GuyLaroche said:
The partner and I are really considering moving down to Nashville, but we are waiting to hear from other schools. The location is just scary to us. We only have the voting records of the South to go by, and I didn't really get a chance to sample Nashville while I was there. I guess my question is, how progressive is Nashville? More importantly, if the partner is to relocate with me, there has to be work for the partner to do. The partner will have a doctorate in electrical engineering and is concerned that Vanderbilt is not a strong school in electrical engineering. Are there strong schools in electrical engineering located in that area? Is our assessment of Vanderbilt and its engineering school correct?
First, about the Holiday Inn Select. I've never been a guest there (because I live in Nashville), but it seems to be a nice hotel--like an Embassy Suites. It's the nicest hotel in the Vandy area after the Lowes Plaza Hotel (4+ stars). I'd stop complaining b/c as a patient and donating alumni, I personally think you should pay for your own hotel, meals, and airfare. (I should complain about this to the alumni affairs office.)
Second, Vanderbilt has a strong engineering program. UT Knoxville (which is close to Oak Ridge) does too, but it also 200 miles away. GA Tech is the darling gem of SE engineering programs, but it is 200 miles away as well.
Third, Nashville is both politically progressive and not progressive. It just depends on where you live. The city core (downtown, the Vandy-Belmont-Hillsboro Village area, and West End), East Nashville (Breiley Parkway and Gallatin Road), and the airport area (state house district 53) are generally fiscally and socially progressive. Antioch (I-24 east of town) is progressive but more adverse to tax increases. NW Davidson county is socially conservative but fiscally progressive, unionized, and sparcely populated. Goodlettsville (I-65 north of town) is middle to working class and very conservative. South Nashville (north of Brentwood) and Belle Meade (SW of town) are rich, landed, and very conservative. Between South Nashville and Goodlettsville, I would say that South Nashville is more fiscally conservative and Goodlettsville is more socially conservative.
Considering the county as a whole, I would say that the progressives have more power but not by too much. Since Davidson County has metropolitan government (one government for the whole county), all of these different factions end up fighting it out on the Metro council. A proposal to end discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation was proposed, had a chance, and failed a few years back. However, the council has largely been doing nothing and nothing since the last election in 2003. (The alt-weekly
Nashville Scene believes it is "The Worst Metro Council Ever.")
The Davidson County Democratic Party is very active. Rodd Mullins took over as their leader after the local Deaniac faction packed the executive committee. We also have an active Democracy for America chapter, one of the two oldest in Tennessee. There is also a chapter of the Peace and Justice Center and several national organizations. The annual NOW convention will be in town in early July.
Now, Nashville is in the State of Tennessee, which has its own political character. Nashville, Memphis, and Oak Ridge are the most liberal places by far. East Tennessee, the counties around Nashville, and the towns in Shelby County outside of Memphis are very conservative. The rest of the state is like NW Davidson County. When you sum this up, you get a socially conservative state that wants to be fiscally progressive but is not for some reason: no income tax, heavy sales tax (9.5% on many items), and an underfunded Medicaid program (called TennCare). If you are homosexual, be aware that you cannot marry or obtain a civil union here, and the same obtained in another state will not be recognized in TN.
I think that progressives moving to Nashville would generally be happy here. Some of the bone headed things that our bone head politicians say and do will get you angry from time to time, but there will be plenty of people near by who will be angry with you. Even homosexuals should be able to find places where they are accepted as they are. (The only time I remember a "God Hates F-gs Rally" was during the non-discrimination debate, and those creeps were from out of town.)