As someone who grew up in a state that doesn't count

[Recursion]

...I really, really get where the irritation against the Insult 40 States strategy comes from.

"Look you flyover-country rednecks, we would love it if you vote for us in November but you Democrats who have to actually support our values in communities that in many ways don't agree with them, Independents who have never yet felt comfortable identifying yourselves with our party, and Republicans who have decided your party no longer represents your values, have no place whatsoever determining who the nominee is. Us smart coastal types know best, which is why we've won 3 out of the past 10 Presidential elections by ignoring you.

"And don't worry, once we've won a very slim majority (which we haven't even done in the popular vote for President since 1976) we'll make sure to once again commit political suicide like we did in 1993 by blaming urban crime on rural gun owners and passing a disastrous gun control bill that will prevent no crimes but will succeed in handing Congress to the GOP for another decade. Furthermore, we won't do a damned thing about a disastrous farm policy that essentially hands, year after year, small farms to Monsanto and ADM and then further subsidizes these Leviathans with our own tax money.

"We don't care that you're worried about your way of life disappearing or economic prospects for rural America. We don't care that you go to church every Sunday and consider that an important part of your values and identity, because we are smarter than you and we associate religion with racism and sexism and in the end we're a little worried about anybody who seems comfortable using religious based imagery in speeches. We don't care that you own guns because the only reason anyone would own guns is hunting (which we don't like but we're scared to admit that so we'll let that pass now), being a crazy survivalist, or committing crimes. We don't care that you feel like the economic gains of the past 20 (hell, 40) years have left you behind because if you were actually smart you would have moved to a state that matters since everybody knows that's where you go whenever you have a chance to get out of your small town.

"This goes for you kids in states that do count, too. You have to wait your turn and trust us. Ignore the fact that most of the Democratic party's accomplishments in the previous generation have either been Republican initiatives that we passed and then took credit for or snivelling cave-ins to one of the Bushes and/or Reagan. Yes, we handed Bush a blank check for war, let huge telecoms buy up all the radio and TV stations, rewarded companies for shipping your jobs to other countries, pretended that the huge amount of money you gave us in FICA levies was part of the general budget for short-term political gain even though that sure the debate would be about what to do with this "surplus", killed most of the social safety net, and let us older folks use inflated housing prices to drive up our own retirement funds while locking you out of affordable housing, but our hearts were really in the right place and anyways we know better than you despite all data from our previous behavior."

OK, just had to get that out of my system.

[lapfog_1]

1. Which state of insignificance did you call home?

For me, it was Kansas. Yup, I'm a Jayhawk... Rock Chalk!

[Recursion]

2. Mississippi

I watched the rural culture collapse before my eyes in the 1990's. Fields that had been in my family for generations growing cotton, indigo (yes, people still grow that), okra, and rice are now growing genetically-modified soybeans owned by Monsanto. We've somehow become sharecroppers again in the space of a decade.

[lapfog_1]

5. Fried okra

hominy and grits... pan fried corn cakes...

(grandmother was from Georgia... she came to live with us and cooked, too bad she couldn't taste salt as she got older!)

[havocmom]

3. "blaming urban crime on rural gun owners " a-yup

"disastrous farm policy that essentially hands, year after year, small farms to Monsanto and ADM and then further subsidizes these Leviathans with our own tax money." check

"We don't care that you feel like the economic gains of the past 20 (hell, 40) years have left you behind" BINGO! And as Havocdad often points out, those who carry on about how unimportant independent farmers (FOOD PRODUCERS) are usually do it with a mouthful of inexpensive food. Now that the corporations are gobbling up the land and the water, to say nothing about patented seeds, food is going sky high.

When the , and it will, there are gonna be a lot of urban populations willing to do anything for a bigger serving of gruel.

Those who can hold the land and still grow some food will be the saviors, provided there are any left in a couple of years.

Urban toys and distractions are fun once in awhile, but they do not fill bellies. Ignoring the fact that so much of what we eat comes from abroad via mega-corporations, while making light of the importance of the American Heartland, is a HUGE blow to our security.

More gun laws/less populist DEMS on the Hill do NOT make us safer.

[Selatius]

4. I live on the Mississippi coast. I know how it goes.

The only reason why the state is "insignificant" is because of the behavior of the electoral college. You only need 50% plus 1 to get 100% of Mississippi's electoral votes. Since like 55% to 60% of Mississippi reliably votes Republican, the other 45% get shit-canned.

It's an idiotic way to nominate a president, and until it's changed, a whole shitload of people will continually get disenfranchised.

[Breeze54]

6. No states count in the RW world but all states count in the Dem world.

;)

[grantcart]

7. state of confusion