Arkansas - I didn't know it was such a stuck in the mud state, did you?

[ensho]

http://blog.buzzflash.com/mailbag/949


Subject: Good to get away

Dear BuzzFlash:

It's a been a while since I wrote the Mailbag. My wife and I were on a trip to New England, Maine specifically this October and were lucky enough to visit Boston, Providence and Portland. It's truly beautiful country. This isn't a travelogue, though. Some readers may recall I hail from Northwest Arkansas, a real hotbed of hardcore right wing GOP insanity and evangelicalism. So much so I have become increasingly unhappier living here and once I retire, I'm outta here. For you see, in this Bible Belt stronghold, regionalism is extreme.

Most people do not travel, and except for your quick tourist bucks, after which you can leave quickly, thank you very much, they don't like outsiders. This will change in time as the world continues to infiltrate via the Internet and influx of people from other parts of the country and even the world. The change will be too slow for me to benefit being 48 already, so I will move on as soon as retirement allows.

I made a bet with my wife that during this trek, through which we went through 17 states all over the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard that with the exception of trucks, we wouldn't see one Arkansas license plate other than our own until we neared Memphis on the state line as we returned home. I won the bet. I find this sad, because travelling broadens our scope, increases our knowledge and teaches us that not everybody thinks the same about absolutely everything, a thought I'm pretty sure a large proportion of folks in this area have never entertained that thought.

It's willful ignorance, intolerance and hate that fuels this fire, and while I want to be sure to acknowledge there are good people who are not able to see our country because of economical or health reasons, there are lots who can but won't. Hence, I was relieved to see that in the Northeast, the Democrats are held in higher esteem, concern for everybody's welfare besides one's self and tolerance are much more prevalent. It's a great country, and I have learned that the stubborn South will have to join the rest of the nation soon or be left behind to continue to wallow in its own hate. It's not fair to those of us down here who do care, and there are plenty of us, because we get lumped in with the rest of the region thanks to the dominance of talk radio and FOX News, which you can't get away from anywhere.

So while the song remains the same here in NW Arkansas, I'm encouraged that the whole country isn't like what we Dems have to put up with here. Makes me think maybe there's still hope left, and that's possibly the best thing I brought back home with me.

Scott
Fayetteville, AR
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[Tommy_Carcetti]

1. I can think of at least one good thing Arkansas gave us.

Two, if you are a Baltimore Orioles fan....

[Taverner]

2. And what did he do the minute he got the chance?

PULLED UP STAKES AND LEFT, THAT'S WHAT!!!

[sinkingfeeling]

3. I live in NW Arkansas, in Fayetteville, and disagree with Scott. There is very little regionalism

in Benton and Washington counties due to the population being about 1/2 native and 1/2 'new comers' from all over. This is the home of the University of Arkansas, Wal-Mart's Home Office, JB Hunt, Tyson Foods, etc. I have traveled this country as well and have found Arkansas tags in every state I've been. I will agree that the Bible Belt influence is strong and that Benton county remains very Republican (could it be Wal-Mart?), Fayetteville is extremely liberal.

[damntexdem]

4. Well, good luck up there. But I do have a question:

If a married couple in Arkansas gets a divorce, are they still cousins? ;-)

[sinkingfeeling]

12. No, that's only in Texas.

[Seeking Serenity]

5. We're stuck in the mud, all right.

Because it doesn't seem as though it's EVER going to stop raining!

[Heidi]

6. Oh, I dunno. I was born in Arkansas, have traveled extensively in the US and abroad,

and have by choice lived in Europe for a decade. My aunt and uncle who live near Ft. Smith are diehard Dems and have traveled more than I have.

The author's complaint seems to be that some in his state are less progressive than he is, but I bet I could easily list 100 people who I believe are less progressive than _I_ am. We progressives like to do that, don'tcha know, and I suspect that the linked article is more of a vent than an honest attempt at analysis.

[ensho]

7. the letter wasn't an analysis. just an observation after traveling to

the N.E. US.

[Heidi]

9. As I said: venting (nt)

[Captain Hilts]

8. Yes, I did. Why do you think that Bill, Hill and Wesley Clark don't live there any more?

[sinkingfeeling]

13. Wesley Clark was still living in Arkansas in July of this year. When did he leave?

[Dreamer Tatum]

10. Sanctimonious self-congratulatory elitist bullshit

I know tons of progressives from Arkansas and Missouri, and there are flourishing artist communities in the Ozarks. Great, he got out and saw the Northeast. I'll send him a cookie.

[cbdo2007]

11. I go down to Arkansas a couple of times each year to dig Quartz crystals.

[jsamuel]

14. I live in NW Arkansas and this analysis is bogus.

For one thing, Fayetteville, AR is the most liberal city in the state, but he treats it like a clan post. I moved to Arkansas from Florida and never once felt the "hate" of outsiders that is the main point of the article. I am white and I am sure that helps, but I talk different and have a different point of view than my neighbors. They always have treated me with respect and as a friend. I have encountered the occasional racist and misogynist, but I set them straight that they were not allowed to talk that way around me. They hung their heads low and haven't said anything like that since. Must I also remind people that Arkansas has a higher % of Democrats representing it on a national level than California (5/6 are Dems).

[BolivarianHero]

15. Arkansas is pretty nutty...

It was one of the few states where Obama did worse than Kerry, and by a significant margin too.

Looking at results among White voters, it's easy to see why.

[cbdo2007]

16. There ain't nuttin' nutty bout Arkansas!! Just ask this big Jesus statue in Eureka Springs