St. Louis Rules, Kansas City Drools: A Response to the Kansas City Star

I don't care. I'm just here for the entertainment.

Every Kansas Citian knows that Minsky's on 39th Street closed nearly three months ago. Also, for a fact, I can say that the Kansas City, Kansas side of town is absolutely NOT "better-looking, safer, cleaner and better-smelling". McMansions and a Nascar track sure are expensive, but that doesn't make it a nicer part of town.

Want to learn about the history of Germans in St. Louis? Check out author Jim Merkel who will be discussing his book "Beer, Brats, and Baseball" at the McClay Branch of the St. Charles City-County Library, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 13. Copies of the book will be available for signing for $21.50 each.

I'm not a fan of KC. But enough people dismiss both cities and "flyover states". We don't need to do it to each other. Maybe put this challenge up: write an article singing their praises and see if they will be kind enough to support us in return.

St. Louis, because that's my city. I've been to KC more times than I can count. All they got on STL is barbecue, and even that's up for debate. Oooh we're Kansas City, we got fountains. You also have the Royals. I rest my case.

You can tell how equally useless both are by reading the comments, I'm just hoping I don't get stuck in KC on my way to Colorado. XD

http://i2.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/000/554/facepalm.jpg
children, behave.
children, time out.

As a journalist and Missouri-born, bred, and educated reader, the Star article, while maybe not to the liking of St. Louisians (is that it?) was relatively fair and balanced, it was founded in research and fact, rather than angry rebukes that, regardless of my feeling on each item, are nothing if not subjective. I am all right with this low-browed and rather insulting to St. Louis' actual good quality response, because RFT, like most Voice publications lean toward humorists rather than journalists. And I do enjoy it! Snark and sass is fun and engenders a lot of responses and boosts page views and rallies your home readership to your back like a gaggle of frat boys behind a friend who was just called a douche at the bar. But, truly, there is slim to nil chance The Star will respond. Maybe the Pitch would be happy to lower itself to the level of this debate. I smiled while reading this and am basically ambivalent to your content minus this: Your assertion that KC, MO stole its name from a larger, safer, cleaner or better KC, KS is pure factual inaccuracy. The suburbs that extend to the west of the city qualify for those adjectives but the section of the city itself (which was named for the native tribe in the area well before the state of Kansas existed, the line of which bisected the already standing city that was in the already standing state of MO) that you refer to is anything but clean, safe and appealing. It is a base of low-income residents with a rickety school system and an overworked social services system that goes along with those two features. If you want to shit talk (and please, do!) at least do so in an educated manner. Thanks!

Good response from Charles Jaco (of Todd Akin "The female body can shut that whole thing down" fame) here http://kplr11.com/2013/03/07/jacology-kansas-city-versus-saint-louis/

Yeah, well, the original article actually had statistics in it but you have to ignore them, huh?

Oh, and St. Louis?  In the top 20 of "Worst-Run Cities" list? 

http://247wallst.com/2013/01/15/the-best-and-worst-run-cities-in-america/4/

And it doesn't stop there:

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/02/0226_miserable_cities/3.htm

http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2012/06/14/st-louis-ranked-3rd-on-most-dangerous-cities-list/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2012/10/18/detroit-tops-the-2012-list-of-americas-most-dangerous-cities/

We can't fight how great your city once was but for what it is now?  Please.

Yes, we have our problems in Kansas City, sure, but we'll take--and keep--it, thanks. Let's not get into a further pissing match about the two cities.  You have far more history, naturally, and the Cardinals will always beat the Royals but let's get over it.

Mo Rage, the blog

Hahaha!  Is this really a debate?? So sad...I'll help out. Both cities are amongst the biggest jokes in the nation. People all end up or get stuck in both. NO ONE picks either. Ever. 

This is like two retards arguing over who is less retarded. Just sit quietly in your short bus and don't disturb the others...

If St. Louis is so great and K.C. sucks, why is the RFT printed every week at Truman and McGee St. in Kansas City?

Been to both lived in both and they both are hot beds for crime, drugs and angry people. They are a stain on the map that is the mid west and to be truthful no one if they had a choice of anywhere in america to live would pick either of these cities unless they are high on meth( which is very possible in the two).

^ uneducated. Must be from St. Louis.

kc is a shithole compared to stl. everyone knows that.

Truth be known: St. Louis is dying while KC is thriving. And I love St. Louis. Born and raised.

we collect the dregs who drop out on their trips from coast-to-coast, yet STL has a monument to everyone who left. suck it, RFT.

The RFT article is clearly being tongue-and-cheek, while Yael's article was completely serious. I think the response is appropriate coming from the RFT, which is known for being a freewheeling newspaper with lots of humor. I think it was funny, and completely deserved. 

Equally as funny as this article, is the collective Kansas City inferiority complex that has come to life in these comments.

"bifurcate" means to divide... Brush creek does not divide i.e. run through the middle of the Plaza shopping district, it runs along the southern border of it.  But what would you expect from a nameless writer spilling forth this baseless garbage.

All you need to know about the delusion of awesomeness that St. Louisans seem to live under is St. Louis style pizza. That pile of garbage is an affront to any homeless person who would gladly gut you for a slice of Dominos. Yet, you ask someone from St. Louis and he or she will tell you it's the best. Terrible. 

I spent the first 18 years of my life in Kansas City and the next seven in St. Louis. The remaining 30 years have taken me to the West Coast, Europe and NYC. Since I left Missouri, the competitive bickering between its two major cosmopolitan areas has grown to seem more and more like a tempest in a teapot. The sassier it gets, the smaller it seems. I want to say to those still arguing, "You gotta' get out more! Visit San Francisco, NYC, Paris, even Chicago or Seattle, and then come back and look for the substantial differences between KC and St. Louis." Stop and look at how both cities fall short of whatever cities the really aspire to emulate. Every city, even the best, falls short of some aspirant. Being willing to drop the combative, prejudicial side of civic pride long enough to recognize where you could improve can effect way more positive change, which is what I can't help but wish for both of these cities I've called home.

....was kinda funny though. Coming from a pale as mayonnaise Kc born girl living in stl.

Obviously, the one thing neither city lacks are LITERALISTS. 

Equally as funny as this article, is the collective Kansas City inferiority complex that has come to life in these comments.

In the quote from Mel Brooks' Blazzin' Saddles, "Ya'll sound like a bunch of Kansas City faggots!"

Aw come on rft! Don't sink to that guy's level.... We're both great cities, work together!

Nice to see that no one on the RFT staff was willing to put their name on this piece of garbage. Great job lowering yourself to the standards of one "journalist" on the Kansas City Star. The RFT does not speak for St. Louis. Great way to help build the gap between the two cities.

Nice to see that no one on the RFT staff was willing to put their name on this piece of garbage. Great job lowering yourself to the standards of one "journalist" on the Kansas City Star. The RFT does not speak for St. Louis. Great way to help build the gap between the two cities.

Both great cities loss because they're located in the backwards state of Missouri.

RFT had another chance to deliver an informative piece on why KC and STL are great Midwest cities, and decided to serve up some piece of crap instead. Again, it's a good thing you don't charge people to read this.

The quality of writing on the RFT has taken a substantial hit lately. Are you recruiting from Blogger?

That's because most major cities immediate "suburbs" count as part of that city's statistics.