L.A. is the most diverse city in the U.S. "Sez who?" asks this skeptical NYCer.

[Beware_of_Doug]

@even sven

This “debate” is bordering on ridiculous.

I agree. But America is about competing and winning. New York is especially about winning – being the best, the most civilized, the most cosmopolitan. The world NEEDS New York – as much as New York needs the world. Can any other city anywhere say that?

[Kyla]

@Beware of Doug

The world NEEDS New York – as much as New York needs the world. Can any other city anywhere say that?

Lord, and New Yorkers wonder why everyone else finds them so insufferable.

[mhendo]

@even sven

This “debate” is bordering on ridiculous.

Agreed.

It’s turned into a rather stupid pissing contest.

[Fish]

@Beware of Doug

I agree. But America is about competing and winning. New York is especially about winning – being the best, the most civilized, the most cosmopolitan.

The Straight Dope is about objectively finding the truth, the Right Answer, What Really Happened, how it works, why the world is what it is, even if we don’t like the answer. Winning has nothing to do with it. Put the ego away, please.

[Gangster_Octopus]

I don’t know the answer to the OP, because there probably isn’t just “one”. But in my small workgroup (about 20 people…this is an LA based company) we have represented: US, Ukraine, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Serbia, Croatia, Burundi, Iran, China and Armenia.

[Beware_of_Doug]

@Fish

The Straight Dope is about objectively finding the truth, the Right Answer, What Really Happened, how it works, why the world is what it is, even if we don’t like the answer. Winning has nothing to do with it. Put the ego away, please.

Not my ego. (I’m a midwesterner by temperament who lives near, but not in, NYC.) I was whooshing – seriously, in a way, but whooshing. Trying to test the water to see if any NYers would agree with me, and if so, how far they’d agree. Apologies if it rubbed anyone the wrong way.

[RickJay]

@Gangster Octopus

I don’t know the answer to the OP, because there probably isn’t just “one”. But in my small workgroup (about 20 people…this is an LA based company) we have represented: US, Ukraine, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Serbia, Croatia, Burundi, Iran, China and Armenia.

That would be hardly remarkable in most companies in Toronto.

Really, most of the really big New World cities can make this claim.

[mhendo]

@RickJay

That would be hardly remarkable in most companies in Toronto.

Really, most of the really big New World cities can make this claim.

True enough. In my experience, plenty of folks living in Sydney, Melbourne, or Vancouver could make similar claims.

[Doobieous]

@Spartydog

The methodology of the survey sounds rather dubious. As opposed to NYC can LA point to DISTINCLY Hassidic, Albanian, Arab, Russian, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Jamacian, Haitian, Irish, Italian, Slavic, Chinese, German, Korean, Somalian, Columbian, etc., etc, neighborhoods?

Diversity isn’t just saying that we have a bunch of Hispanics among us.

How does number of ethnic neighborhoods have anything to do with how diverse a city is? Where are the numbers?

My city doesn’t have ethnic neighborhoods, but off the top of my head I can count decent numbers of Italian, Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian, Turkish, Greek, Filipino, Korean, Guamanian, Thai, Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, German, Euro-mutts, Black, Jewish, Fijian, Fijian Indian, Southern Indian, Samoan, Hawaiian, Tongan, and Japanese.

At one time, my city was ranked as the 7th most diverse city in the US. Currently, if you believe city-data.com, we’re number 84, NYC is ranked 52, and these are cities with 5,000 or more people. We’re only at 25,000 people.