Illinois City Top 10 to Live In, But Rest of The State is Ticked

I don't think I've seen anything quite like this other than in Illinois. Think about it. What other state would have one of its places named a top 10 best place to live in where the rest of the state is collectively rolling its eyes.

I laughed as soon as I saw this new CNBC ranking of the top 10 US cities to live in for 2024. I knew what the response would be before I even started digging and I was right. This just in. Chicago is the 6th best city to live in across America. This also just in. The rest of Illinois is NOT impressed. 

I dare you to Google why downstate Illinois hates Chicago so much. There's a fun City Data conversation where the reasons are legion. The reason is actually fairly simple. It's rural versus city. The agricultural part of Illinois (meaning pretty much everything except Chicago and East St. Louis) despises the citified attitude of the Windy City. Many in Chicago think of downstate people as backward thinking perhaps?

Despite spending a majority of my life in Missouri (and loving St. Louis sports teams), I am not a Chicago hater. I don't voluntarily go there often, but I appreciate what Chicago has to offer (pizza). I will confess that a part of my life entertainment happens whenever Chicago gets an honor. Grab some popcorn, share it with a downstate Illinois person and let the fun begin. That's exactly what happened here.