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wryter2000
(47,940 posts)They have to put up with enough crap from the people around them. They don't need more from DU.
reflection
(6,286 posts)and could barely restrain myself from standing up and applauding. Great rant, loved it. 
wryter2000
(47,940 posts)This Californian is no longer coming to the rescue. Let people insult the South all they want.
deurbano
(2,985 posts)among the "fruits, flakes and nuts" of San Francisco (as my relatives and "friends" in flyover country have kindly informed me)... so I have a little perspective. (And I studied sociology at Berkeley, another magnet of mockery for a pretty large and vocal segment of this anti-science, anti-intellectual, anti-education, anti-humanity crowd.) At this point, my gloves are off. Southerners who aren't deplorable should not be offended. In fact, they are our heroes. I could never do what they're doing. I'm definitely a "snowflake" compared to the committed, resilient liberals/progressives (whatever they choose to call themselves) who have been willing to stick it out in (what I consider) "enemy territory" to try to work for change. I can't even handle Thanksgiving dinner with those "enemies" (in my own family). But the South is still deserving of derision... just like Germany under the Nazis (to use an admittedly extreme analogy); we're not mocking the Resistance.
reflection
(6,286 posts)Didn't mean to imply otherwise, my apologies. 
Mickju
(1,823 posts)and I agree
TexasProgresive
(12,719 posts)mreilly
(2,120 posts).... the guy was talking about Southern Republicans, not all Southerners. I know when I trash the South (I'm from MA too) I make sure to specify that our fellow Progressives are excluded from my tirades...
kcr
(15,522 posts)I lived in the south for many years. Anyone who spends any time there comes to realize pretty quickly how conservative it is. I think it's some warped version of I can talk bad about my family but you can't! It's stupid.
mreilly
(2,120 posts)... nobody wants to say "I'm from a shitty state." I've seen so many liberals in the South get huffy, though, even if you specifically say that "Republican Southerners are assholes; our liberal friends behind the lines are 100% OK with me." They still take criticism of the region as an attack on them.
I've been called an arrogant Yankee who "doesn't get our culture" to which I respond: "Maybe not, but the parts of your culture I'm criticizing are the ones associated with conservatives, like waving the Rebel Flag, hating blacks, refusing to educate oneself and abusing women!"
William769
(59,147 posts)Ignorance abounds here. I don't think this person knows that Florida is the third largest populous State in the union and wherever the hell he's at we more than compensate for his luxuries.
P.S. Florida is not a red State, it's a purple State.
BruceWane
(384 posts)Take it as you will but I think this kind of commentary only stings "if the shoe fits", as they say.....
BTW -
Florida's the 4th most populous state, not the 3rd
As far as "we more than compensate for his luxuries", Florida is 3rd in the rankings of states regarding how much they receive from the federal government versus how much they put in. In other words, Florida gets about $4.50 from the US for every $1 it puts in. In other other words, Florida's not a "giver" state - it's a "taker" state, bigly 
As far as being "purple" - yeah, most states are. You're governor's Rick Scott, fer chrissakes.
As far as me being "mean", "unfair", etc....... I'm in Texas. Born here. We'll take your Rick Scott and raise you a Rick Perry AND follow that circus up with a Greg Abbott 
Sometimes it's good to accept some shame; it serves as a great motivator.
William769
(59,147 posts)State populations. http://worldpopulationreview.com/states/
As to the rest of your supposed facts I will follow up on.
To shame a demographic as a whole is just plain ass stupid.
Have a nice day. 
olegramps
(8,200 posts)If the Union had allowed the South to secede just what would have eventually happened? It is probable if not certain that the slave holders and those who supported this abomination would have faced a massive uprising by the African-American slaves with massive support from Northern sympathizers. It would have resulted in a complete decimation without exception of the those who continued to not only held slave but most importantly those who supported slavery. The notion that the North imposed their will on the South would have been untenable and unable to a phony rallying call that continues today when they insist on calling it the war between the states. They would have been robbed of their excuse of hated of the North. The war would have been fought by those who resisted being enslaved making it a clear moral issue and one that would have been final in its conclusion. It would have completely invalidated the white's notion of superiority when they found themselves to be totally alienated and being slaughtered.
roamer65
(37,902 posts)The split would have happened just in time for us to enter the Canadian confederation on July 1, 1867.
Fact is that the New England states, NY, MI, MN, IL, etc, etc...have more in common with Canada than they do the Southern states.
cwydro
(51,308 posts)DU loves a good south hate thread.
Always the same people saying the same thing.
Moronic, but it makes them feel superior.
leftinalabama
(30 posts)And this poster is exactly spot on. You would not believe how rabid rethuglikan it is in this and surrounding states. So I don't mind reading these kind of posts here as I feel like I am among sane people here.
benpollard
(261 posts)He called it "L.A." for lower Alabama.
Skittles
(171,284 posts)why the fuck does the south think they are more American than the north or the west or the east?
Hoyt
(54,770 posts)I don't even feel like someone bashing southern hatred-through-conservatism has to add, "I know there are exceptions." I think most critics know that there are some decent people in the south. But the fact is, the south has always sanctioned racism and conservative laws that hurt people . . . . . even when the Dixiecrats ran the state government.
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)In point of fact, Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution.
stephensolomita
(91 posts)Between equal representation in the Senate and their advantage in the Electoral College, the small states (Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Connecticut and New Hampshire) were presented with an offer they couldn't refuse. If they hadn't ratified, it would not have been long before a larger state simply absorbed them.
GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)stephensolomita
(91 posts)I'm not making a judgement here. Just stating the facts. The small states and slave states cut a deal at the Convention in Philadelphia. The slave states got their slaves counted as 3/5 of a person and the small states got equal representation in the Senate. This was The Great Compromise.
Glorfindel
(10,175 posts)And I agree completely with the righteous rant of the voter from the great state of Massachusetts. I say the same thing, over and over, and get blank stares. But I won't stop! I know, in all fairness, that Georgia abrogated its ratification when it seceded from the union and that it was the last Confederate state to be readmitted to the union, but we did get the fourth quarter in the ones issued for each state. I won't post a picture of it, because it is the ugliest of the 50 quarters.
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)roamer65
(37,902 posts)But Georgia's was very ho-hum.
IMO the best was Washington's.
Hang onto your state quarters, though. Soon they will be a relic of a country from the past.
ExciteBike66
(2,700 posts)On the other hand, I live in central FL, which is basically the north. Almost all of my friends are transplants...
stephensolomita
(91 posts)Of all the former slave states, only Virginia and Texas send more money to the federal government than they receive. Mississippi receives more than three dollars for every dollar it sends. But hypocrisy is the preferred mode of communication below the Mason-Dixon line. This is the main reason I'm against a fifty-state approach for the Democratic Party. At present, except Virginia and Florida (and only because so many northeners have moved to those states) I find the south to be irredeemable. Maybe sometime in the future....
Dustlawyer
(10,539 posts)If the Democrats put some time, effort and money into Texas it could get over the hump that is gerrymandering. Already Dallas, Houston and San Antonio are blue. If we could get more of the valley registered as well as some of the medium and smaller cities we could turn blue and lock out the Republicans from the WH.
I agree with much of what the OP is about, but would like to see the differentiation made between Southern Republicans and us Yellow Dog Democrats. We take enough crap from these assholes that live down here to get it from up North as well. Here on DU I have seen countless posts telling us to secede already and how worthless we all are... It strikes a nerve when you stand up for our Party and our beliefs day after day, always outnumbered, and sometimes at risk of physical harm only to open up DU and see someone lump you in with the heartless, brainless idiots.
We should be looking to see what our Party can do turn the tide in the South not write it off. While Trump is primarily the result of our media propaganda, corrupt campaign finance system, and meddling Russians, he is also an opportunity to have a resurgence of the Democratic Party and Progressive views. The mask is being ripped off of the Republican agenda and if we play our cards right we will have an opportunity to prove to many of these ignorant bastards that they have been fed a lot of BS. What we need is real leadership and solidarity. Shooting us Southern Democrats in the same firing squad as the rest serves only to guarantee we will make zero gains in the South.
stephensolomita
(91 posts)Dustlawyer: I've been thinking about your post for the past 24 hours and you certainly deserve a response. First, let me admit that it's far easier for me to be a progressive in New York than for you to be a progressive in Texas. And I agree that too many posts, mine included, fail to consider the Dems who inhabit bright-red states like Texas. But you also provide an answer to my rejection - FOR NOW - of a fifty state approach when you describe yourself as "...always outnumbered, and sometimes at risk of physical harm...."
When LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, he famously said that the party would lose the south for a generation. His proclamation, as it turned out, was optimistic. Nixon began the Southern Strategy, Reagan followed through with his fried-chicken eatin' welfare queen, George Bush with Willie Horton, and Trump with birtherism. Once part of the New Deal coalition, southerners were the first to desert. Will they ever come back? At age 73, I don't hope to see it before I leave the fight for good.
Political resources are finite. You won't see Republican fat cats like the Koch Brothers pouring money into turning California red any time soon. Nor can Dems pour money into losing causes, not when we've been losing ground for more than fifty years. We must fight battles we can win.
Dustlawyer
(10,539 posts)California is in no danger of turning purple, much less red. Texas on the other hand is much closer to blue than California to red. We also have a very large American Hispanic population that is largely unregistered. With some work we can get them politically active and turn the tide, something the Republicans here are afraid of. They are like a large untapped oil field to put it in our terms.
robertpaulsen
(8,697 posts)thanks for the heads up
robertpaulsen
(8,697 posts)I'm enjoying the rant so far!
MindPilot
(12,693 posts)
DURHAM D
(33,040 posts)I added four ancestors who migrated from Germany to Ohio and arrived in time to fight in our civil war. One of them was in his 50s. My thought - wow, they can't catch a break.
On the other side of the family I have more English ancestors than I can count who fought in the Revolution.
So this is my country too.
rzemanfl
(31,339 posts)Colin Woodward's "American Nations."
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)Puritanism brooks no dissent.
Vinca
(53,836 posts)
ismnotwasm
(42,674 posts)But immediately thought of the many good DUers from the south who have to put up with far too much shit. I'm glad you are from there, for the good and the bad. I get it--I could write a tongue in cheek one about Seattle.
liberaltrucker
(9,168 posts) 
pangaia
(24,324 posts)By chance, I just visited friends in Huntsville.
Of course that is a 'city.'
First time in Alabama since... 1970 !
Also went to Florence, Tuscumbia and Muscle Shoals. Last time also 1970....
Used to live in Memphis..for 3 years.. 1967-1970.
So.. I can detest ignorant Southern bigots.... as well as ignorant Northern bigots..although the ratios are just a bit different.... HA!.....
...and still love things about 'the' south. Which I do.....
OK I'll take a chance here and see if I get reported for bad behavior by somebody...
-- 'Sweet Home Alabama' and 'The Night They Drove Ole Dixie Down.' Oh, yes!!
BTW,, ever hear MICROWAVE DAVE AND THE NUKES?
liberaltrucker
(9,168 posts)I grew up about 50 miles south of Florence (rural Walker County) and currently
live in Butler County, PA. So I have seen more than my share of both Northern
and Southern ignorant bigots. Only difference I've seen is that the Southern
food is MUCH better. 
Except, maybe NYC pastrami!
Edit: This dude would make a fortune in the NOLA French Quarter!
pangaia
(24,324 posts)We just happened into him at a concert at the Art Gallery, of all places.
I spoke with him after.. sweetest guy you could imagine.
He is a local legend and hero. brings all kinds of music to the schools, rock, classical, folk, etc....
He said touring is just too much work.. LOL!!
.................
On edit:
Dave could be a reincarnation of Bukka White....Especially this cut....
And a story-- When I lived in memphis, 1967-70, there was still a genuine non-tourist blues scene (no idea about now). Furry Lewis lived there and for a couple of six packs and dinner he would come to our place in is ratty old pickup with his wife and kids and....'entertain.' One night he brought Bukka White with him !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This was while Bukka was in town for a Blues Fest.
A night I will never forget.
Missn-Hitch
(1,383 posts)After living in Boston for 3 years, I wish Seattle would get their shit together and get a better public transportation system.
ismnotwasm
(42,674 posts)I've lived here my entire life and Seattle is basically a backwoods logging town built on corruption that became a major city without realizing or preparing for it. From what I've read, some form of light rail system was proposed in the 60's, and was shot down. They've cut back metro so much it's all but useless in some places. So now we have crap traffic in crap infrastructure.
WiffenPoof
(2,404 posts)...the OP myself. Great rant. Everything he/she wrote seemed right on the mark.
As I have said many times, I believe the deep South is about thirty years behind the rest of the country.
My apologies to those DU Southerners.
latinaliberal
(102 posts)👏👏👏👏👏
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)There is a lot of arrogance and ignorance in that rant. In true south bashing fashion it will be cheered on DU.
Then it goes into bigotry. Yeah, no issue with bigots in those northern states.
Things like this help to dismiss the depths of racism and bigotry in this country. Sounds like it was written by an entitled shit-head.
rivegauche
(601 posts)DUH. There are hateful assholes everywhere. The difference is the southern states have beautifully integrated racism and sexism into their so-called "culture" and their stupid fucking laws, and the dumbasses like it that way. No northern state is going to fly a goddamned confederate flag over their state house FFS.
mythology
(9,527 posts)In particular, Boston had riots over court mandated school integration. As somebody who has lived in Texas, Colorado, Delaware and Boston, it's obvious that every place I've lived has had racism.
rivegauche
(601 posts)and there was a ton of racism in Brooklyn, even among people whose grandparents were also immigrants. I would never say the northern states didn't have racist jerks but it is definitely different in the south. There it's somehow understood that when white people are alone, with no POC present, if someone says something hideously racist it's not a big deal. I speak from experience.
kcr
(15,522 posts)The only thing I can figure when some deny this is either they've never lived anywhere other than the South so they can't compare, or it has become so normalized for them that they don't see it.
GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)South Philly is awash with them.
jberryhill
(62,444 posts)They tried parking a car in the middle of the street on N. Broad and on S. Broad (in those areas that have the big space in the middle between the yellow lines)
For some reason, you are allowed to park there on South Broad, but not on North Broad.
GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)Simple really.
barbtries
(31,289 posts)you are correct.
Mariana
(15,622 posts)40 years ago. It's rather silly to bring that up as if it were an example of current racial problems. I'm sure with a little effort you can find something more recent.
mountain grammy
(28,973 posts)way too much truth in this rant to dismiss it so easily. And of course, bigots are everywhere.
and, yes, I've seen racism everywhere, but the "worst racism" I've seen anywhere has always been in the south.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)rivegauche
(601 posts)GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)When WBUR‘s Simón Rios was covering a recent story in Back Bay, his interview was interrupted by someone hurling a racial slur at a bystander. The incident prompted him to examine the climate of race in Boston. He explained, “given the number of recent racial incidents in Boston — and the city’s long and complex legacy of race relations — we felt we needed to report on what I’d heard.” For this report, he turned to Rahsaan Hall, director of the Racial Justice Program at the ACLU of Massachusetts.
https://aclum.org/uncategorized/bostons-complicated-enduring-legacy-systemic-racism/
Dismissal improves nothing.
kcr
(15,522 posts)Look, the South is different. It just is. Pointing that out isn't claiming there's no racism up north. Plugging your ears and crying that it isn't is ignoring history.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)That's the point.
kcr
(15,522 posts)But if all you meant to say was you aren't racist, you did a bad job communicating that. It seemed like you were saying that there's nothing wrong with the South.
NCTraveler
(30,481 posts)"It seemed like you were saying that there's nothing wrong with the South."
murielm99
(32,949 posts)I live in Illinois, in one of those rural red areas. It is true here. I have called even fellow Democrats on their racism. And a few times, I have remained silent. That shames me.
I am told that MLK found Chicago to be more racist than some areas of the Deep South. My daughter lived in Madison WI, a liberal bastion, and said it was segregated and the cops picked on the black community quite heavily.
We can do better.
Missn-Hitch
(1,383 posts)rivegauche
(601 posts)
volstork
(5,827 posts)Last edited Tue Jun 27, 2017, 09:51 PM - Edit history (1)
in 1796, but I have to agree here. I live in Nashville, a bastion of blue in my blood-red state, and I know how miserable it is to see the rednecks with trump stickers on their beater trucks. It hurts even more to see those same stickers on Mercedes SUVs, presuming (perhaps wrongly) that those people "know better." They are all bigots and deplorables, blinded by their false christianity into forcing all of America down the drain with those they hate or deem unworthy.
Missn-Hitch
(1,383 posts)volstork
(5,827 posts)was a spy for the Union Army in the Civil War, fighting in Tennessee. He clearly knew what was what...
Docreed2003
(18,714 posts)Most folks don't know that TN was pretty equally divided during the war. My grandfather's grandfather was a Methodist minister who ferried run away slaves to Quaker ministers in KY, who ferried them further north. In east tn, you're more likely to see union cemeteries than confederate because east tn sided strongly with the union. My how times have changed. Thanks for sharing your families story!!
(Also as a "nashvillian", although I grew up and now live in sumner co, agree with your statements above)
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)volstork
(5,827 posts)Bizarro World. Jesus himself would puke, too.
mountain grammy
(28,973 posts)right on rant as far as I'm concerned.
ffr
(23,368 posts) 
world wide wally
(21,836 posts)But how about DOING something about it?
If education is what you need, try becoming a teacher. Don't just whine about people "picking on" the South. Their votes down there are worth 3 people's votes from California and they have far too much power as it is.
Save the tears and kick some butt!
May I suggest you start owning up to it and organizing. This is a funny rant because every word of it is true and YOU are the change we have been waiting for.
GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)religious belief.
If you haven't seen this piece, take a look. It breaks down why many people in the South and the rural states won't ever change.
http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/rural-america-understanding-isnt-problem
It's a longish read but worth it.
'In deep-red America, the white Christian god is king, figuratively and literally. Religious fundamentalism has shaped most of their belief systems. Systems built on a fundamentalist framework are not conducive to introspection, questioning, learning, or change. When you have a belief system built on fundamentalism, it isn’t open to outside criticism, especially by anyone not a member of your tribe and in a position of power. The problem isn’t that coastal elites don’t understand rural Americans. The problem is that rural America doesn’t understand itself and will never listen to anyone outside its bubble. It doesn’t matter how “understanding” you are, how well you listen, what language you use…if you are viewed as an outsider, your views will be automatically discounted.'
rainin
(3,246 posts)and I laughed! hahahahahahaha Great rant!
sab390
(216 posts)Washington refused the northern offer of king. I'm from Wisconsin and a die hard liberal but they had some of the best ideas of man ever. We hold these truths -- Jefferson. Two terms at the top and go home -- Washington. Yes, fuck the cousin loving, knuckle dragging, racist bigoted Neanderthal morans. But look for the good. It's there.
OKNancy
(41,832 posts)The fellow needs to brush up on his history.
trof
(54,274 posts)This yankee has it just about right.
sadly
yuiyoshida
(45,356 posts)And so glad to be on the West Coast chill'in!
flying-skeleton
(817 posts)
Response to flying-skeleton (Reply #51)
roamer65 This message was self-deleted by its author.
azureblue
(2,721 posts)We have enough of your smug superior Northeast types who come down here, get drunk and throw up on the streets, don't tip, turn right in front of the streetcars, disrespect our culture and traditions and bitch about our coffee. Then you yahoos wonder why we have so many French words in our vocabulary yet you turn around and treat us like we're dumb hicks..
Stay home. Don't come here for Mardi Gras or the Jazz Fest Quarter Fest or any of the other cultural events we have around here. where all you do is make fools of yourselves. We don't call you Massholes down here for nothing, you know.
mahatmakanejeeves
(69,382 posts)Jack Encarnacao Monday, March 21, 2016
Credit: Stanley Forman
LIFE CHANGER: Ted Landsmark, right, is immortalized when he was photographed being attacked with a flag during an anti-busing rally in 1976.
A wider-angle view:
Big_K
(237 posts)(aka Jacksonville, Florida) I enjoyed this post.
Of course, I now live in the <sarcasm> wonderful state of Wisconsin </sarcasm>, or Wisconsinstan, with our wonderful governor and Koch brothers errand-boy Scott Walker, and where I am represented 
by Paul Ryan. Bad to Worse, so to speak.
mnhtnbb
(33,306 posts)although I would suggest the disgruntled MA voter read up a little more about the Revolutionary War. King's Mountain. Decisive victory
in contriubuting to the outcome of the war.
http://www.ncpedia.org/kings-mountain-battle
MRDAWG
(501 posts)If the 13 colonies had the right to declare independence, the South had the same right. The "Solid South" is still solid. The reason is the same (civil rights). The party name is all that has changed.
benpollard
(261 posts)Get out of the big cities and it's almost as bad as the south.
LaydeeBug
(10,291 posts)GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)Until people can be educated away from the authoritarianism of fundamentalist religion, this isn't going to change.
That, along with the very real tribalism that exists in the rural parts of the country, will condemn the rest of us to the whims of asshole, fundy preachers and their equally assholish followers.
GusBob
(8,234 posts)Where did that take place again? How long that abuse go on? Who all was involved in the cover up?
GoneOffShore
(18,016 posts)Or are you just being argumentative for the sake of it?
Perhaps you should change your user name to NonSequitor.
And yes, it's after dinner. I've had a glass of wine or two, but what you posted makes no sense at all.
lark
(26,060 posts)You don't get to tar every single citizen of any state with 1 brush. There are good individuals everywhere, even in Al, MS, LA, TX, AR, FL, TN, SC, NC, GA, KY. Now, there are individuals and there is "the system". Yes, the system in the south sucks big time. Yes, if the country is splitting, I'm moving back to CA where I lived 18 years before coming back home to help my elderly parents.
BTW, if you get rid of FL, you lose the Keys, and that wouldn't that be a shame.
Croney
(5,007 posts)When I go to my home state of Louisiana, i make sure my return ticket is in order. I love ya, home state, but you're a damned depressing place to live.
roamer65
(37,902 posts)Are you?
If not, you should be.
NutmegYankee
(16,477 posts)I'd rather fight and die than let someone take a piece of my country. If they want to secede, they can secede to hell!
roamer65
(37,902 posts)But when the civil unrest starts, the markets and the dollar will go into the shitter....fast.
Missn-Hitch
(1,383 posts)If I find myself in a better situation, I will migrate. If I am in my current situation, I will pick up a weapon.
Damn.
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)People in red states love to complain about taxes. But big blue states pay for their roads, sewers, healthcare, Medicaid. If blue states got rid of red states tomorrow, one thing I know for sure, states like my Florida will have turned blue by Christmas of next year and a few others like North Carolina and Georgia won't be far behind.
LexVegas
(6,958 posts)
stonecutter357
(13,042 posts)LittleBlue
(10,362 posts)Some regions of the US want completely different laws.
alarimer
(17,146 posts)They didn't secede because they were occupied by federal troops. And now is reliably blue, most of the time.
I think this kind of rant might be cathartic but it is also wrong. The South is not a monolith, nor are all the people there right-wing nutjobs. LA has a Democratic governor right now. In New Orleans, the mayor has removed all (or is in the process of removing) confederate monuments. I suggest the author listen to Mitch Landrieu's speech. Georgia gave us Jimmy Carter and Martin Luther King, Jr. Among others. A lot of courageous liberals have endured in the south for all these years.
How about all those Trump voters in Michigan or Pennsylvania? Why are they not subject to such insults? So, yeah, the more I think of it, the angrier I get at this jackass.