state by state speak your mind about ...Missouri

[SwampG8r]

Last edited Sat Mar 3, 2012, 01:23 PM - Edit history (1)

i have friends there
it isnt southern but it seems like it is
politically it has been a bellweather state
st louis is the gateway to the west with a very nice arch to prove it
it also was a very important shipping stop on the mississippi river
historically Missouri has had a checkered past
the Missouri compromise fed into the civil war and the mormon wars exiled citizens and confiscated their lands
Missouri has led the way on a lot of american history
the pony express started there and so does the oregon trail
these opened the west to us all
its the show me state

[randome]

1. Boring.

Once my daughters are on their own, I am out of here!

[pipoman]

33. So often people can't see the forest

for the trees in their own state.

[Itchinjim]

2. Where we Iowans get our fireworks

[annabanana]

3. sigh.. mostly that Rt 80 doesn't go through it...

I ought to go check it out sometime. . .

[TheDebbieDee]

4. I'm from Kansas City...........

You forgot to mention that Missouri (Kansas City) is home to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, the Jazz Museum at 18th Street and Vine in the Jazz District, the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum just east of the Plaza (they have a fantastic ancient Egyptian and ancient Chinese collection), some of the best colleges and universities in the country.

Did you know that Devry University (12 campuses in the US and Canada) was started in Kansas City? It was originally known as the Missouri Institute of Technology, then Bell & Howell and finally emerged as the tech-based school that we know today.

And Rockhurst University is one of the finest Jesuit Colleges in the country.

The world's biggest law firm, Shook, Hardy & Bacon opened their doors here in Kansas City first.

Two of the world's premier construction and engineering firms, Burns & McDonnell and Black & Veatch started their operations here.

[SwampG8r]

6. i just start them

i depend on the people who do know like yourself to fill in the blanks
i have had really good posts replying to some of these that are way more informative than i can ever be from way over here
as someone who knows very little about it i thank you for putting the facts here
your contributions and the others like it on other states are the fish this bait is for

[hfojvt]

8. is Liberty memorial in Missouri, or Kansas?

Then there's Independence, home of Harry S. Truman, and also the MidAmerica Historical Library. I used to drive there to do my unemployment once a month.

And then there are the Missouri roughians.

When Kansas first became a state, Missourians crossed over the river and committed voter fraud so they could make Kansas a slave state.

My brother and sister live in Missouri. I came down here because I got a job in Missouri, but could not afford to live on that side of the river. So instead, I ruined Kansas.

[TheDebbieDee]

9. The Liberty Memorial is in Kansas City, Missouri..............

I work in a building that is a few hundred yards away from the base of the Liberty Memorial. The City of Kansas City is doing some type of major renovation to the grounds on which the Liberty Memorial sits - they've torn down a several hundred foot-long treeline and this should only improve the view from the top of the memorial.

Is the Mid-America Library and the Truman Presidential Library the same thing? I've visited the Truman Library/Museum - Truman's limo is in there as well as a replica of the office he worked out of in his final years. Also, the famous "The Buck Stops Here" sign is on his desk.

[hfojvt]

11. no, they used to be about half a mile apart IIRC

but the MidContinet (I got the name wrong and probably still have it wrong) moved.

Way back before I moved into this area, I always found it ironic that the big part of Kansas City isn't in Kansas.

I also remember one childhood trip down here. My parents were looking for something in KCMO, but we kept getting lost and being forced to drive over the river. I think we crossed that river about three times without ever wanting to.

[xmas74]

20. An MBA from Rockhurst once meant you could

sign your own paycheck. It still means a huge foot in the door for decent jobs, compared to most MBA candidates. I know a few Rockhurst grads-very smart and passionate.

I have family working for Black and Veatch.

And I love Nelson-Atkins.

[lastlib]

30. Hey, I'm almost your neighbor!

Blue Springs area...

[JHB]

5. I think it deserves a capital "M". ;)

[SwampG8r]

7. know what?

i agree
have you ever been?sadly i have not

[proud2BlibKansan]

10. Where I was born

A very beautiful state.

Lots to do for outdoors lovers. The state park system is outstanding.

Lots of history in MO as well.

[Arugula Latte]

12. I drove across it once.

I have to say, my main impression was ... I wanted to get out of there. Maybe it was the route we took but it seemed like redneck central.

[xmas74]

21. You really missed out.

The state park system is one of the best in the nation. Most are free to enter and camping is very cheap.

[Arugula Latte]

26. Yeah, I would like to explore the Ozarks, etc.

We didn't have time to get to any of the good places.

[xmas74]

29. Order a state guide sometime.

They're free.

There are many things to see and do here. Missouri has some wonderful parks and lots of historical sites to visit.

[AsahinaKimi]

13. Mark Twains Cave

Biggest underground cool spot, I have ever been to.

[Arkansas Granny]

14. I was born and raised there. Very pretty country.

I haven't been back there for years.

[MadHound]

15. My home,

It is absolutely beautiful country, from the flat north to the mountainous south. The weather is interesting, and can turn on a dime.

Full of caves, springs and other such natural wonderments, Missouri is a nature lover's delight. Vast areas of sparsely settled forest land, and yet possessed of areas of vibrant urban life.

Columbia, where I was raised, is still a wonderful college town, with all sorts of attractions, year 'round. Unique pockets of culture, such as Hermann Missouri, an old school German town.

Yes, the state does possess more than its fair share of rednecks, but many of them are still decent people nonetheless. It does have a Southern vibe in the southern part of the state, not so much elsewhere. Sadly, it is the southern part of the state that dominates the state legislature and shapes the national impact of Missouri's representation in Congress.

Still and all though, I would rather live here in Missouri than in any other state. If I want culture, or nightlife, or great cuisine, I can find it. If I want to retreat from society and simply talk with the wind and weather, I can do that as well. Yes, my state has its faults, but what state doesn't? I think that the virtues of this state far outweighs its faults.

[xmas74]

22. I love Rock Bridge State Park

and the Devil's Icebox. Such a cool spot!

[KamaAina]

16. Its voters chose a corpse over Asscroft.

[chowder66]

17. The State of Missouri

I was born and raised there. It really is beautiful. Trees, seasons (except the hot, humid summers), love the weather changes (ice storms, heavy snow storms, sideways rain, rain with sun, winds, microbursts, etc) kindness, culture, parks, fountains, diversity, music, etc ( I grew up in Brookside in KCMO - metropolitan) around every kind of artist so I feel pretty lucky. I laugh when I go home (live in L.A.) and friends and family complain about the traffic.

And yet they are right! The roads seem clear to me but the one or two drivers on the road there are a sight to behold. If I would tunnel my vision and focus on the few cars out there it would feel just like L.A. That sucks to have open roads but drivers who are impossible! Grrrr for KCer's.

Missouri has been a pretty damn good hub for music on and off over the decades. Early on it was Jazz and Blues which continued and may even still, then came folk and rock, then came Alt, punk, garage, college rock and New Wave...not sure what it's like now though.

St. Louis is cool, Columbia, MO is a cool college town. While Missouri doesn't have the ocean or vast mountains, it does have fantastic rolling hills, caves, lakes, great parks and trees for days (most excellent for climbing).....Taking the train is a great way to explore or just walking the neighborhoods. K.C. Metro is or was a great city to walk.

[hatrack]

18. Spent most of my life here, and I hate to say, but it's not getting any bluer . . .

If anything, I'm reminded that the "-uh" used to pronounce the end of the state's name by pandering candidates needs only a D in front of it to serve as a handy shorthand for the political views of way too freaking many of the people I meet and interact with.

KC, SL & Columbia are oases in a growing sea of red, Springfield/Branson/Joplin have been the speaking-in-tongues vortex of the nation for years, and steady growth in the numbers of retirees coming to the Ozarks isn't helping matters.

The occasional statewide office-holder we're able to boost into office on our side (Sen. McCaskill, Gov. Nixon) doesn't really come close to making up for (hmmm, let's see) Ashcroft, Blunt, Baby Blunt, Bond. In the house, we have Akin, Emerson and threw over Ike Skelton last time in favor of (insert vomiting noise here) a tea-party assclown like Hartzler.

Not getting much smarter our there . . .

OTOH, there are reasons I stay . . .

?w=500&h=343

[xmas74]

23. Hartzler should be gone soon.

That's my district and most now seem to regret voting Ike out of office.

[lastlib]

31. I'm gonna help! eom

[xmas74]

35. are you in the district?

Where? (If you want, send it in a pm. I understand not spreading your location far and wide, especially if it's one of the smaller towns.)

Also, have you joined us over in the Missouri group? http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1061 Please join us over there-we'd love to hear from you!

[The Genealogist]

19. My home state

Missouri feels like a catch-all state. Sometimes I don't think there is all that much socio-cultural or geographical/geological glue that holds the state together. Southern Missouri is more like Arkansas, Tennessee and/or Kentucky. Northern Missouri feels in places more like Kansas, Iowa or Illinois. We have a little bit of everything geographically. We have hills and plains, woodlands and prairies, marshland and river bottoms. My part of the state, around Springfield, has Karst topography: limestone bedrock, with many sinkholes, springs, interesting rock formations.

I had a boss whose wife (not a native Missourian) called it the "40-something state" because we were always ranked in the 40s out of 50 on so many things, from high smoking rates to our crummy bridges.

Missouri gets redder and redder every year. It used to be that the state leaned a little blue, if anything, but was best described as purple. Now, it is pretty solidly red.

[cordelia]

24. I lived in Kansas City for 5 years

Beautiful country. A lot of history. A world-class museum, the Nelson-Atkins.

Lovely, lovely people.

I enjoyed my time there very much.

[WhoIsNumberNone]

25. They're putting a bust of Rush Limbaugh in the Statehouse

[xmas74]

28. That's because one person makes that decision

and that person is from Cape Girardeau. Steven Tilley is the House Speaker and makes the decision as to who is and is not put on display.

Hell, people like Satchel Page and Mel Carnahan (who was killed in a plane crash while governor) are not on display in the Statehouse.

http://www.kmbc.com/politics/30622466/detail.html

Democrats statewide are protesting the decision.

[randr]

27. My only experience in Missouri is from travels through on I-70

It was a few decades back and I specifically remember thinking that they have never cleaned the roadway. And I did not find one rest stop.
I imagine the rest of the state to be beautiful but was left with a feeling that they did not care for the people traveling through.

[pipoman]

32. In fairness

that piece of highway is extremely heavily traveled. I have been all around the state and "The States" and really believe MO is among the most beautiful and historic in the nation. Really an under rated tourist destination IMO.

[proud2BlibKansan]

34. There are also plenty of rest stops

LOL