sew

Good cafes, restaurants, shops and parks and is more gay friendly than most. But it's slummy. I've had to call the police several times due to crime here, including listening to a drug collecter screaming disturbingly for ages threatening to bash this guy and his children because he didn't give him the drug money. Lots of graffitti (and whilst there are some good ones, mostly theyre just tags), the constant smell of weed (and the expectation that everyone else is supposed to be fine with your second hand weed because that's what 'cool' people do and all), i've seen dodge people screaming or harrassing others for no reason (not sure if drugs or mental health issues), my friend's car got keyed after parking for an hour because it was the nicest car parked there. Felt more dodge than other areas I've been in.

People say it has a welcoming culture (and it probably is better than most areas for gays and maybe blacks) but I found it overall quite hostile unless you are like everyone else and have the exact same opinions as them. The number of aggro, entitled and self-righteous hard-left hypocrits is astounding (and I'm someone who actually used to be left-wing... that was Until I lived here...). Don't believe me - just take a walk and have a look at most of the posters around the whole suburb. Lets act like we are enlightened and care about humanity but really its just ourselves because we hate everyone else we don't know (ironically). Hate all bankers, hate the rich, hate the government, hate the police, hate anyone whose worked hard to make a living, basically hate everyone that's not a selfish druggo dirtbag like us, promote assault against all the people we hate, and then bask in our self-declared 'alternative intellectualism'. All aboard the hate bandwagon, take your pithforks and tin-foil hats on your way in. Don't want to work (cos work is supporting evil capitalists), don't want to pay rent (cos landlords are 'arseholes' and 'squatters rights!' #Firstpump), and then consider ourselves 'slaves' (who need to spread anarchy). While we are at it, lets abolish prisons, abolish surveillance cameras, abolish governments and only then we'll live in some kind of fantasy Utopia where everything will sort itself out *Fistpump again!*. Seriously, no exaggeration, I've seen all of those ... Some people have never had a real problem...or travelled anywhere to see what a real problem actually looks like...or worked in the real world....or even lived a day without weed, it seems.... I've literally heard people here complaining of how awfully hard it is to pay rent this week but are going to go out tomorrow and get trashed anyway, cos Yolo. Not everyone is like this, of course, but this is more common here than anywhere else I've been. It gets old quickly (like one week old). If you're popping by its fine but found it overall a negative place to live in, and found myself much more dissatisfied with life being surrounded by this nutty hostility and anti-ambition culture.

This is a good place to visit for food, coffee, shops (if they are open) or to walk along some of the paid grafitti areas, but def would not recommend living here or bringing up a family for most people (unless you are far-left). Obviously there are different pockets, but overall it was the most negative slum I've been in and I'm so glad to be out of it - anywhere else really.

Now look at the angry Newtowners replying below this - gotta have their exact opinion or else Outrage :)