've been through poverty, stress, anxiety, been beaten and assaulted by aggressive people, been lied to, had things stolen from me, drug addiction, friends overdosing and dying, belittled by the more "yuppy" side of residents (including my own teachers) and I could go on for hours. Reading this corny article by some guy that has barely lived there for 2 years made me couldn't help but roll my eyes. By the way, for what reason would anyone move to Cape Breton? It would be like going back through time. I've moved away from Cape Breton to Montreal several years ago, and my quality of life has increased tenfold, I don't even know where to begin to explain. Unless youre some yuppy privileged young person with all the money and support by wealthy parents in the world, there's really absolutely nothing there for any young people. Not everyone can enjoy Coors lights at the cottage after riding their sea doo on the lake everyday in the summer. Anytime I ever hear any news from home, it's always the most depressing stuff. I don't even want to hear it. Nothing changes, and it's all so backwards. I just don't see a future for myself there, struggle to live a basic boring life in a -----{deleted by administrator ----} of a town where everyone is so backwards in time that it's actually bizarre. I feel like I can't even be myself there. The very few times I've come to visit (each time unenjoyable as the last) old friends and acquaintances look at me like I'm some kind of alien. I'm not really sure why, maybe it's that I lost that horrific accent, or that I don't dress plain and boring like everyone else does. Either way im anxious to leave and go back to my new home in Montreal, and leave the past where it belongs and let all the gossipers and small minded "capers" to talk about me all they want while they continue their miserable lives. Alexander Belvedere Follow Me 2015-10-24 8:29 AM ADT Reply 0 0 tl;dr Some guy that literally just moved to Cape Breton shouldn't dictate or justify the harsh reality that is horrible quality of life living in Cape Breton. All that aside, the northern highlands area is absolutely astonishing and I fully worship it. Perhaps my next visit to Cape Breton I'll take a left turn toward englishtown and go camping and skip visiting town altogether. It's mind boggling how such a beautiful place can have such a terrible urban environmentsctructurally, economically and socially. Rory Andrews My Post Follow Me 2015-10-26 9:01 AM ADT Reply 1 0 You know, I was thinking about why I left Atlanta. There were a lot of reasons, but they could all be summed up by saying "I just didn't fit in there." I couldn't find my place and ran right into walls if I tried anything new. The whole place felt like a giant, superficial rat-race I could never see myself winning, with the worst traffic on the east coast. By contrast, I've never lived in a more accessible place than Sydney. If you want to be a part of something going on around here, practically all you have to do is show up and raise your hand. It's a small place, and it's not too hard to matter or make a difference. Also, if you're superficial and try to show off around here, you get shot down pretty quick, which I love. There's this unspoken sentence going on in people's heads that say "Who are you trying to impress. You're in Cape Breton!" This also leads to people wearing pajamas to the mall, but I take the good with the bad. In the end, there are plenty of people who love living in Atlanta, and would probably hate it here. When looking at where to live, you have to know what you want in life, and so far, I'm liking it pretty good here. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-10-26 12:56 PM ADT Reply 0 0 Perspective is super important on choosing a place to live that works for us. But other important factors are experience and mobility. What else have we experienced to compare? And do we have the capability to move or visit elsewhere even if we wanted to. For many, those last two factors are very challenging. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-10-24 9:36 AM ADT Reply 1 0 Level of income here certainly does create a wide spectrum of experiences. My family took great care of my sister and I growing up, but we did not do very well financially for many years. I hit the jackpot growing up by having a small group of very close friends who managed to have fun without getting into too much trouble. We were literally non-stop with backyard sports, fishing, swimming, and video games. Island criticism is certainly warranted. You would have to be blindfolded not to see serious issues. And I guess there are three choices: (1) leave, (2) fight for solutions, or (3) stay and quietly watch others do option 1 and option 2. And, to be fair, option 1 is probably the most rational choice for individual families. Rory does a great job at creating new perspectives. There are many paths that we can take through life here. He's offering a perspective on a path that he's discovered that improves quality of life - and deemphasizes some of the negative aspects. For instance, I never had a cottage, a boat, a dirt bike, quad, sled, jetski, or had a chance to play hockey. But I'd bike a couple of kilometres up the road with a hand me down fishing rod, hike another km through the woods, and find myself at the edge of a beautiful, private lake filled with trout. That perspective has become an amazing part of my life that I'm very thankful for. Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-10-25 9:09 AM ADT Reply 1 0 I have worked directly with the public for many years, I was a bartender for approximately 15, I worked with HRDC for a year, I organized events and parties with friends and I have seen the good, the bad and the ugly sides of this island and I will say with confidence that 98% of the people I came in contact with were fundamentally good. So Alexander, your opinions are subject to your experiences and quite likely your choices; all of which lead to your leaving. Is it fair to say that your departure was not to escape Cape Breton, but to escape the situations you actively created and or participated in? Our opinions are the result of our choices, experiences and desires; none of which you found satisfactory based on your personal situation. I am glad you managed to find it in Montreal. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-10-26 1:01 PM ADT Reply 0 0 I'm not quite sure subjective personal statistics are sufficient to discount another's perspective experience. Alcohol creates a temporary state of happy feelings for many, and I'm guessing the majority of people at least try to present their best aspects when in social or business functions. I also don't think that people who happen to be born into adverse socioeconomic conditions are entirely responsible for their own experience. Christian Murphy Follow Me 2015-10-26 4:00 PM ADT Reply 0 0 Joe, the point I am making is this: By nature we internalize the things that hurt us, they tend to be the experiences we remember most. If the majority of people were not good; then our prisons would be a 50/50 split, arbitrarily speaking. With a Federal Prison population of only 15,000+ out of a population of 35 Million, well my 2% is a bit of an exaggeration of reality. So I would say, it's a safe bet that 98% of people are fundamentally good. Joe Ward Follow Me 2015-10-26 4:55 PM ADT Reply 0 0 But we're discussing a particular region with a distinct socioeconomic makeup. When you fall within a demographic that is at a disadvantageous position in society, it is predictable that members of that group will likely run into a disproportionate amount of negative experiences to internalize. Some places are harder than others. While some people find it easy to coast by in life, others have to be exceptional just to get by. I sometimes call it the Paris Hilton factor. What would Paris Hilton have achieved if she was born into a trailer park versus a family who owns an International business? I have a bearish outlook on that one. ;)