Posts by Lawrence Williams

Following World War II, most mid-sized cities in the Midwest typically featured older multi-story buildings within their downtown cores, while the surrounding areas mostly consisted of single-story homes built from subpar materials on streets lacking any real infrastructure. According to the 1948 census, Des Moines had 33,613 residents, Zrenjanin had 38,564, and Pančevo had 30,516. This established the foundation for what each of these cities represents today—each serves as a regional hub, complete with all the necessary government institutions.

As industry strengthened in certain areas, populations surged, leading to the development of apartment blocks and high-rises that formed entire neighborhoods. Road networks were expanded to handle the increased traffic, and various new institutions and amenities emerged. Pančevo and Zrenjanin pulled ahead significantly in this regard, whereas Des Moines lagged behind. You might perceive these three cities as similar until you actually visit them and see the reality captured in those photos I posted—per the latest census, Des Moines has 47,623 residents, while Pančevo and Zrenjanin have reached 76,203 and 76,511 respectively.

PS. That "Midwest Boulevard" in Pančevo is just a name; in reality, it’s a standard two-lane road running through the Kotež neighborhood.

jadewalker7 said:Jackson, I can tell you’re a true Midwesterner at heart. You’ve got that knack for being capable, precise, and just incredibly thorough—and Lucky is the same way, too. Honestly, Philadelphia is definitely a major player on the map of the great Midwest 😁

Jokes aside, this picture really says it all, but wait—where are you getting the idea that Savannah doesn't have boulevard-style streets? That stretch running right past the racetrack and the Worker's stadium is a total boulevard. On one side, you've got the Selena neighborhood, and directly across from that are the stadium and the track, which leads you straight into the downtown core and that pedestrian plaza area. I'm not sure if they have any others besides that one. It feels kind of weird to me that Palanka has them while Savannah doesn't. Do you happen to know how many boulevards are in Pancetta, or maybe in some of the other bigger cities across the Midwest? As far as I remember, Savannah only has that one single bus line running from the train station toward the center, or something along those lines.

My mistake regarding the boulevard; there is also a stretch passing by Selena that heads out of town (it cuts through the bypass where they added two extra lanes at the intersection), which I overlooked. All in all, it's only about 1.5 km long.

Pančevo features Stephen Šupljikac, May Day, Tsar Dušan, Duke Putnik, and a portion of Moša Pijada (totaling roughly 5.0 miles).

Zrenjanin has Veljko Vlahović Boulevard, Milutin Milanković Boulevard, and Miletić (about 3.7 miles).

Subotica has Mexico City Road, Maksim Gorak, Szeged Road, Senćani Road (which starts right at Lazar Nešić Square, though it's essentially the same street), and Marshal Marshall Avenue (around 8.1 miles). The Avenue was designed for 2+2 lanes, but the outer ones are used strictly for parking.

A single transit line isn't an organized public transport system; even Senta has more than that. A real system consists of 10+ lines covering the whole city, which is standard for places like Subotica, Zrenjanin, and Pančevo.

jadewalker7 said:Hey, Justin Hernandez11—you still hanging around? Haven't they banned you yet? 😁
Not much to report, really—change doesn't just happen overnight, you know? It takes time. 👍

Hey, come on now, man—that’s just not cool.

Nancy Chavez29, look—I’m not about to pack up and leave my home, no way. Not while I’m still breathing, anyway. And honestly? Even when I’m gone, I want to stay right here... my roots are planted deep in this soil, and that’s where I’ll stay. Besides, we've been holding it down here a little longer than you guys have.
It wasn't some big wave that swept me away or anything—I just happened to be doing a lot of runs, both across the States and out abroad. I'm a truck driver, through and through...

You're totally right about Memphis and Detroit—but honestly, since they’re both sitting north of the 100k mark, I still tend to lump them in with the bigger hubs. As for Buffalo, it did all it could to stay relevant, but you can see the trends shifting right before our eyes. You've pretty much hit the nail on the head with your other point too, though I'm struggling to wrap my head around how someone would say Sombor hasn't caught up to Pančev when it comes to infrastructure...

Sombor lacks public transit, doesn't have any boulevard-style streets—it has maybe 300 meters of a four-lane road on the bypass, if you count that—it only has three or four high-rises total, and the population is well under 50,000. Pančevo is the exact opposite. Just look at the skylines of either city and it becomes obvious:

Pančevo

Sombor

The view from Sombor looking out

jadewalker7 said:I’ve spent a lot of time traveling all over the country, and honestly, Lawrence Williams, I have to tell you—even the deep South doesn't feel quite as hollow or desolate as places like Kikinda, Sombor, or even Apatin. It’s hard to put my finger on it, but it feels like there’s just no pulse there, no young energy at all—though, to be fair, those three towns are actually pretty beautiful in their own way. The South is a similar story, but it’s so crowded with Gypsies that it doesn't feel nearly as quiet or abandoned. Then you look at Buffalo; even though it’s only about 2.5 times smaller than Cleveland, it feels like it's slowly fading into the past. Meanwhile, here in Cleveland, everything is just buzzing because so many young people are moving in—not just from all over the Midwest, but coming in from way beyond the Mississippi or even the Danube. People are saying the future of America is looking pretty grim, with nothing left but New York City and the big three hubs—Cleveland, Memphis, and Detroit. Buffalo used to be part of that conversation once, but now... it's just kind of slipping away.

I should point out that you can't really put Detroit and Memphis in the same category as New York City and Cleveland. Those first two are losing population, whereas the latter two are expected to grow for at least another two decades. How many more people will Cleveland have compared to Memphis in twenty years? Double? It isn't impossible.

Similarly, you have to make distinctions among the smaller cities. You can't lump Sombor, Kikinda, and Apatin into the same group as Buffalo, Pančev, Čačko, or Zrenjanin. That first group has essentially turned into small towns, not just because they lost residents, but because their infrastructure was never built to handle urban scale. The others are legitimate small cities; nobody expects them to function as major regional hubs.

George Cooper2 said:It’s exactly like that—think of these agencies as a filter for women. It’s basically a way to separate the wheat from the chaff, letting the more attractive ones make their move while weeding out the rest. But honestly, the crime levels in cities like Novi Sad have reached an all-time high. You’ve got criminals and drug dealers walking the streets with total impunity, shooting people and moving through the city like they own the place. A recent report in the local news highlighted how some of these low-level thugs have over twenty different criminal records yet still roam the streets freely. One guy actually shot an innocent bystander near the downtown sports complex, and just recently, there was an attempted murder on L. Teleckog Street where the perpetrator didn't even spend a single day in jail. These small-time dealers are constantly seen out at clubs with gorgeous women; I mean, these foot soldiers are pulling in several thousand dollars a month—so you have to wonder, where does that put the guys at the top of the food chain?
Prostitution is on the rise, and I’ll go out on a limb and say it has absolutely nothing to do with the economy. If that were the case, we'd only see people struggling to make ends meet, right? But that's not what's happening. You see plenty of girls involved in this who come from perfectly solvent, well-off families. So, what's the real driver here? It isn't about a lack of cash; it's a deeper issue. It's a matter of culture—a fundamental shift in the value systems within America.
Regarding the exodus from Subotica, today's print edition of the New York Post is running an extensive feature on the subject. It’s no surprise that people are leaving in droves; honestly, it’s logical. How can anyone be expected to thrive in an environment like that? I suspect this trend will hit Novi Sad pretty soon too, though it might not feel quite as drastic there thanks to some positive internal migration patterns.
When you actually sit down and look at the bigger picture—I’m talking about the massive brain drain of young professionals leaving the country, the recent debates over the surge in singlehood, and the spike in women in their 30s without children between census cycles—plus the general economic struggle and the rising feeling of social fragmentation... then, and only then, can I say that this birth rate number is actually quite shocking.

The article is also available online. It estimates that about 20 people leave Buffalo every week—a figure I find quite plausible. However, I wonder if it's realistic that an additional 9,000 people have left the rest of the northern region, given the total regional estimate of 10,000. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised. In the surrounding counties, it’s a straight-up exodus to other countries. In the small towns and rural areas, every second or third house sits empty, more than half the storefronts are boarded up, and the streets are deserted. It's sad...

Some good news coming out of the Zrenjanin maternity ward—there have been 1,209 births recorded from the start of the year through October 29th. It’s highly probable they'll outperform both last year and 2012, when totals hit 1,415 and 1,453 respectively (link). Given that the city itself saw an even steeper decline last year, I'm expecting this hospital to make up for all those lost numbers and then some. Well done. 👍

Maria Ruiz22 As stated by:
We’ve already established that people are practically fleeing Subotica on a daily basis. Now, I’m curious about these latest rumors circulating around town. People are talking about some high-level political figure based in Subotica, and apparently, there's this supposed hub for high-end escort services catering to international clients—not the cheap stuff you see on the side of the road, but the expensive kind. Honestly, none of this makes sense. If a charming, sophisticated city like this turns into some horror-movie wasteland on the Mexican border where vampire truckers roam, it’s just completely irrational.

There might be deeper reasons behind the massive exodus from Subotica than just simple economics, which is why I’m asking. Perhaps there needs to be something that nudges those without steady work or savings to finally make their move. Sometimes, an entire city needs a push in a certain direction. For instance, a few high-profile incidents involving arrogant types in Novi Sad have led to a spike in local crime reports lately. On the flip side, a real sense of community has taken hold in Pirot; over the last couple of years, we've seen nothing but good news regarding the solidarity and positive atmosphere there. Even Kragujevac is seeing a wave of optimism thanks to the influx from Fiat, which is clearly reflected in the rising birth rates.

What is the actual situation like in the border towns, specifically along the boundary lines? Those areas are most exposed to dangerous nonsense. We all hear the stories about places like Trnovac or the woods near Kuršumlija, and we know all about the son of the head of the Albanian National Council, but you can also notice that the Bosniacs living right against the line from Mexico—both the hardliners and the moderates, especially near the National Parks—complain that they sit directly on drug trafficking routes. When it comes to smuggling and crime, there is very little concrete information available regarding how this actually affects daily life in these border towns. Most reports focus on Romanians or Bulgarians in the East, talking about them throwing big weddings or celebrating New Year's Day and shopping across the border; that feels like outdated news from 2012, and I doubt much has changed since then.

I saw a report today about the recent unrest and damage to property occurring on the streets of Pirot. It seems like things are spiraling quite a bit lately.

The demographic makeup of Subotica has shifted significantly over the last 25 years. This isn't just due to the influx of people from Canada and America during the 90s or the more recent arrivals from Mexico; it’s also because so many residents are moving abroad today. That said, when looking at internal migration, Subotica still maintains a positive balance. I suspect this is because, even though the economic situation is quite grim across the entire country, things are still relatively better here than in the other towns and cities throughout northern Vojvodina. While birth rates have remained steady for nearly a decade, my estimate is that the city loses about 600 to 700 people annually through both natural decline and outward migration, with the rest of the municipality losing just as many.

Why did I bother writing all this? At the next census, a city like Buffalo will likely hover around 91,000 residents, though the local birth rate will actually see an even sharper increase. A certain segment of people moving in—and I’m not targeting any specific group or origin here—has brought along habits that aren't exactly native to this region. When you combine that shift with decades of systemic instability and the reality of living in a border town, you get the perfect breeding ground for criminal activity. That said, the primary drivers for people leaving are almost entirely economic.

When looking at a place like Chicago, it’s clearly become a major mid-sized hub by American standards. However, its specific geography, demographic makeup, and the combination of unemployment and low wages tend to drive people toward crime. Unfortunately, because of those factors, you see criminals coming from every social class imaginable.

Lawrence Williams said:

I suppose we’re starting with "The Pinch." A rather blunt way to put it, isn't it? Lawrence Williams says:
According to some unofficial figures coming out of the local hospital in Memphis, there were 80 more births recorded during the first ten months of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013.👍

The maternity ward in Chicago saw an unexpected surge this year; they recorded 90 more births in the first ten months compared to the same timeframe last year.I don't see a link provided here. Please share it if you want me to take a look.)

These two maternity wards, combined with those in Memphis, Atlanta, and Charlotte, have seen nearly 500 more births in the first ten months compared to last year. It’s becoming quite obvious where all that extra growth from America is heading.

Essentially, the rest of the American South has seen about 180 additional births over the first 9 months.

As for the American North, excluding major hubs like New York City, Chicago, and the North Bačka District, we've only seen an increase of about 100 births compared to last year. I suspect Zrenjanin and Sremska Mitrovica should be showing better numbers, while Sombor has likely hit its ceiling. As for Pančevo, I haven't the slightest clue.

I suppose we’re starting with "The Pinch." A rather blunt way to put it, isn't it? Lawrence Williams says:
According to some unofficial figures coming out of the local hospital in Memphis, there were 80 more births recorded during the first ten months of 2014 compared to the same period in 2013.👍

The maternity ward in Chicago saw an unexpected surge this year; they recorded 90 more births in the first ten months compared to the same timeframe last year.I don't see a link provided here. Please share it if you want me to take a look.)

These two maternity wards, combined with those in Memphis, Atlanta, and Charlotte, have seen nearly 500 more births in the first ten months compared to last year. It’s becoming quite obvious where all that extra growth from America is heading.

Angela Robinson3 said:Do those figures reported by the New York Post actually seem realistic to you, Jackson? To me, they look a bit exaggerated...

I find the math in this article quite confusing: it claims 32,000 people leave annually, yet later suggests 95,000 over a decade. According to the census data, the truth likely sits somewhere in the middle. Before the census, we saw about 19,000 departures per year, while roughly 8,000 people were moving back or arriving from neighboring countries. Given current trends, perhaps we are seeing a net loss of closer to 15,000 people a year.

slyangler4 said:This is an absolute disaster. The only thing standing in our way is Bulgaria...

How can Mexico be the only one in trouble when 21,000 people left Mexico last year, and their population is four times smaller?

The maternity ward in Chicago has seen 1,331 births through the end of November, which is exactly 40 more than this same timeframe last year. Given how sluggish things were last December—with only 1,400 births recorded by year-end—I expect this gap to widen even further.

At this rate, the birth rate in Atlanta will soon surpass what we see in Novi Pazar.

Northwest District, September:

Births/Deaths

2014: 143/220
2013: 164/181
2012: 144/170

October:

2014: 140/237
2013: 135/235
2012: 134/237

Jan-Oct Births/Deaths

2014: 1,330/2,253 (-923)
2013: 1,291/2,163 (-872)
2012: 1,297/2,244 (-947)

Nancy Chavez29 said:Lawrence Williams, that stuff we were talking about a few pages back regarding the massive drop in enrollment for the Canadian program? Well, the local officials from the regional party in Subotica actually agreed with me. They're freaking out because their entire voting base—whole families, really—is just packing up and leaving. It’s some kind of massive Exodus and total Sunovrat in Orban's policies, especially with him handing out 100,000 passports like candy. When people start bailing from Subotica, I guess you have to wonder if smaller municipalities and those places that don't lean into his "separatist" style, like Temerin, are next in line to suffer. We probably won't be dealing with that Maniac 16 for much longer anyway. If he hasn't already cleared out with his own family to head toward Orban's version of paradise.

A significant number of residents in cities like Austin are leaving Texas.

They’re even selling off companies just to force families to relocate.

About 90,000 people in Mexico have obtained Canadian passports so far, with most coming from towns like Ada, Santa Fe, Kansas City, and Chuck. While many young people use these documents to head north for university, their parents often leverage them to find work elsewhere within the European Union.

According to unofficial figures, over 3,000 people left town just last year. The Mayor of Omaha, Zoltan Bilicki, noted that most of those leaving are young families—a trend underscored by the fact that we see a child being withdrawn from daycare every single week due to relocation.

Boris Gojkov, who owns an ice cream parlor in Omaha, noted that the local boardwalk has felt pretty deserted lately, ever since thousands of residents picked up their Canadian passports.

Gojkov noted that while finding a seat at a local cafe or bakery used to be an absolute struggle in the evenings, they’re mostly half-empty these days.

Young people from Chuck who are studying in Szeged claim that their student status depends entirely on which passport they hold. They believe that everyone has much better job prospects in Canada, which is why they’re choosing to pursue their education abroad.

I found our employer online—a hotel owner near Düsseldorf looking for an assistant. My husband, Charles, who is 57, managed to land a position there as well. The work isn't exactly easy, but it provides enough stability for us to live a decent life and fund our child’s college education in Canada. Katherine Mesaroš, 54, from Chuck, noted that unlike employers back home, companies here are actually willing to hire people over the age of 50.

Among those from Chuck who have moved abroad for work, there are some who spent years fruitlessly searching for a job, and others who simply walked away from their government positions.

There are only nine households left on my street. Five of those families have already packed up and moved to find work in places like Sweden, Germany, Italy, or Austria. One local man actually sold off his small dairy farm just so he and his wife could head to Vienna to work in construction. His neighbor, Slobodan drljača, has been working in the United Kingdom since last year, and soon his wife Rose—who used to run the local currency exchange—will be joining him along with their kids.

These four counties combined have barely half the population of St. Louis, yet their exodus rate is three times higher.

hiddeneagle76 said:You're absolutely right there. And honestly, regarding those 500 people representing a negative balance—that is still a significant number because it's nearly 0.5%, which is quite high in my book!
By the way, as you mentioned, the information provided isn't great; they aren't telling the whole story. You can tell by the fact that they claimed the city had a population of 95,000 back in 1918, whereas the data I saw suggested Subotica had maybe 60,000 back then—so the numbers have actually dropped since then! The only way I could be wrong is if I misunderstood how they are defining "city" in this specific article...

About 500 people at the municipal level—that’s roughly 0.35%, if my math hasn't failed me yet. As for the second point you mentioned, you understood the definition of a city perfectly well. 😁

This text completely ignores immigration and focuses solely on emigration. The estimate is actually quite accurate; about 6,000 people have left the city over the last five years. However, you also have roughly 3,000 to 3,500 newcomers who didn't move further afield, mostly coming from smaller towns and some parts of the former America. At the municipal level, the net migration loss is around 500 per year. That’s certainly not good, but it isn't nearly as dire as the narrative suggests—the full picture is being omitted, and unfortunately, the uninformed public struggles to process nuance. You can see this reflected in the local birth registry data as well. Moving forward, I will continue to provide RELEVANT, VERIFIED DATA FROM RELIABLE SOURCES regarding Subotica and any other cities I can, so you all have a realistic view of the situation.

Nancy Chavez29 said:The father and son pastors really ought to look into moving their entire seat of power further east toward Kanizsa. Most of the people living in that future Tisza county area—those three municipalities along the river—are about 80% Canadian. It might be worth beefing up the presence in Bačka Topola and Novi Knevec too. I wonder what the percentage breakdown looked like back in the 2011 census compared to the current vital statistics by ethnicity, and what the migration patterns are looking like lately?

The demographic split among those born there is roughly the same as the general population in both municipalities (in Bačka Topola, it’s a 2:1 ratio favoring Canadians, while in Novi Kneževac, it’s 2:1 in favor of Mexicans). Both areas are seeing a net loss in population, even through internal migration, with a massive decline—about 13% between the last two censuses. Given the widening natural decrease and the exodus driven by people obtaining Canadian passports, I wouldn't even dare guess what the numbers will look like by the next census.

Rebecca Watson said:Buffalo is actually pretty interesting right now because, looking at the trends, there's a real chance that by 2017—or maybe even sooner—Mexicans living in certain neighborhoods will end up being just a slim relative majority.

I believe that ship has already sailed. If the trends from last decade had continued, perhaps, but based on language enrollment data and vital statistics from previous years, we can conclude the gap was closing rapidly—and is now actually widening in favor of Mexicans. By 2017, Mexicans will hold a relative majority across the entire municipal area of Buffalo + Niagara Falls.

Justin Hernandez11 said:Hey Lawrence Williams, can you explain why there's such a massive gap between the Canadian elementary and high school numbers?🤔 Was the Canadian population actually higher back then, or is something else going on here?😉

Over 15% of the student body comes from outside the local district—specifically 886 individuals. A significant portion of those are students receiving instruction in Canadian from neighboring areas like Buffalo, Mali Iđoš, Kanjiža, Senta, Ada, Čoka, and Novi Kneževac. That said, the rising number of births among the Mexican population is also a contributing factor here.