I’ve lived in Seattle my whole life, but I know that people like to make fun of New Jersey. Examples:
“You sound like a real attractive guy…you belong in New Jersey!”
This is just one way that people make fun of New Jersey.
So why do people make fun of New Jersey?
I think it’s just a “make fun of the neighboring state” thing, and New Jersey is next to New York and Philadelphia, two very large urban centers. so there’s more “noise.”
Pick any two states bordering each other, and I bet you can find similar sentiments, mostly meant good-naturedly. I’m from Philly, and I like Jersey.
It’s New York City’s Tacoma.
It’s also New Jersey’s Seattle.
I resemble that statement.
racer72, Tacoma born and raised.
I was wondering the same thing.
I’m nearly certain we’re the most self-hating state.
All the industrial and run down sites near NYC I’d guess, the stuff you see if you take the train into Gotham or the Turnpike or such. But there’s plenty of natural beauty to be found in both the north and south of the state.
Check out Jersey Shore* .* It pretty much does for NJ what the Beverly Hillbillies did for the South.
Guidos.
The thing is people live in New Jersey who can’t afford to live in NYC or Philly.
Of course this is untrue, but it’s fun for a joke.
Actually places in New Jersey and other places like Brooklyn Heights are great places to live to get an excellent view of the NYC skyline. Obviously you can’t see Manhattan if you’re in the midst of it.
I think it’s part of the trend for people to see urban as sophisticated and suburbs as well, for lack of a better word, “suburban”
Except the Beverly Hillbillies were actors.
What are they making fun of?
Everything.
(Except Kevin Smith. He’s the exception, not the rule.)
I’m thinking it goes back to the self hating thing. When you combine it with the being picked on by the neighbors, it sounds like everyone hates Jersey. I mean, in my state, most people are proud of it. And they wouldn’t join an MTV show that makes us look like a bunch of guidos, spray-tan addicts, and chicks who can’t do their hair without 3 inches of bump.
In my real life experience not many people other than New Yorkers really “make fun” of New Jersey. New Jersey is noted (by New Yorkers) for having rough tastes and an oafish self regard they they feel is unwarranted.
Many people outside of New Jersey do tend to think that being from New Jersey means you are probably criminally connected, but this is not the butt of “jokes”. People who believe this tend to be quite serious in treating NJ residents as dangerous elements to be avoided if possible.
They’ve got more than their share of irritable hotheads. Because of the insane population density.
Political corruption, mobsters and the gut-wrenching stench of the northeastern industrial corridor head the list.
Also, they talk funny. And lots of them root for either the Yankees or Phillies.
I grew up in New Jersey.
The problem with growing up in New Jersey is (or was, when I grew up there) that everything you relate to is/was in another state. Your whole identity was basically an offset from another place.
You rooted for either a New York or a Philadelphia sports team. (I grew up before “New York” teams technically played in stadiums that resided in New Jersey.)
Your TV stations originated either either in New York or Philadelphia. (I grew up before cable.)
When folks from far away asked where you lived, you gave directions from a city that was in another state. (I told them I lived “about fifteen miles east of Easton, Pennsylvania”.)
Born and raised in northern NJ. A lot of what I’ve heard over the years is due to a few truths. There are some hideously ugly industrial corridors (think futuristic wasteland landscapes with flames leaping into the sky from massive refineries and you’d be close) that happen to also be right near major thoroughfares. The trip by car from Newark Airport into NYC is a good example. So many visitors get just a brief glimpse of NJ, and this is what they see.
The stereotypical guido/guidette with the Joisey accent (see Jersey Shore) most definitely exists and for the most part either relishes their status or doesn’t give a shit. Attitude is a big part of being from NJ. It was the landing pad for many immigrants with little money who had to be tough to survive. That instinct has drifted down through the years.
The suburbs of NYC and Philly are very densely populated. The highways are jam-packed with people and there are 2 major roads that run North-South (Garden State Parkway and NJ Turnpike,) so when people hear you’re from NJ the joke has been “Oh yeah? What exit?” (See our most famous NJ Doper for clarification…)
So there’s a lot to pick on. But there’s also a lot of great people, great history and beautiful areas.
You could even say they’re jammed with broken heroes.
Haven’t we had a zillion threads on this already?
Well, sure. Everybody here knows a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy.
But the simple fact of the matter is that the Mafia is a lot less interested in rubbing people out than they are in charging outrageous rates for garbage pickup.
Did anyone know there is a town in Pennsylvania called Jersey Shore?