Well plainly, the Mediterranean climate is probably "best" for human beings. That's why there's infinite people living between Santa Barbara and San Diego. That's why Hawai'i is a thing. Leaving the pizza oven of Phoenix for 4 days and spending time in SoCal openend my eyes. To have nice, warm days AND cool evenings is fantastic.
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That being said, I can't seem to find an answer to this: did the first settlers here not know about latitude and climate? I'm guessing that 'land is land' after a fraught Atlantic crossing, but Virginia and New England seem like stupid-ass places to stay. All the tales of winter woe were overtly unnecessary. Did they not know that down south, there were no tough winters??? The coastal south is fantastic!
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Today, anyone in love with Wisconsin or Chicago or whatever other Siberian Shangri-La is just a slave to tradition. Overly proud of their tough skin and bizarre willingness to overcome volunteered obstacles.
Hell, I guess you can't worship the Rose Bowl and the sunshine and the San Gabriels unless you live in a frozen-over hell.