Red States Lead The Country In Many Things Including...

[the_liberal_grandpa]

And, second, it’s undeniably true (and documented with each hotlink below) that Republican-controlled Red states, almost across the board, have higher rates of:

— Spousal abuse
— Obesity
— Smoking
— Teen pregnancy
— Sexually transmitted diseases
— Abortion (at least before Dobbs; now it would be “forced births”)
— Bankruptcies and poverty
— Homicide and suicide
— Infant mortality
— Maternal mortality
— Forcible rape
— Robbery and aggravated assault
— Dropouts from high school
— Divorce
— Contaminated air and water
— Opiate addiction and deaths
— Unskilled workers
— Parasitic infections
— Income and wealth inequality
— Covid deaths and unvaccinated people
— Federal subsidies to states (“Red State Welfare”)
— People on welfare
— Child poverty
— Homelessness
— Spousal murder
— Unemployment
— Deaths from auto accidents
— People living on disability
— Gun deaths

Read more at https://hartmannreport.com/p/why-are-red-state-citizens-poorer-2ef

[displacedvermoter]

1. And think about how many more dog and cock fighting

venues there are!

[Grins]

2. ...and want to bring you down to their level. NM

[SheltieLover]

3. Add illiteracy and cognitive challenges due to incest to that list

Yeah, they're big on taking red state welfare, then complaining about "gubmint."

[whathehell]

22. Tell me you're not serious about the "incest" part

You are just joking about an old stereotype, right?

[Nimble_Idea]

25. no exceptions even in the case of rape and INCEST

nope

[whathehell]

33. That describes recent changes

in abortion law. It does not indicate a higher frequency of the crime.

[soldierant]

36. Incest was not a legal reason for abortion in many states before Roe was decided,

and that doesn't need to mean a higher frequency of the drime, only a higher frequency of births resulting from it. Roe was only fifty years ago. Products of pre-Roe incest are mostly still walking around.

[whathehell]

45. I understand that

but again, that has nothing to do with with there being a higher incidence of it in particular areas, and that's all I'm addressing here.

[progressoid]

49. Well it might be a stereotype for a reason.

These are the top 10 most inbred states:

Arkansas
Mississippi
Alabama
Kentucky
West Virginia
Louisiana
South Carolina
Georgia
Texas
Florida

At least according to this site https://www.thehivelaw.com/blog/incest-rates-by-state-incest-statistics/

There are other variations of this out there but they all seem to point to a similar pattern.

[whathehell]

62. I'm not sure how

reliable a source "Hive Law" is, but the fact that it is based soley on 2nd Cousin Marriages is quite dodgy.
The fact is, 2nd Cousin marriages are not considered incestuous and are Legal in all 50 states.

https://www.thetech.org/ask-a-geneticist/articles/2019/can-you-marry-cousin/

[SheltieLover]

40. Not joking one bit

It's not a "stereotype." It's a very sad fact for many.

[whathehell]

43. Perhaps you're unaware of it, but It is a stereotype

and though most stereotypes have at least some truth to them, I'd need to see stats before accepting that negative a claim about any group.

[ShazzieB]

50. Me, too.

I don't think it's a good idea to make assumptions about things like that or state those assumptions as truth unless we can point to documentation.

[whathehell]

61. Thank you.

[Collimator]

42. The jokes about incest in rural areas usually refer to consensual relationships.

The stereotype leans on the idea that people in isolated communities don't have as many options for potential mates so people are more comfortable with the notion of hooking up with blood relatives.

The sort of incest that this report refers to is more likely about that specific form of sexual abuse. And while we know that abuse of all kinds can happen in any community regardless of income, it's not surprising to see more of it in communities undergoing prolonged economic stress.

I don't like lazy or mean-spirited stereotypes, either. Take the image of toothless yokels, for example. It's not a kind conceptualization, by any means. But when people are enculturated to revere their own ignorance and to disdain "educated elites", then why wouldn't the scientific basis of good dental care be ignored? Vaccines are eschewed, after all.

To quote another poster's excerpt from the article, ". . .poverty, of course, brings along with it the long list of social ills." Higher incidences of incest would count among those social ills. For one thing, fewer tax-funded protective services keep victims trapped more effectively. An once an older child or sibling "ages out" or whatever, a family predator can look to a younger victim because nothing is being done to stop them.

[soldierant]

64. Incest in European history

(which I cite because it's the only history that most Americans are aware of, prior to 1776),from the late Middle Ages and into the 20th century appears to have resulted from the desire to keep certain bloodlines "pure" - such as royalty. But it isn't just royalty which can be susceptible to the myth that a "pure" bloodline is a good thing - when in practice it leads not only to societal ills but also to suffering for those who inherit it - for example, leukemia. And look at the paintings of the Hapsburgs. A fear of "the other" can lead to the same pattterns of incest in uneducated (and poorly educated) populations.

[NCDem47]

4. But, but...

Low Taxes!
Job Creators!
Reduced Regulations!

[paleotn]

7. A colleague of mine considered retiring to TN for the low taxes and beauty of the place.

I told him those things are true. I grew up there. But you also get what you pay for. Gave him a rundown on the dark side. Yea, yea, I get it but....low taxes! They were interested in a small town outside Chattanooga. A couple of extended visits changed their minds. Told 'em so.

It's one thing to be retired and not worry about paying into the local area's education system. It's another to have the products of that grossly underfunded education system steal your stuff and threaten your life out of nothing but desperation.

[republianmushroom]

5. But they continue to vote red. Dumb and dumber.

[BattleRow]

6. Some people aren't happy unless

they're miserable.....
And you know,misery loves company

[paleotn]

8. Evilgelicalism and Fux News. A particularly nasty duo.

[BattleRow]

14. Who is in possession of the

moral compass of this country?

[paleotn]

48. They think they are but everyone knows they're not.

Their mortality is a punch line for most Americans.

[TBF]

44. It's not just the bible bangers & FAUX news - it's most of the press

that is largely owned by billionaires.

Does it seem like the WSJ, Washington Post, and NYTimes all talk about Donald a lot? It's not just "ratings" - these companies are owned by very wealthy people. They don't give a crap about evangelicalism, they care about their taxes. That is the only reason Donald wins. He gave his uber-wealthy friends the tax breaks they wanted last time, and he'll do it again.

[TheBlackAdder]

9. In other words... FREE DUMBS

[WhiskeyGrinder]

10. And in most red states, it's Black people bearing the greater burden of those ills.

[markodochartaigh]

21. When you compare maternal mortality of

White people in wealthy areas in the South and Black in poor areas in the South it might as well be two different countries. It is misleading to average the two together and then compare state maternal mortality rates to the rates in other countries where almost everyone has access to the same level of care.

[jimfields33]

28. They are huge part of the population especially the south.

We really should be blue in every southern state.

[SomedayKindaLove]

11. I guess this is why

Life expectancy can be up to 8 years longer in certain blue states.

Republican policies just aren’t good for people.

[OMGWTF]

26. Yes, and on average Canadians live three years longer than Americans.

[Attilatheblond]

29. And probably have more fun doing so n/t

[orleans]

12. thank you for posting this! nt

[BattleRow]

13. This would make a great national ad

Paging George Conway!

[Aristus]

15. The smoking thing isn't surprising.

"Humphrey Bogart made smokin' look sexy!"

"This here ad from seventy years ago has a doctor talkin' 'bout how healthy smokin' is!"

[Bernardo de La Paz]

16. Keeper . . . . nt

[Bernardo de La Paz]

17. Partial reason (beyond science denial etc)

Their governing bodies waste time on really stupid shit like regulating transgender bathrooms, taking away women's rights, mandating leather bound bibles for schools.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

18. More reasons (from the article, it's brilliant)

The problem for Red states is that Republicans worship cheap labor, because it drives up profits for the fat-cats who own American businesses — and having a steady and reliable supply of cheap labor to maintain high profits requires widespread poverty, ignorance, death, and disease.

That poverty, of course, brings along with it the long list of social ills above, but Republicans are more than willing to tolerate massive, desperate levels of human suffering to make sure there’s a steady supply of cheap labor. In fact, they intentionally run their states that way to produce those results.

If you have any doubts about this, if that sounds like hyperbole, simply look at the policies the GOP has promoted for the past century:

Hartmann then lists these points and explains each one according to the above thesis.

— Republicans hate unions,

— Republicans hate Social Security

— Republicans hate universal or inexpensive healthcare

— Republicans hate the minimum wage because it cuts into profits.

— Republicans hate empowered women

— Republicans promote hatred of racial, religious, and gender minorities

— Republicans hate education

— Republicans hate atheism and embrace a neofascist form of Protestant Christianity and a bizarre, rightwing version of Catholicism

— Republicans hate food stamps, housing supports, aid to women and dependent children,

— Republicans hate environmental protections

— Republicans hate unemployment insurance

So, the next time somebody asks why people living in Red states have it so rough, just tell them, “It’s all because of the cheap-labor Republicans.”

[Clouds Passing]

30. Republicans hate paying taxes.

Republicans hate corporate/business regulations.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

32. RepubliCONs are faux economic libertarians bc they want all the benefits & no costs or liabilities

True libertarians accept costs and liabilities as part of being free but responsible citizens.

Faux libertarians think they should be able shit all over the land, sea, and air without liability or costs. They feel they should be able to hurt people economically at will ('Hey it's not violence!').

[dlk]

19. And they vacuum up the most federal tax dollars, while contributing the least, and whining the most

Way to go Republicans!

[OMGWTF]

27. I live in blue WA and CA and am sick of these red state jerkholes dragging us down with them.

It feels like a bad marriage -- they constantly complain about us while refusing any help for their myriad problems that are all self-inflicted, they take far more than they give, and they are the most ungrateful and ignorant fkheads on the planet.

[ShazzieB]

51. I live in blue Illinois, and I agree.

In this state, we also have red county jerkholes who would love to drag the rest of the state down with them.

Democrats have had control of the state government for a while, and the homophobes, transphobes, forced birthers, and Christian nationalists down state don't like it one bit. I keep reading about politicians in some southern Illinois counties who are trying to get together and cook up some way to separate their counties from the rest of the state so they can be free to pass things like abortion bans, anti-trans bathroom laws, and God know what else.

It's funny how they don't seem to stop and wonder how they could survive without the tax dollars that flow down there from counties near Chicago that are home to some of the wealthiest communities in the state.

I'm not too worried about them right now, but if we start to get an influx of people moving up here from southern states to escape the effects of climate change (which seems likely to happen at some point), things could get... interesting.

[dlk]

60. They are committed to free lunches

The no clue how government works, nor do they want one. They want nothing to do with problem solving and would rather whine, and complain

[dlk]

59. Agreed

[Figarosmom]

20. Well thats a given

With how little the states do for the citizens just to deliver tax breaks to the rich this figures. And for those that do graduate from high school I'd bet their SAT & ACT scores are the lowest especially in reading comprehension.

[Old Crank]

23. Just look at Texas

The AG is a convicted criminal. And they have raised therate of post partum deaths for children and death in child birth for women. They are number one I believe.

[Nimble_Idea]

24. You have to stop it! I have millions of examples proving you wrong!

[soldierant]

37. They fled left-wing sutocracy

That doesn't mean they wouldn't support right-wing autocracy. Autocracy vs. egalitarianism is a totally different animal frrom left vs.right. Seriously, Cubans fleeing Castro were mostly right wingand it's not surprising they are autocrats.

[Upthevibe]

31. Kick. N/T

[Warpy]

34. Once I'd escaped Dixie

I swore I'd never live in a pseudo theocratic, far right wing state ever again. Although I couldn't articulate why when I was barely into my 20s, this list covers it nicely.

Oh, I'd known some truly kind people there, but they seemed to be heavily outnumbered and I was a kid who was completely out of step and Boston turned out to be a much better fit. Part of my heart will always be in the Smokies. My ass will reside elsewhere.

[Montauk6]

35. Leeching off Blue States and the Federal Government should be #1

[Mz Pip]

38. And who pays for the consequences?

The Blue States.

[Xolodno]

39. You forgot...

...moonshine production.

[demosincebirth]

41. It does not surprise me.

[Martin Eden]

46. And they've been conned into blaming liberals for their problems

That's what keeps these states red.

[Evolve Dammit]

53. 40 years of Limbaugh every day and then Faux News provided daily dosing

[Martin Eden]

55. I used to read a lot of fiction, so I'm familiar with the concept of an alternative universe

But the Magaverse is constructed of lies and exists only in the minds of cult members.

[Evolve Dammit]

58. Quite Orwellian for sure. 1984 and Animal Farm were

Were prescient.

[mdbl]

47. not a glowing report!

[mahina]

52. I want better for the people of those states, and all of us. It's a terrible burden on the people, all that suffering.

May it be lifted from us. Vote!

[Evolve Dammit]

54. Good post. Welcome

[wolfie001]

56. This is the best map I've seen showing clearly the difference between Red and Blue states

Shocking, really:

[malaise]

57. Great OP

Rec

[myohmy2]

63. and also...

...bad climate change weather...

...don't come up here and turn my Blue state Purple...

...for many years magats and pukes have been claiming climate change a ruse...

...so be it...