Phenomenon of making an outside of Providence recommendation when a poster asks for Providence info

Submitted by ryanfingawesome t3_10yvtn1 in providence

what is with some of the people that post in here that chime in with their unhelpful information? it happens nearly every day, twice so far this morning. someone comes in here asking “hey where can i do X in providence?” and a handful of comments will be like “you should go to this place in warwick/cranston/east greenwich/etc”. if someone lives in the city and wants to have something done in the city, why would you send them elsewhere?

edit (maybe half an hour after the original post): a lot of comments are saying that because something is a short drive from providence it is a valid suggestion, which presupposes that the person asking for advice has a car or a means to get outside the city. if this is supposed to be a community for the city, it should be a reasonable expectation that you can get advice that is specific to the city.

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lestermagnum t1_j7zw1pz wrote

Because Providence is an incredibly small city. The person posting might not know that Cranston and Warwick and even parts of Massachusetts are only a 10 minutes drive away. In a major city, a 10 minute drive would still keep you within the city limits.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j7zxmpt wrote

that all presupposes that the person asking for advice has a car though. if they live in a city that’s not necessarily the case, so giving someone options outside the city would be unhelpful.

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MarlKarx-1818 t1_j7zy7y1 wrote

RIPTA goes all over the state. Taking a bus from Elmhurst to Silver Lake for example takes longer than going to Cranston or Johnston

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Throwaway1231200001 t1_j804f5n wrote

Nah dag, the Bus lines stop immediately at the Providence border. I, for one, have absolutely never taken a bus off of Reservoir in Cranston and made it into Providence /s

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RandomChurn t1_j83mo04 wrote

>Nah dag, the Bus lines stop immediately at the Providence border.

Haha, you know what do exactly that though? Those rental e-scooters! A friend spotted a flock of them parked right on the edge of Cranston, on the Prov side 😆

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lestermagnum t1_j7zy4zb wrote

It’s Reddit. Half the comments aren’t going to be helpful anyway.

And like someone else said, if an earnest piece of advice doesn’t work for the person asking, they can just ignore it. But maybe the one comment will be helpful to several other people reading the post.

“wow, I need a ring cleaned too, and I live in Warwick! This is great advice”

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j7zyq3b wrote

so because the expectation is that half of the comments aren’t going to helpful we shouldn’t strive to do better? 🆒

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j804c9l wrote

Let's say you want a good or service that just isn't available in Providence, but there's a couple of options within 10-15 miles in Cranston, Warwick, Johnston, Attleboro, and Seekonk.

Would you prefer

  • Nobody answers or a bunch of "I don't knows"
  • Being told you can't get that good or service
  • Being told the options that do exist, even though they're a little further away
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GotenRocko t1_j813v4p wrote

10-15 miles even is an exaggeration for many of the surrounding towns. The airport is less than 10 miles from almost every part of providence.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j804xvu wrote

well then you would specify that in your post wouldn’t you? and it seems as though this is not ever the case, it’s just commenters leaving their preference rather than answering the question.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j80fjcr wrote

I asked a pretty direct question. Which option would you prefer?

Any "recommendations" post is asking people their preference. For fuck's sake, that's what a recommendation is

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j80gjip wrote

i’ve been pretty direct this entire time that i’m speaking plainly about posts asking specifically for providence recommendations. either you’re being intentionally obtuse or you truly don’t understand my meaning. so of your options, i would prefer the second then. if i were asking for something specifically in the city and the good or service was unavailable here i would want to be told that, because it would be the correct information.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j80jj6o wrote

The entire premise of this thread is intentionally obtuse so it's pretty fucking laughable. Look at the response from every person that isn't you. Not the majority of people. Every. Single. Person.

Multiple people have made the same points and you've been given a handful of reasons why those recommendations are not "unhelpful" at all.

Reddit Karma is a little silly but when every followup effort you've made is getting multiple downvotes and people pushing back get the opposite, it's not you doing a poor job explaining yourself. You just made a bad point and nobody agrees with you.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j80jzrp wrote

then why are you continuing to belabor your point, especially when i do an adequate job of responding to your questions? if i am being clear then why are you asking me follow up questions when you feel as though i haven’t addressed your points? i couldn’t care any less about the downvotes, internet points are not my intention of being on this board.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j80np4g wrote

I don't think you've really addressed anyone's points. You've just sidestepped them or ignored them. It's weird because you're caping for....nobody?

Anyone who asks where to buy widgets in Providence and gets told "Oh, try Widgets, Widgets, Widgets on Bald Hill Road" can say "Thanks, but I don't have a car so that might be a little tricky for me. Is there anywhere much closer?" then someone old can chime in how there used to be a Widgets R Us downtown but it closed down when the landlord sold the building and now it's luxury condos or some shit.

The net result is helpful. People know where things are and where they aren't. The answer either is or isn't useful to the original poster and the people who read it.

Nobody is harmed except for the owner of Widgets R Us but they closed down in 1996, so he's probably dead by now.

And the only person upset by all of this is you.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j800xpo wrote

So people who use bikes, rideshares and public transportation can't get outside the city? Damn, score one for car owners, I guess. That's great news for the 80% of the households in Providence that own a car.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j803mb8 wrote

ah yea, all those safe bike lanes out to Cranston.

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Proclaimer23 t1_j84omro wrote

Washington Secondary trail is one of the safest bike paths in the state and cuts right through Cranston

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WickedDog310 t1_j844bf3 wrote

Yeah that safe bike path that goes through East Providence/Barrington/Warren/Bristol. The only people who are trapped in Providence are those who choose to be. RIPTA isn't great, but it's not non-existent.

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GotenRocko t1_j8138ti wrote

if they live in this city that doesn't mean they are far from a neighboring city. the neighboring in many cases would be closer than another random neighborhood in providence.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j7zxiti wrote

Someone recommending a place that's maybe 10 minutes outside of the city IS helpful. information

If someone really only wants an answer that falls within the incredibly small city limits, they're more than welcome to just clarify that in the first place.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j7zxuw1 wrote

plenty of posts say “in providence” plainly in their post heading and people ignore it.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j800c0a wrote

You know that's not a magic forcefield at the city limits, right? Almost nobody is stuck here.

Calling more suggestions unhelpful is idiotic. People are setting a radius. More suggestions keeps posts relevant and increases the likelihood of other suggestions.

If you're looking for a specific good or service, more options is better than less especially when the best options might not be the closest one.

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WickedDog310 t1_j8427c5 wrote

I also want to note that I frequently search the sub for recommendations when I'm looking for stuff, and I hope others are to so the same questions aren't being asked a million times, so just because the original poster may have a magnetic boundary that keeps them directly in Providence, doesn't mean that all users do. This is a place for Providence discussions, it's not a Providence exclusivity club.

I will always die on the hill defending Providence in r/Rhodesland against the idiots who go off about Providence being unsafe etc. But on the flip side, Providence is not the end all and be all of our state. Sometimes other near by towns and cities have great things too.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j800mjv wrote

to say that almost nobody is stuck here is erasure of a great number of this city’s residents without reliable transportation.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j801gjk wrote

I don't think it's some undue burden for the person asking strangers to help them to specify some limitations if they want.

Shitting on people who are earnestly offering help to strangers is stupid. This post is stupid.

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GotenRocko t1_j812uhj wrote

without reliable transportation something in Elmhurst is not more accessible to someone in Washington Park than something in Cranston just because its in Providence. Its a small state something in a neighboring town might in fact be more accessible to many people without cars. If anyone really has the inability to travel far they will likely state the neighborhood rather than the city in their post.

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WickedDog310 t1_j842p7a wrote

Exactly depending on which bus line they live on, getting to Mt. Pleasant might be more difficult than Pawtucket. And honestly if someone's got such specific circumstances, they'll normally put that in the post so recommendations can take that into account. There's no erasure here, this sounds like someone's butt hurt for something they don't actually experience and are trying shame everyone else for it.

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cowperthwaite t1_j8ebp5w wrote

Living in the West End, many things in Cranston are closer or the same distance to me than the equivalent in Providence city limits, including libraries.

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waninggib t1_j8197ce wrote

I’m carless in Fox Point. I don’t mind recs outside of Providence. If I want it bad enough, I’ll go with a friend or rent a Zip Car.

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Proclaimer23 t1_j84o112 wrote

I don’t have a car and use RIPTA, there are plenty of routes that make getting around Pawtucket, Cranston, East Providence, Central Falls, etc. just as accessible as most places in Providence.

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Evdoggydog15 t1_j808i86 wrote

This thread is pure r\providence gold

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m1327 t1_j80blw5 wrote

I consider "Providence" to really mean "Providence Metro Area" in most situations.

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WickedDog310 t1_j8436xi wrote

It does, OP is butthurt because they're the inverse of the garden city crowd. Instead of the crazy suburbanite belief that nothing good exists in Providence bc /crime/, OP believes nothing good exists outside Providence. Both mentalities drive me crazy.

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Sad_Succotash_9347 t1_j7zxwce wrote

You could always get off Reddit and stop worrying about trivial things, such as recommendations to cities that outskirt providence

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j801u8f wrote

But then we'd be deprived of delicious irony like the same poster recommending a place in Cranston in this sub literally yesterday.

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ryanfingawesome OP t1_j8046tn wrote

and the post in which i made that suggestion did not specifically mention providence in any way. your reading comprehension is, shockingly poor.

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Parlor-soldier t1_j80823z wrote

BuT iTs In ThE pRoViDeNcE sUb!!!!!

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GotenRocko t1_j814dyn wrote

right, what if that poster has no way to get to garden city, OP just erased that person by assuming they have a car.

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Throwaway1231200001 t1_j7zwpvd wrote

God forbid people give additional options on the bordering locations of a 190k city.

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jjohn9590 t1_j7zuemj wrote

They are giving options, considering how quickly it is to get to certain places. The poster can always just ignore and keep it moving...you also have that option.

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degggendorf t1_j80m862 wrote

Idk, I think the Providence Metro Area is kinda implied with those types of questions. Even if not, a relevant suggestion outside of the OP's boundaries can still be helpful for others.

Like the 🚨Thai Food Emergency🚨 post for yesterday...OP did say "in Providence", but the not-technically-Providence suggestions are better for me.

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nathanaz t1_j8114c0 wrote

I came here hoping the thread was about the movie Outside Providence.

Very disappointing.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j814z77 wrote

I've stopped recommending it out of respect to the original poster.

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lestermagnum t1_j81ylbg wrote

That presupposing everyone in Providence as a way of watching a movie.

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RhodyViaWIClamDigger t1_j8242hk wrote

When I lived on Mass Ave in PVD, the best pizza recommendation I ever received was a four minute walk, in Cranston. My recommendation request was very strict geographically, PVD only, but someone wasn’t listening and had to make a Cranston recommendation. I love people who don’t listen.

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Status_Quail_2559 t1_j80gdpa wrote

Cause providence is tiny and has minimal options

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portriprov t1_j811mvj wrote

Providence is actually a mid sized city. Not as big as Boston or Chicago, but its not “tiny” by any stretch.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_j816b3b wrote

I think this person meant by area, not population. Providence is definitely tiny by that stretch.

#150 on the 150 largest cities in the US by land area is St. George Utah and they're 4X larger than Providence.

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Dr-Stink-Stank t1_j80wppz wrote

You don’t have a lot going on in your life at the moment, do you?

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doctor-rumack t1_j82r8ss wrote

You’re a jerk dude. Figure it out.

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Spf85 t1_j841gvn wrote

Insufferable post. Stfu who cares

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