Decius wrote:
] Things are often funny because they are true. I'm watching the
] Daily Show right now, and they just made a point that made me
] laugh out loud at first and then, well, it really pissed me
] off. It goes back to previous comments I've made about the
] split in this country being urban vs. rural.
]
] As we know, voters for Bush overwhelming said Moral Values and
] Terrorism where their top concerns in the election. Voters for
] Kerry cited Iraq and the Economy. See the BBC article in my
] MemeStream.
]
] Now, consider that by and large the "Red States" where people
] are really concerned about Terrorism are places where there is
] almost no practical risk of a Terrorist attack. Al'Q is not
] going to set off a dirty bomb in Nebraska. Al'Q is not going
] to deploy chemical weapons in Arkansas. Al'Q is not going to
] crash airplanes into buildings in Montana. There are several
] exceptions to this, but most of the places where the risk of
] Terrorism exists are "Blue States."
]
] Manhatten, where terrorist attacks actually occured, and is
] still the highest risk area, voted Kerry by 82%!
] Washington DC, where terrorist attacks actually occured, and
] is still the second highest risk area, voted Kerry by 90%!
]
] Furthermore, even in "Red States" any terrorist attack is
] still likely to happen in an Urban area. The urban counties in
] Atlanta went Kerry by 60% and 73%. There are only two places
] that I can find in the entire country that stand a reasonable
] risk of being hit by a Terrorist attack that voted for Bush.
] Houston and Dallas. Thats it.
]
] The Daily show went on to note that the gay people that the
] Red states are so concerned about also tend to live in urban
] areas.
]
] Their response, from New York, was to thank the Red States for
] "saving us from ourselves."

I have to say that I think you've hit the nail on the head. The division of our country is not a religious one or even a 'moral values' one. There are plenty of religious people in cities. There are plenty of immoral people in the rural areas. It's not simply geography, but way of life and this God-forsaken bullshit "us versus them" attitude that has prevailed over our culture for decades.

As Tom Friedman's article says, "I feel like we're voting for which team we're on." This is exactly how politics is viewed in America. It's basically the Superbowl. It has nothing to do with issues or policy or anything of importance. It's the good ole American spirit of backing a winner, and gloating over the losers misfortune. That's where all the energy came from to drive record numbers to the polls. And that's pretty much why most of the world hates us, because we have the greatest gift on the planet, and we treat it like we're spoiled pre-teens.

The point is that pretty much every major metro area voted for Kerry. Even in 'red states'. There's a completely different sensibility in an urban area than in suburban or rural areas. It's a culture war, not a moral values war. It has nothing to do with morals or religion. It's lifestyle choice, and the reality of ones surroundings.

People in the city have different experiential points that completely change their priorities than non-city dwellers. If I live in Cleveland, I'm pissed because no one I know has a damn job. I'm pissed because we've wasted $500B on fighting a war that had nothing to do with protecting us from terrorism. I'm pissed because my kid got shot at in that war, and is going back again to get shot at. And I know that the war on drugs is a complete waste of time and resources.

If I'm living on a farm, all I see is what I watch on Fox News as the problems of the world. The most important worry I have is whether those damn fags are going to move in next door, or that my daughter might start hanging with those ne'er-do-wells and start shooting Oxycontin. I've got to worry about my son trying to look like the niggers in town instead of being a fine upstanding soldier who loves God and country. And I blame MTV and the "liberal media" for creating all this noise to distract and tempt me and my family from what's real, pure, and good about living in the country.

Both sides are distorted. When you have several generations of people who've never been to visit the other side of this experience, then you cannot possibly understand what is good or bad about either one of them. And this breeds contempt and you might even say hate at this point, since it's blinded our electorate into thinking about this as a "red vs blue" affair, instead of a "what's important for us all? Now prioritize!" discussion.

RE: Daily Show on the Election