For years Ive believed that Alabama is one of the most fucked up states of the Union

[Sancho]

36. Some of my neighbors (Largo) are schizo or something...

...many retired (SS and Medicare), new transplants with kids in school, and constantly wanting government services: but they vote republican and donate to the GOP!!

It makes no sense to me - except that there's actually a good bit of underlying racism and sexism. Many "conservatives" have a house keeper from Brazil or yard help from Mexico or a handyman from Poland. It's all great as long as "they" live somewhere else and can't vote. Archie Bunker revisited.

Neighborhood meetings are 50/50 - and pretty contentious. We've banned yard signs because of all the shenanigans, so people put political bumper stickers on their cars and in their car windows.

The Claude Pepper days of solid blue Florida simply doesn't make inroads with the "villager crowd". About once a month I argue with one neighbor while putting out the trash or getting mail. He literally says he would never vote for a woman President no matter who runs!! He is a Boston transplant and MIT grad who retired from NASA. My view of the engineering profession and rocket scientists has been greatly diminished.

My students don't register and don't vote. Telling them about our battle to get the vote for women and 18 year olds helps, but they don't want to take time to go through the registration process, say that their vote doesn't matter anyway, or "don't know" who's running.