New Jersey: Give it a Chance, Outsiders

           Dave and I live similar lives as New Jersey natives now residing in the Bronx.  Growing up in a suburban New Jersey town much like Dave’s hometown provides me with a very consistent perception of the state in relation to his blog statements.  While outsiders perceive New Jersey as a bottomless pit of filth due to lack of information and little knowledge of the state’s beautiful areas, we New Jersey-ians share the common attitude that we would not want to mold our lives anywhere else in the world.

            Prior to enrolling at Fordham, I spent the majority of my life in New Jersey.  I live in a typical suburban town named Hillsborough, and rarely leave the state for reasons other than attending Fordham.  Nonetheless, the overall animosity that others have for my beloved state is shocking upon traveling to the Bronx for the school year.  This animosity is appalling because a huge portion of these critics with condescending statements and stubbornly arrogant positions have spent little or zero time experiencing the beautiful area of the US.  From a New Jersey native’s point of view, it almost seems exhausting to spend so much time spewing out criticism about a state that one knows very little about.  These critics only have one point to support their arguments, which is the smell of Newark.

            To address the argument that negatively stereotypes New Jersey, I will firmly state that Newark is one city within an entire state.  Those who point towards the smell of Newark as an indicator of the state as a whole have obviously only been within the state grounds for flying purposes.  While I admit that the city smells terribly awful, it cannot be used as a sample of the whole state itself.  If an outsider just holds his nose, and sucks up his pride for a while, he will see that New Jersey has all kinds of different landscapes to offer.  He will see that our state has small cozy towns, urban areas, college towns, farmlands, beaches, and a variety of other visual luxurious.  A whole state cannot be categorized as “smelly” or “grimy” because of one specific location.  I invite these critics to visit New Jersey for a weekend.  If their time spent within the state’s borders is unenjoyable, I understand.  However, I feel that the state has too much to offer for one to not give it a chance.