The South won’t have to rise again…just remain standing, while the rest of America falls.
This quote has appeared time and time again on numerous Facebook pages and blogs of “True Southrons.” It appeared most recently at the echo chamber of fiction southern romance novel writer, Connie Chastain. Usually I just scoff at such statements, they being what they are. This morning however, I found myself thinking about this quote from a different perspective. Could the South remain standing, or will it be part of the problem that causes America to “fall?”
Two videos came across my YouTube channel this morning that highlighted some severe socio-economic problems the South currently faces, and got me thinking about those “True Southrons” that make the above argument.
I just want to say that I neither advocate nor condone the Secular Talk channel. I found the videos interesting when taken together with the quote above. The southeastern section of the country receives an unprecedented amount of federal welfare. The failures of the broken system that is national education are more prevalent in the South. These are just a couple of the problems. So could the South remain standing were America to fall? Personally, as someone who lives in Georgia where 25% of the population lives below the poverty line, I’m inclined to say no. But of course, I could be mistaken. Governor Deal, after all, says these are the Glory Days….
So what are your thoughts? (Note: For the sake of discussion, anyone can comment on this thread including those banned for previous offenses. Just keep the conversation on topic).
The Historic Struggle 
He’s rather condescending. I agree with your premise. It’s difficult to change the culture of the South given the state of politics in America. I would have a little sunnier outlook though. It’s unlikely that after a couple more generations the South will remain as entrenched. Or maybe not.
I’ll agree about the condescension which is why I don’t really support his angle, but the facts are irrefutable.
I think the culture in the South is changing albeit slowly. They do not have an overwhelming majority any more on either side of the fence. As more and more people move to the South they bring their interests with them. I distinctly recall hearing one Causer complain about the state of Florida with all the liberals from the North moving in and changing the state’s political climate. We have also seen this out west where Californians move into the other states. While many are conservatives, they are California conservatives which means they want the place they move into to have a lot of what California has. That does not appeal to the old line conservatives in many areas.
Add in the changing demographics and you have real change occurring. This is the type of change that happens once a century and it is happening now. Race plays a role in this as well. The white majority in America is going to vanish. That is a given. The only way the old line conservatives can cling to power is to prevent as many people from voting that are not part of their power base. They can’t do that and still claim to be patriots, Americans, and following the Constitution. Their own interests will cause their political collapse.
Sometimes maps lie…
For instance, California seems to be doing fairly well by those maps.
Except…
California has a high unemployment rate, massive public debt, and one-third of the welfare recipients of the country….while having only 12% of the population.
I’ll agree that sometimes maps do lie. But California really isn’t doing that well on any of these maps. It is running about middle of the pack or worse on the issues the South is suffering on.
I actually held my nose once and took a look at one of these Southern secessionist sites, and read the comments sections (which was more interesting than the main articles), and found it interesting that the adherents to the cause were very busy trying to prove their “Southron” bona fides based on what their great-great-great grandfathers had done and been…they were arguing over who had the most Confederate and “Anglo-Celtic” past. It struck me as arguing over who had the strongest imaginary friend.
I then found myself wondering something else…while these guys were so immensely proud of something their distant ancestors had done, they didn’t talk much about what they had done in their own lives or were doing, besides strutting, whining, and pouting on an internet forum. They had this grand sense of entitlement, that they had to be given benefits based on what distant ancestors had done, not on what they deserved by their own works.
I was struck by that moral and intellectual laziness.