More on rural America

I know I should just let this one lie, but here goes.

Mark Thoma references the article that I linked to in the previous post:

I have to take issue a bit with this characterization of the importance of rural versus urban America in the political process. One of the claims is that rural America, particularly the part that are actually farmers, is too tiny to justify the attention the media gives to it:

<snip quoted text>

More than that, there is a cultural tradition in these areas that is not limited to farmers or even to rural areas that embraces the ideals that you hear when farmers speak. I can think of many, many people who do not live in what we would classify as rural areas, family in Sacramento come to mind, who certainly are not farmers but grew up around it and still feel a part of that culture and embrace its ideals.

Now, for what it's worth, I agree with Mark.  There's a huge population of people in the U.S. today that aren't farmers, but grew up farming, or around farmers, or hell, just far enough out in the suburbs that they consider themselves "rural".

But that isn't the point.

See, I think what Kung Fu Monkey is ranting about has nothing to do with farmers, or "rural America".  The real reason he's upset (I hope) is that he's just plain sick and tired of mainstream journalists who will not...shut...the...fuck...up about "the great divide between the coastal cities and the heartland" (or some variant on this meme).

Remember all the stories we heard in 2004 about some rural American bitching about some east (or west) coast city dwellers "sipping their lattes"?  I bet I saw that repeated on CNN 500 times.  Hell, there's a whole book about it.  How long do I have to endure the lame "sipping lattes" meme?  Presumably as long as I will have to endure the "heartland" mean.  If it sells Chevy trucks, it must be true, right?

Seriously the notion that the vast majority of American citizens live in rural "heartland" areas, while a small minority lives in cities, ruling over them like an upper class, is a bit absurd.  As is the notion that those of us that live in the city are heathens, heartless capitalists, or persons of low moral character.  Or that all people living in "the heartland" are "simple folk" right out of the movie Fargo.  Let's move on, OK?  There are 56 Starbucks stores in Kansas.  Plenty of latte-sipping going on there.  Find another meme.