Hello Seth. I encourage you to come to the Salt Pond Visitors Center on April 8. I am sure you know The CCNS Advisory Commission is meeting for the first time since 2018. See you there!
We have a bigger, more important reason to unite that is currently invisible, expect to a few. Big, big, BIG money is pouring into each town and rapidly changing the face of Cape Cod. If we don't put some concerted efforts into controlling this, we will not recognize "our" Cape in five years. Cape Cod must Unite!
It is clear that there at least two Cape Cods - the Upper Cape and the Lower Cape. Those in the "Upper" end of the peninsula, tend to have subscriptions to the Atlantic and the New Yorker. They read the New York Times, listen to WCAI, and drive Infinities, Volvos, and Teslas. Their kids go to Falmouth Academy. Dress at dinner can often be formal. They watch CNN and MSNBC. A night out at the theater might have a revival of "Guys and Dolls." For vacations, they do long weekends on the Vineyard. The "Lower" Cape is different. Out there, the Boston Herald is king. Barbershops feature magazines like Guns 'N Ammo and Field and Stream. These people -- or "Outers" as they are sometimes referred to, drive Fords and Chevys -- mostly four-wheel drive trucks. They listen to WOMR and watch a lot of Fox News. Their kids attend Cape Cod Tech and become wealthy plumbers and electricians and tend to stay on the Cape. Dress for just about anything -- church, theater, dinner, funerals, it's shorts and tee-shirts in the summer, something from the Our Lady of the Cape thrift shop in the winter. Theater offerings might be something like "When Jesus takes the 'A' Train." For vacations, (If they take one,) it's usually a September week in Nickerson State Park. While Provincetown is really an outlier to all this (it's become quite upper,) a town like Wellfleet shows a combination of both upper and lower traits. Lots of Wellfleetians are into commercial shellfishing. They sell a lot of oysters to tony bistros where the "upper" people eat. As for the "upper" nature of most the "lower Cape, try finding a psychologist in New York City during the months of July and August. They are all out there.
This is fun reading Jim, but the stereotypes are belied by many things -- just one example, I don't think a Lower Cape community that often votes for Democrats in the 70-80 percent range considers the Boston Herald king and watches Fox for life perspective. Best regards, Seth
Imagine Martha’s Vineyard, considerably less land area than the Cape, with 6 distinct towns with 6 redundant facilities. Being in the wastewater business, I can’t tell you how frustrating this is. It costs the citizens so much more money to do these big infrastructure projects piecemeal. But good-ole-Boyism is a tough nut to crack.
Excellent article. The issue is a commonwealth one. I was on the Selectboard of Charlemont, a small town in western MA. We were surrounded by small towns who all suffered the issue of duplicative services. All towns west of Springfield suffer from municipal isolation.
Seeing the Cape as Balkans explains a lot. I also like the allusion to a canopy. We need a better tent, and an understanding of the need for a stronger regional fabric to handle our Cape winds. The NIMBY movement that is a stumbling block to creating housing opportunities for all benefits if not exploits this phenomenon, the lack of sharing of resources -- and continues to stall solving problems that could be better addressed by a regional approach. The "tent" is called the common contract. What are we all doing here, together, anyway?
Hello Seth. I encourage you to come to the Salt Pond Visitors Center on April 8. I am sure you know The CCNS Advisory Commission is meeting for the first time since 2018. See you there!
Hope to be there, yes.
We have a bigger, more important reason to unite that is currently invisible, expect to a few. Big, big, BIG money is pouring into each town and rapidly changing the face of Cape Cod. If we don't put some concerted efforts into controlling this, we will not recognize "our" Cape in five years. Cape Cod must Unite!
It is clear that there at least two Cape Cods - the Upper Cape and the Lower Cape. Those in the "Upper" end of the peninsula, tend to have subscriptions to the Atlantic and the New Yorker. They read the New York Times, listen to WCAI, and drive Infinities, Volvos, and Teslas. Their kids go to Falmouth Academy. Dress at dinner can often be formal. They watch CNN and MSNBC. A night out at the theater might have a revival of "Guys and Dolls." For vacations, they do long weekends on the Vineyard. The "Lower" Cape is different. Out there, the Boston Herald is king. Barbershops feature magazines like Guns 'N Ammo and Field and Stream. These people -- or "Outers" as they are sometimes referred to, drive Fords and Chevys -- mostly four-wheel drive trucks. They listen to WOMR and watch a lot of Fox News. Their kids attend Cape Cod Tech and become wealthy plumbers and electricians and tend to stay on the Cape. Dress for just about anything -- church, theater, dinner, funerals, it's shorts and tee-shirts in the summer, something from the Our Lady of the Cape thrift shop in the winter. Theater offerings might be something like "When Jesus takes the 'A' Train." For vacations, (If they take one,) it's usually a September week in Nickerson State Park. While Provincetown is really an outlier to all this (it's become quite upper,) a town like Wellfleet shows a combination of both upper and lower traits. Lots of Wellfleetians are into commercial shellfishing. They sell a lot of oysters to tony bistros where the "upper" people eat. As for the "upper" nature of most the "lower Cape, try finding a psychologist in New York City during the months of July and August. They are all out there.
This is fun reading Jim, but the stereotypes are belied by many things -- just one example, I don't think a Lower Cape community that often votes for Democrats in the 70-80 percent range considers the Boston Herald king and watches Fox for life perspective. Best regards, Seth
Tongue in cheek, Seth - no offense intended.
Tis like no other. Thought provoking read. Thanks again Seth.
So very true.
Imagine Martha’s Vineyard, considerably less land area than the Cape, with 6 distinct towns with 6 redundant facilities. Being in the wastewater business, I can’t tell you how frustrating this is. It costs the citizens so much more money to do these big infrastructure projects piecemeal. But good-ole-Boyism is a tough nut to crack.
Excellent article. The issue is a commonwealth one. I was on the Selectboard of Charlemont, a small town in western MA. We were surrounded by small towns who all suffered the issue of duplicative services. All towns west of Springfield suffer from municipal isolation.
Seeing the Cape as Balkans explains a lot. I also like the allusion to a canopy. We need a better tent, and an understanding of the need for a stronger regional fabric to handle our Cape winds. The NIMBY movement that is a stumbling block to creating housing opportunities for all benefits if not exploits this phenomenon, the lack of sharing of resources -- and continues to stall solving problems that could be better addressed by a regional approach. The "tent" is called the common contract. What are we all doing here, together, anyway?