Comments on: So Cool

By: Coy Diddy

Coy Diddy — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 19:39:21 +0000

Larry OKC, I agree with Brian. We are not a rural city. Oklahoma is a rural state with a vibrant and diverse city which is Oklahoma City. No we’re not New York because New York is New York, we’re not Dallas because Dallas is Dallas, just as we’re not Omaha because Omaha is Omaha. Each city in America has something that makes them unique. Oklahoma City is unique for being an American oil hub and we are quickly becoming one of the strongest economic hubs in the aerospace industry. Many engineers are pouring into the city to work for Fortune 100 and 500 OKC companies such as Devon, Chesapeake, Sandridge, and Boeing, amongst others. We have a strong Southern hospitality kind of culture here which does not make us rural, it’s just a culture that’s predominant in this part of the country. With the arrival of the OKC Thunder and the national attention we have received, OKC and all it has to offer has been internationally displayed and we are no longer overlooked as we were when you were a kid growing up. I too remember a time when we were a place seemingly headed nowhere and if that’s what you liked then I’m sorry to say it may be turning into a place that may make you uncomfortable. However, if you can handle the incoming diversity you will find your place in this city as our community continues to thrive. There too, will be a place for country folk just as there is in Dallas/Fort Worth and other Southern cities. But we will continue, as we have in recent years, to see an increase of peoples of all races, religions, sexual orientations, and creeds. The arts are becoming a major part of the city and we are on a fast track that just cannot be stopped. The only close cities that are a safe bet to not becoming much of anything fast are towns like Lawton, Wichita Falls, Amarillo, etc. I feel like you think OKC is similar to these places and if so you haven’t experienced much or may be in denial as a handful of “old school” residents in OKC who dispise diversity and growth are. It’s okay if you don’t like this sort of thing but like I said, if you wish to stay here happily you will either have to learn to love and accept the rennaissance that we are in, or you will have to find your part of the city that is a little slower paced. I would recommend an outerlying suburb. People need to remember that you can’t say a city is rural or not a city just because of the part of the country it lies in. People seem to think that New York, Philadelphia, Boston, etc. constitute what a city truly is or should be but those are northeastern cities just as Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, OKC, Memphis are Southern cities. Kansas City, St. Louis, Detroit, Chicago are Midwestern cities, and LA, San Diego, San Francisco are Western cities. They’re all urban cities, they just happen to have a different predominant culture based on their geographical location.

By: Larry OKC

Larry OKC — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 16:43:01 +0000

Brian, I respectfully disagree. While it may have had urban elements (mainly downtown) that seems to have been the extent of it. I have an image of the city’s founding (Oklahoma City, Indian Territory, 1890) and looks nothing like New York, Chicago etc of the day as my desktop. We had urban sprawl all most from the beginning with the rather extensive streetcar network that was built with the interurban lines going to the surrounding communities.

Yes, much of what urban fabric the city had was destroyed by the things you mentioned. But I still contend that we have nearly always been and remain a rural city. As to my my own experience…it has been a rural city as long as I have known it….was born here…live across the street from the hospital where I was born…am nearing my 49th birthday and my parents were born here/moved here at grade school age concur.

In case you missed it, I was agreeing with Steve when he said:

“I can’t agree more with this song’s main theme – that we really are a big city with the soul of a small town. Jack Money and I ended our first book, “OKC Second Time Around” with this very same conclusion. And it’s OK that we’re not Dallas, or St. Louis, or Kansas City, or Denver, or Charlotte, or any other “major league city.” We’re Oklahoma City.”

So unless we become one of the forementioned cities, I have no intention of moving someplace else…”am Sooner born, Sooner bred…when I die, I’ll be Sooner dead”

By: Brian

Brian — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 02:40:52 +0000

Larry, OKC is not a rural city. It was born as an urban city and due to White flight, sprawl, urban renewal, etc., became more of a suburban city in the latter half of the 20th Century. I welcome our 21st Century urban renaissance and look forward to wishing you a friendly bon voyage as you depart for Wichita Falls, Amarillo, or whatever “rural city” outpost you choose as your future home.

By: David Walkup

David Walkup — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 22:59:03 +0000

It’s cool to look at the city through someone elses eyes. Great video.

By: Rob Crissinger

Rob Crissinger — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:43:56 +0000

Yes! Ryan LaCroix speaks the truth.

By: Larry OKC

Larry OKC — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:14:08 +0000

Liked the video but despised the rap sound track (not the lyrics, just the “music” style).

I came to the same conclusion myself years ago. We are a Rural City. We aren’t Dallas, New York etc, and if we ever become one of those other cities, I will be leaving. If I wanted to live in someplace like that, I would have moved there years ago.

By: Ryan LaCroix

Ryan LaCroix — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:47:30 +0000

Great concept, great song and great video.

The whole thing should be seen as a tribute to OKC, and not just lyrically and visually. OKC is a vibrant, diverse and interesting city with many more slices of culture than any one person thinks.

To some, it’s Stockyard City and Graham’s. To some, it’s Bakers Street and Outlet Shoppes. To some, it’s Big Truck Tacos and Whole Foods. To some, it’s Bricktown and the Thunder. To some, it’s the Hi-Lo and the Flaming Lips. To some, it’s Kamp’s and Bobo’s.

To some, it’s all of the above.

Thankfully, OKC doesn’t have to be just one way for everyone.

By: Rob Crissinger

Rob Crissinger — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 23:56:43 +0000

I don’t think it should replace the chamber video. “Where we’ve been (Where we’re goin’)” is great too, just targeted to a different audience.

If money and creative talent grew on trees, there might be a professional quality video like this one reflecting the heart of all of the small slices of OKC, and the state, at large.

Can’t be everything to everyone, and trying to appeal to everyone is the quickest way to appeal to no one.

By: Doug Loudenback

Doug Loudenback — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 23:34:01 +0000

I did enjoy the video, even if I also think that it only presented a small slice of what Oklahoma City is, just a bit of the “gritty” part, which I like. That said, it doesn’t come close to reflecting the overall city, at large.

By: Fredo

Fredo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:23:06 +0000

I liked it. Now how can we get the okc chamber to replace this video with that lame commercial they’ve been running?