Submitted by it never rains in southern California- except today, Jan 31, 2007 16:19

It's great to be true to your home town (east coast- west coast, whatever) but it's never fair to compare the two to being identical be cause they are not and never could be. What people don't realize about Los Angeles is that it's not built like a hub such as S.F, Chicago, NYC or any other of the major cities. That's probably what makes LA so different. Malibu is L.A, Sherman Oaks is L.A, Long Beach is L.A. Los Angeles is the county not the city. Unless you spend a lot of time here you don't really catch on to it. Hollywood is its own culture, so is Burbank as well as the west side. You can't walk from China town to Little Armenia, you have to drive. Imagine having diner on Ventura Blvd. then go have drinks at BB King's at City Walk, later see a show at the House of Blues on Sunset Blvd. followed by smoking the hookah in Westwood at 2am. I wish everyone was so lucky.

I used to think that California didn't have culture but in part, that is our culture, to be translucent, no definitive lines. You never see people wear a Tux and heavy jacket to go to the opera out here like you would in NYC, even in the winter.

You say; L.A has studios… yeah the whole city is THE studio. Any given day you can drive across the valley and find 10 different productions going on outside of the studios on the streets.

You say; L.A has a few good places to eat… well maybe only 800 or so, a good majority staying open until 2am or on (Pinks Hotdogs I love you).

You say; out side of L.A what do you have? Try 5 star ski resorts two baseball teams, two basketball teams, a hockey team, a soccer team, arena football, more than hundreds of concert venues such as the Hollywood bowl, El Capitan, Pantages, Kodak, movie premieres, marathon venues, Formula 1 circuit races, 5 major amusement parks, world class clubs and bars, ghettos just like yours; Watts, Compton, Inglewood, the LBC… … I'll stop just for starters.

You say; culture is blah but you don't see what you're not looking for. Every ethnicity is represented here; every kind of person and interest is represented here. Every form of art, music, language ties this city together. Don't forget about the museums, MOCA, Disney's CAL ARTS school, or Walt Disney Concert hall, Los Angeles Music Center, The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, or Toyota's CALTY facility, how about some of the most unique people and concepts… Where would the ‘low rider' and ‘Dubs' be with out us?

You say; L.A is Fantasy. I don't know too many homeless people rolling their Bentley back to Bel Air. Ask the displaced families and immigrant workers if they are living ‘the fantasy' life. Very contrary, Los Angeles is very real. People live and die on the streets, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. The drugs and addiction flow like wine. Man and woman alike sell themselves to pay rent. Don't get me wrong, the people of affluence have every desire, unlike NY?

You say; NYC has the sounds and scent of a city. Los Angeles has majesty about her, a place that lives and breaths and feels, a city that's veins flow with lights and colors, a city that hugs and nestles the hills and coastlines. If all that New York is to you is a city of sounds and scent, then I encourage you to give L.A a try.

I'd never say that NYC lacks anything that L.A has to offer. L.A is just different in a Californian kind of way.

You say; L.A tries hard but no cigar… to be like New York, definitely not. I challenge you to drive Sunset, see the old parts of town like by the train station, or hang out on Olivera St. This is a city with a large Spanish influence; you can miss it if you're not looking.

There is a beauty in the chaos of Los Angeles. There is love affair to be had. Downtown or across town, On Mulholland Dr. or Hollywood Blvd. you will never find a more diverse group of people representing every ethnicity in the world. Your right, there is no comparison, that's why we are Californians.

To compare NYC to LA is not possible; it's like comparing the sun to the air we breathe. Neither being more or less important

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