Pride

People love where they’re from.

They wear it. They talk about it. They defend it.

They share the food. The music. The jokes. The hard conditions they survived.

That creates affinity. It feels like belonging.

But affinity isn’t the same as skin in the game.

Skin in the game is putting your name next to something before it works. It’s backing the city publicly instead of benefiting from it quietly. It’s funding, defending, or supporting what you’ll later complain never existed.

That’s where pride gets quiet.

People celebrate the region — but won’t fund the work that would make it stronger.

They praise the culture — but won’t support the institutions that sustain it.

They complain there aren’t enough opportunities — while declining to back the ones being built.

They promote themselves — and wait for someone else to do the heavy lifting.

The place becomes a brand. Not a responsibility.

Everyone belongs. Almost no one commits.