What do you think about Atlanta?

As God is mah witness, I will NEVAH let Yankees in!

Unless of course they're blessed with more than eight inches.....

I like the chili dogs at the Varsity. And, the art museum is pretty nice. Other than that, meh.

Better quality of life than NYC

Thomas Roberts trolling for jock dick..

Atlanta sucks.

People can't drive for shit!

I'm a NYer and have lived in Atlanta 19 years. I don't like it, but I'm not moving back to NY.

commuting and getting around the city sucks. The only great thing is that Marta (the subway/train service) goes right to the airport

And it's hot as hell for about 9 months a year. I have had to use the air conditioning in my car every afternoon for 2 weeks

i think very poorly of Atlanta.

Overrated shithole with a lot of Deplorables. Would rather drive around Manhattan than deal with driving in Atl.

Three Words: Pine Pollen Apocalypse

a lot of black bottoms in pink bedrooms.

It’s a nice conglomerate of people and cultures. Great architecture but Atlanta needs to start concentrating more on historic preservation.

I don’t.

R7 is that you, Zak?

shitty skyline

No R14

Loads and loads of time in the car headed through suburban sprawl.

Many people one generation removed from sharecropper parents.

Little in the way of high culture.

But it's cheap and if you have a brain you can get a decent job. It is less competitive than other big US cities.

I try not too

Traffic congestion at times is awful but many beautiful neighborhoods and homes, good restaurants, active music and arts scene, lots to do, good job market.

Zak loves Atlanta and brags about it as a magical oasis and a great place to live.

Zak is an idiot.

Horrible traffic, too hot, and not too tolerable of Yankees. Still stuck in Civil War mentality.

I grew up there.

I know, I know.

There's no Queen like a big black Atlanta queen. Doesn't have two thin nickles to rub together yet acts like they the world owns them . Smile in your face while they stab you in the back. Will steal the gold out of your teeth.

the only criticism that born and bred Atlanta's will say about their city is: the dreaded traffic. It is funny and you have to admire their loyalty.

The summer humidity is a killer.

President Jimmy Carter is the only thing redeemable from Atlanta. He tried to help his city and the south, but they keep fucking him and themselves over.

Bad news: Carter’s an asshole too.

[quote]Three Words: Pine Pollen Apocalypse

It’s nonstop sex here!

There's no there there.

LOTS of black people there. Very few white people.

Overrated.

I’ve visited a couple times and enjoyed it. Don’t want to live there though. Too much traffic and too humid.

Whole different level of corruption than most of the country. That said, the rolling hills are very pretty, if somewhat hostile to human life. Not true R30, but you knew that. Didn't Zak get robbed repeatedly, if I recall?

It’s really a crap city. The food scene is good but the people are not friendly.

It was pretty shocking actually as I seem to recall Zak lived in Morningside Heights, which is a good area.

White New Englander in Atlanta for a week twice a year. I always have a lot of great sex there. The people in the fun, cool restaurants are super friendly. A couple of great breweries.

Great bar-b-q

Native New Yorker, ex-Los Angeles (West Hollywood) resident, who visited siblings and mother who all moved down South. Yes, getting into Atlanta from the airport thanks to the Marta is easier than any of the NY airports (Newark is probably the easiest) and certainly LAX. That being said, my famliy, who lives further up in John's Creek and Cumming, don't drive into the city, so I have to take the Marta to the end of the line and take a bus further out to meet them. I've done it twice. From La Guardia to Atlanta, it takes about 2-2.5 hours, and it takes a good hour and a half to get to the end of the Marta line. I love my family, but the trek is stressful, so I rarely visit. I'd love to spend a weekend in the city, but I can pretty much do the same things (clubbing, museums, theater, shopping) here, or take the train to D.C. or even Boston.

Walter Lee Hampton II has a lot to say about gay life in Atlanta

I find the cultural amenities like their main art museum disappointing . And yet the independent gallery scene is very good. Then there is SCAD, and SCAD Fashion and Emory, and and the historically Black Colleges, Spelman and Morehouse and a few others. Georgia State and UG both have campuses in Atlanta. Lots of good restaurants. I'm talking about independent neighborhood restaurants. Not chain restaurants. Nightlife is a fun scene. Yes, traffic is horrible. and the Pollen problem is horrible. it gets humid, but I've found it tolerable. We only started having warmer weather with any consistency the past two weeks and then mostly in the 70's. What I love is how close Atlanta is to the coast. In less than about 4 hours you can drive to Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina , Charleston, Savannah, the barrier islands like St. Simons, etc. Great for long weekends. They need to improve MARTA and expand it. That would address some of the traffic problems. Housing in Atlanta is not cheap. Not even close. I guess compared to NYC it is. But rents and home purchases are high. Most people are opting for suburbs, and the further north you go the whiter it gets. There are some very interesting artists communities in rural Georgia, potters, etc. It's been an adjustment, but I like it. Of course by choice I tend towards Academia.

R40 I've been told that they have talked about expanding the MARTA to go further up to areas outside of Sandy Springs. My family are suburbanites, while I'm definitely big city. (I'm the writer of M38). I wasn't crazy about what I saw outside of the city. Too much open space, too suburban, and I felt like a big fish in a teeny pond with no room to flap. The heat in NY can be unbearable, but there are breaks, and of course seasons, and from what I've heard, Atlanta itself can be stifling for breathing issues. I went in November one year and March another year, so I didn't get to experience that. Of all southern cities, however, ever since I lived in West Hollywood (1983-2008), Atlanta has always been talked about as the best for the gay community. That's a plus if you are young and wanting to re-settle outside a rather gay unfriendly home town.

It's the Dallas of the deep south.

When I think of Atlanta I think of sprawl. It's the poster child of a low density sprawling metro.

I couldn't live there and imagine being able to get around as easily as I do in New York. Even in L.A., I chose not to drive, and was able to get to the places I needed to easily by their very poor bus system and what trains they do have. Living in West Hollywood, it was easy to get to places like the Beverly Center (a 10 minute walk), Hollywood (half an hour by bus, then a 10 minute walk), and work (Santa Monica), although getting back from work was much more difficult. My commute has cut itself from 2 1/2 hrs. in L.A. to an hr. round trip in NY. Any place I chose to move to would have to match that!

[quote][bold]What I love is how close Atlanta is to the coast. In less than about 4 hours[/bold] you can drive to Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina , Charleston, Savannah

A 3+ hour drive is “close to the coast?” And “less than 4 hours” is a stretch anyway.

Where are you posting from that a 4 hour drive is considered “close to the coast?”

I like Atlanta when I visit! Swinging Richards!

Fox Bros BBQ is the best thing about it. Woofs is a great gay sports bar. Uhhhh, I guess that's it.

[quote]Whole different level of corruption than most of the country.

HELLO ...

I laughed at that as well. A 3.5 hour drive is not considered close to the coast at all!

Maybe to people in Kansas, but considering how much of America lives *actually* close to a coast that is a ludicrous comment.

Well, the MARTA expansion failed in the recent referendum. But of course it was a "special election" and failure was a foregone conclusion, because the racist shit heels turned out to vote no, and the rest of us "forgot." Plus they do it county by county, so they only people who got to vote on it were people from one county. It's ass backwards, but then, this is the South.

You do have to drive everywhere. There is sprawl and the flow of traffic can be daunting. Decatur and Marietta are nice. MArietta is slightly less expensive than Decatur.

The art museum is lame, the aquarium corporate and forgettable. The zoo stinks. The natural history museum is small but entertaining, there's a nice if somewhat prole planetarium, and Emory has an excellent anthro museum. There is the Cyclorama and the Coca-Cola museum....

But the best thing about Atlanta is the Atlanta History Museum and Swan house.

It's just like Dallas. Practically the same city in many respects. But instead of being called Dallas, it's called Atlanta.

Love the local theater and Swinging Richards.

It's definitely a fun place to visit, great food, and I found the people pleasant (greeting on the streets, opening doors, kids high-fiving me when I was running). When I got back to L.A. (another WeHo resident), I was greeting people on the streets like a Southerner- they looked at me like a was nuts. I'll be spending the summer there-well not actually in Atlanta, but somewhere accessible to Pinewood Studios, and I'm not looking forward to it.

[quote] There is sprawl and the flow of traffic can be daunting

I was there on business and booked a room at what I thought was a convenient hotel to the office, no more than a couple of exits away on I-75 or I-85 (it's been years, I don't remember which one exactly). I arrived Sunday night, got my rental car and zipped out to the hotel, making a mental note of the exit I'd need to take the next morning. It couldn't have been more than 5 additional minutes to my hotel.

Monday morning I go to get back on the highway and it was solid traffic. Traffic inched along. Took me over 30 minutes. Luckily I allowed plenty of time, thinking I'd have time for a leisurely cup of coffee before my first meeting, but I arrived barely on time and a frazzled mess.

I only recall one thing about Atlanta and that was in a study somewhere that claimed it was the least upwardly mobile city in the country.

The poor remain poor in Atlanta...but what else is new in this year's America?

Atlantans learn to adapt to the traffic, so they choose the time and the route and often avoid the freeways altogether. Most of my friends are WAZE dependent. LOL! One friend lives in the city and drives side streets to get to his job in Midtown. He's at work in ten minutes. But I feel bad for visitors because they don't have the luxury. And it's habit with most people to hop on the freeway when here in ATL, sometimes that's the worst decision. I have a friend who lives across town, and it's about 8 miles. Takes me 35-40 minutes. Ridiculous.

I lived there several times over the years and always enjoyed it. It cant be said enough how horrific the traffic is. A 10 minute commute will very often turn into an hour. I found the people to be very friendly (all colors) and the food to be great,but it always was a place I enjoyed being at but was glad to leave. My last apartment there (97-98) was a converted office building by Piedmont Park and I was paying $600 a month. Thats same place has since been remodeled and goes for $1500 ! The jobs there dont pay enough to support those kind of rent hikes for 90% of the folks that live there,so I imagine the atmosphere has changed somewhat.

The Flex Baths is 99% black dick. Heaven!

If you're even an average looking white bottom you'll have all the black dick you can handle. So long as you're a tourist. They don't like homegrown hole.

total shithole

why do bums shit in the street there?

so many needles

makes frisco look like disneyland

its really 75% ethnic there?

People from all over the world live in Atlanta. it's not a depressed place. There is a lot of good energy here. And in April all the art fairs and neighborhood festivals start and they're fun.Good food and music, great farmers markets, and it goes until end of October . I get a sense of community here. I was in the business center at my apartment complex in Brookhaven, a near northern suburb adjacent to Buckhead, and I was trying to futz with the printer, and asked another resident if they could help. He was Scottish and was here for two years for his work. Then there are the Indians from India. Tons of them, and Africans Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, South African, Nigeria, and whatever they're calling Ethiopia today. But the population is diverse, cosmopolitan, and international. I love it.

Lots of coke there.

Maybe you can get a date with Mark Bentson, OP!

IT'S THE HOME OF CHIC FIL A .🐔🐔🐔

There are more loud black bottoms than black tops in Atlanta and they complain about that a lot!

why would one want to live around all that????

Never been there. Never want to be.....there.

Soulless city with little culture. Downtown is not safe to walk through. Atlanta's been discussed on here before and seems to have many rabid defenders, which I just don't get. Very segregated. The people suck. There's lots of people moving there, but most are from Florida so that tells you something right there. I don't think northerners will like it much. I've had three friends move there and they all left within 2 years.

20 years I endured in the ATL. Moved away four years ago and I’ve never looked back. Good luck taking two steps without stepping on chicken bones. It’s moist. It’s smoggy and polleny, and the traffic is beyond the pale. The gays are certifiably insane, completely sociopathic and riddled with every STI you can name. Lots of rude folks keeping it real, and getting theirs. Search “Marta fights” on YouTube and you’ll get the gist. Fuck Atlanta.

It's poorly planned. It lacks coherence. You can have fabulous housing, and go around the corner and you're in a slum. Things are built next to one another that have no business being in the same district. Atlanta makes no sense. Personally I think if we could get some progressive leadership in the state and start doing things that make sense like improving MARTA and expanding it, and dealing with the congestion, and not plunking stadiums in the middle of the mess, and really there is no true "down town." Shit is scattered all over the place.

Savannah would be better for you....

The best is when someone from Atlanta say, Atlanta is the New York of the south! There is NOTHING about Atlanta that compares to New York. It’s more like a suburban midwestern city.

[bold]BIG

BLACK

COCK

R76 every city has those! They’re a dime a dozen! There’s no BBC big enough there to make it worth moving to.

[quote] President Jimmy Carter is the only thing redeemable from Atlanta. He tried to help his city and the south, but they keep fucking him and themselves over.

You're an ignoramus. Jimmy Carter is and never has been "from Atlanta". He's from Plains which is nowhere even close to metro Atlanta. He has also never tried to "help his city", other than building his presidential library there. Learn what you're talking about before you make a fool of yourself the next time.

The city of Atlanta is 54% black and has been going through a reverse migration for years. Not that many years ago it was close to 60%. Metropolitan Atlanta however is only 32% black. The black population of the city proper is decreasing constantly as blacks become more and more upwardly mobile they're buying homes in the suburbs. The city of Atlanta is a relatively small area as the state of Georgia makes it difficult for cities to just take over unincorporated land the way so many other cities do, mainly to increase the city tax revenue.

R63, in other words, shithole countries.

Atlanta not like a midwestern city, it is like other sunbelt cities r75.

It's similar to Dallas, Houston, Phoenix. They are all sprawling, low density, car focused cities.

Midwestern cities like Chicago, Minneapolis and Milwaukee are actually significantly more dense.

[quote]Atlantans learn to adapt to the traffic, so they choose the time and the route and often avoid the freeways altogether. Most of my friends are WAZE dependent. LOL! One friend lives in the city and drives side streets to get to his job in Midtown. He's at work in ten minutes. But I feel bad for visitors because they don't have the luxury.

So you're saying visitors to Atlanta aren't allowed to use Waze?

I had occasion to pass through Atlanta once.

I found it much too hot for my liking.

Every single thing R63 mentioned could be said of any medium-large city.

Truth r84. Having people from all over the world is a given in any city.

But these are the same posters who bragged it was only 4 hours to a coast.

R63 ‘s description sounds abysmal. It sounds like every homogeneous mid size city in America right now. They are all the same.

Atlantans seem to have very low standards and are easily impressed. “Art fairs!” “Farmer’s Markets!” “A Scottish guy!!”

Oh and for heaven’s sake how about that gross mall in bucketheads.

A LOT of kids on those damnable scooters. All over the sidewalks.

R87 go fuck yourself. I'm talking about every day life in the neighborhoods and places where I make my home. And I find some of the ignorance in evidence on this thread absolutely insulting. This is my home. It has a lot of flaws, but it is my home and there is a lot to love about it.

It's subdivision hell north of the city. Every fourth house looks the same, in drab colors. They didn't plan for increased traffic and there was no grid to begin with so that's fun. In every town, there's a huge strip mall with a Chick Fil A, Walmart and the hip restaurant everyone loves going to. In a strip mall?

My father lives in North Florida, and I'm considering combining a visit to see him with a visit to Atlanta. I've never been there before. How many days to you recommend to hit the highlights?

To imagine what Atlanta is like, take the traffic of Los Angeles, the weather of Birmingham AL, add the intelligence of Bumfuck, IN, and then add the charm of Donald Trump.

That's Atlanta. A hot, charmless, empty, ugly suburb calling itself a city.

Three words for you OP, Robert Sepulveda Junior.

R92, you'll need about 4 hours.

I made the mistake of getting off at 5 Points to walk back the rest of the way to my hotel. What a fucking shit show. Like Bronx in the 70s. I've live in DC since the early 90s and even i was disgusted.

"WORST TRAFFIC IN THE WORLD" "OH MY GOD THE TRAFFIC" "2 HOURS TO GO 10 MILES" "OH MY GOD WHAT WILL WE DO?" "

Well Toots, maybe you should move to one of these cities that all have worst traffic, and longer commute times than Atlanta. The subway systems in NYC, Boston, and Philly have done wonders for their traffic problems, NOT!

1. Washington DC

2. New York City

3. Jersey City, NJ.

4. Los Angeles

5. Boston

6. Newark

7. Riverside, Ca.

8. San Francisco

9. Oakland, Ca.

10. Chicago

11. Philadelphia

12. Baltimore

13. Houston

R97, I can deal with heavy traffic. What I cannot deal with is the worst drivers I have ever seen in my life. I had an aunt who was 87 and she would not give up her car. She was half senile and kept driving long past the time she should have. And the first thing that occured to me when I moved to Atlanta, is Jesus Christ, they all drive like my half Senile aunt.

R90 don't lower yourself to directly respond to any of the halfwits on this thread. They are just the typical Datalounge chimp mob. Slinging feces is all they know. Just sit back and watch. That's what you're supposed to do when you visit the zoo.

Aww R98, the "worst traffic" theory got proved wrong so you had to make up some other fictional reason to bitch and moan.

Does this need to be explained to you r97? The traffic in places like New York and DC has nothing to do with the people who live there, it is about all those people who don't live in the city and drive into it. The people who live in New York and DC are in general not driving to work, few people in Manhattan even own a car.

Who gives a fuck where the traffic comes from you nitwit. It's still traffic and the cities can't deal with it. You sound like a low grade moron.

[quote]Who gives a fuck where the traffic comes from you nitwit

If one don't drive to work, as people who live in those cities don't do, then one doesn't care about commuters sitting in traffic. The traffic is immaterial to your day to day life. Surely you can grasp this?

Or failing that, when backed into a corner just lazily keep insulting people!

[quote] If one don't drive to work

How illiterate of you. In the future, don't crack wise with Jethro Bodine language.

Heh, so you don't even try to contest my point. Good, moving on.

if you are into black guys it could be paradise

There are black guys in every city. Most more cultural and entertaining than Atlanta.

Dump filled with middle educated Southern strivers and climbers with pretentions of intelligence and glamor, surrounded by rednecks and hillbillies.

Most of the buildings in midtown are quite dumpy looking. Reminds me of Providence, RI

It’s rich in history

You meet the nicest people!

I forgot the lovely lady at R111. There was a video that helpfully translated her graceful soliloquy. I miss that video and the threads we had about her here on the Datalounge.

It was named after golden age movie star Lana Turner. It's the only major American city named after a movie star.

I like this homage to Tivoli.

Home to such media powerhouses as CNN, TCM, Adult Swim, Tyler Perry, the Weather Channel, and Alexyss Tylor

def a bigger shithole than frisco

and has none of the historical or oceanic value...

No one thinks about Atlanta.

It's supposedly the Hollywood of the east. But I think it's basically crews (mostly LA based) coming in, shooting movies and getting out. They supposedly keep building studios yet I never hear about any opening. And so many projects that film here use the small shithole towns outside the city like for Stranger Things, I, Tonya, Insatiable etc and pass it off as some other place.

It’s black bougie mecca.

In addition to the humidity - LOTS of cloudy and rainy days.

How is the gay scene there?

IT'S FILLED WITH HIV-POSITIVE AND AIDS RIDDEN PEOPLE!!!!

Oh, and there are the other diseases too.

I wouldn't even think of dating anyone in Atlanta.

A place I'd never want to live.

Thinks it is a major city like NY, DC, LA, SF

Expensive trendy restaurants are in strip shopping malls next to Dunkin Donuts and Staples

McMansion filled suburbs with cut-rate priced McMansions (Alpharetta) filled with the women DL calls "fraus" most of whom aspire to be NY/CA style "yoga moms"

Tropical heat and humidity for 5 months a year.

[quote]Expensive trendy restaurants are in strip shopping malls next to Dunkin Donuts and Staples

THE TRUTH!

Interestingly at a job interview in Atlanta we got to talking about the traffic. It's really NOT that bad. And the loop - that moves at about 100MPH, even I-20, I-75, and parts of I-85 move at 80MPH or so.

But I will echo the sentiments of R98 - when your'e doing 80MPH and then it suddenly drops down to 30MPH in speed. Jesus Christ on a stick. It's why I think autonomous cars would be a god send to cities like Atlanta.

There is no "there" there.

R123 speaks the truth.

I always wondered about the zoning laws in Atlanta, with regards to the number of strip malls; both because of their ubiquitousness and their unusual mix of up- and down-market tenants. I think it’s just part of the odd local norms that shopping and dining corridors are overwhelmingly situated that way. In my city strip malls are literally low-rent districts. You might see a pizza joint or a hole-in-the-wall chinese place, but upscale dining? Hell, no.

I swear 20something years ago I went to a gay bar that was in a strip mall in Altanta. Totally bizarre experience, especially leaving the bar late at night to a massive parking lot that was totally deserted except for the 30 or so cars clustered right by the bar’s entrance.

r127, Ft Lauderdale is similar with its strip mall bars.

BBC 4EVER!!!!!!!!!!

I'm going to be staying in Cabbagetown for work during the summer. Any restaurant recs? Poor Calvin's still good? How about the restaurants at the Mill?

There's a lot of fake southern kindness.

Bless your heart, r131

[quote]How is the gay scene there?

Downtown is a fucking shithole. High racial tension. Cultureless sprawl. Not the entertainment capital of the east it appears to be.

Revolting sprawl

Droves and droves are moving up from Florida which says it all.

R133 was a pretty funny eldergay rant. “Walter, I had my ass pumped!” 😂😂😂

What are cool areas of Atlanta to visit? Any good restaurants not in strip malls?

One thing Atlanta has going for it is it's close to the time zone change so it stays light out much later. It doesn't suck so much in December and it's really nice in June.

You probably want to go around Midtown r138. It's one the walkable neighborhood of Altanta, lots of the gay bars are there, Piedmont Park.

Maybe eat at BonTon or the Lawrence for more casual, or the Consulate or Ecco or nicer options.

The Atlanta Metropolitan Area is just behind the Philadelphia Metro area in population and should overtake it next year in the official census. Only Washington DC and Miami are larger metro areas in the South.

[quote] It's supposedly the Hollywood of the east. But I think it's basically crews (mostly LA based) coming in, shooting movies and getting out.

Another DLer spouting bullshit assumptions. In fact Hollywood industry insiders have said Atlanta's movie and TV production talent base and production facility availability is the best they've seen outside of L.A.. And that's another reason it makes financial sense for them to do business there. They don't have to transport crews or equipment in for projects.

So try again Mr. Know Nothing.

Errrr r142, they bring in Department Heads and camera crews from L.A.

Whatever crew they bring in it is minimal.

I know Atlanta based actors are always complaining that productions don't hire local talent.

I also know a lot of L.A. people who have Atlanta addresses (they don't live in) so they can work as locals. The Hair Department Head (who won an Oscar) and her Key on my project are two, so I don't know how conflated those figures are. I also know a lot of people from L.A . who couldn't make a living here. (due to lack of talent or work ethic), who moved to Atl to try to get more work there.

And r145 is right- most major speaking parts will be from L.A. or NYC. Smaller parts will be from Atl.

NYC of the South? Hah

[quote]What do you think about Atlanta?

WAAAAAY too many bottoms--especially among the black gay community! They are also VERY feminine. I have nothing against these men but too much sugar will rot your....

Oh wow

R148 there wouldnt be so many bottoms if that rough trade didnt sling that dick willy nilly ! As a fairly pretty white queen,I never ever went home alone unless I chose to. I could pick up black dick walking down the street ! Ah youth.

I'm surprised that the gurlz of color are not cutting each other throats over the so few tops that are available.... Maybe it doesn't matter as long as they get their turn?

Come join Cardi B and Offset in their new Atlanta neighborhood. Gentrification is coming!

Thanks to the republican state legislature, and governor, the city and surrounding areas will lose their status as Hollywood of the South. Fewer and fewer stars, and thus studios, will work in a state that represses women so drastically.

R142 -- overweight, acne-scarred wanna-be screenwriter sitting in his mother's basement in Atlanta, wishing he knew something, anything, about movies.

In New Offensive Against HIV, Metro Atlanta Is a Battleground

Andy Miller

March 25, 2019

The map of the United States shows four blue dots clustered in northern Georgia. They represent the metro Atlanta counties of Fulton, DeKalb, Gwinnett and Cobb.

It's not exactly surprising that the four — the most populous in our state — are among 48 counties in the nation that the Trump administration is targeting for its plan to stop the spread of HIV.

President Trump announced the plan in his State of the Union address last week.

HIV is the virus that causes AIDS, a disease that has killed millions around the world. Much progress has been made in keeping patients alive by thwarting the development of the full-scale disease, but a key to anti-HIV strategy is preventing new infections.

Georgia is the No. 1 state in rates of new infections, and metro Atlanta is No. 3 among metropolitan areas, says Dr. Wendy Armstrong of Emory University, and medical director of the Infectious Disease Program at Grady Health System. Grady's Ponce de Leon Center, which provides HIV services, has 6,200 "active" patients, and the number is rising, Armstrong says.

"We have a huge epidemic, a lot of new infections," says Dr. Carlos del Rio, chair of the Department of Global Health and professor of epidemiology at Emory's Rollins School of Public Health.

"We were in the state of inertia" in the fight against HIV, adds del Rio, also professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory School of Medicine. "Hopefully [the White House initiative] will light a fire."

The administration's plan will deploy the people and prevention and treatment strategies needed to reduce new HIV infections by 75 percent over the next 5 years, with the hope of a 90 percent reduction within 10 years, according to the CDC's director, Dr. Robert Redfield.

More than 50 percent of new HIV diagnoses in the United States in 2016 and 2017 occurred in 48 counties, Washington, D.C., and San Juan, Puerto Rico, said the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The plan would increase investments in these hot spots through existing programs like the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, which provides care to low-income uninsured people, NPR reported. The federal government would provide funds to create a local "HIV HealthForce" in these targeted areas to expand HIV prevention and treatment.

"Almost 90 percent of new infections are transmitted by people who do not know they are infected or who are not being retained in treatment," said HHS Secretary Alex Azar.

The Trump administration initiative has raised hopes among community leaders here in Georgia.

That's funny, because I've found a lot more to do in Dallas than Atlanta. I think the food is better, too. I'm from Mississippi and have lived in both Carolinas, Virginia, NYC, Dallas, and Atlanta and I think I liked Dallas the best for some reason.

Dallas is the most boring big city I’ve ever been to

[quote]I know Atlanta based actors are always complaining that productions don't hire local talent.

How can that be when there is such a LARGE talent pool?

[quote]What are cool areas of Atlanta to visit? Any good restaurants not in strip malls?

Is that possible?

if you are into black men I suppose it is heaven

Does this mean Chandler Massey has "the gift"?