Descartes Your Ideas Outta Here

Congratulations on totally misreading my statements. I'm not arguing for some kind of useless relativism. Of course LA can and should be judged qualitatively, and in comparison to other cities. But to view it solely in comparison to NY -- or under the guidelines of some urban ideal that is subconsciously or overtly based on NY -- is a waste of time. As for the "ignorance is bliss" notion, I am saying nothing of the sort. And I am all for having opinions (though not opinions rooted in a fundamental, unquestioned sense of superiority and elitism...like the kind that says NY is "the best" city -- I thought competitions over "the best" anything ended in grade school).

Anyway, I see that what you're really seeking is a defense of LA. And I'll be the first to admit I haven't made one here. I've merely tried to point out the flaws in your judgment process, to cleanse your doors of perception, if you will. My point thus far can be summed up as follows: if you judged every composer by comparing them with Beethoven, you'd end up tossing Gershwin out the window. And that would be just plain wrong.

But you want a defense of LA. You want a reason why LA LA Land is worth the price of admission. Well that's a topic for another post. Stay tuned.