It is no secret that many people from the Northeast despise the Southern states. We see time and time again threads on this very website where people from the region north of the Mason-Dixon (and even California who like to consider themselves in line with the North), calling Southerners rednecks and the like. They express their distaste for the South on many occasions, because they believe that the South lives in a very backwards society. The sad stain that was slavery is the reason that is most often quoted by the North as their disdain for the South. While bigotry or racism if you prefer remained a serious problem in the region for many years, I do not believe that this is the primary reason for the anger that is expressed from the North to this day. There are a couple of factors that we can look at to explain this. The first factor has to do with the reluctance that the South had towards letting the North tell them what their states could and could not do regarding slavery. When the South lost control of the federal government, the fear was that the states would have to abide by the federal government's laws which definitely were moving towards an anti-slavery position. The South did not want to be told by a central government how to run their states. This was a time of extremely strong beliefs in self-governance. Was the South right for wanting to keep slavery a viable option? Of course not. That is why we had a war in this country. However, the opportunists from the North (commonly known as carpetbaggers), did little to help the cause of African-Americans (known as freedmen at the time). They started out speaking of equal rights for the freedmen, but soon let the influence of railroad investors from the North sway them into the creation of segregation. So the North, in it's push to exploit the resources of the South basically put the freedmen right back into the same position they were prior to being freed. This of course was also known as the "reconstruction" period in the South. The North, believing itself to be superior to the South after the war, not only exploited Southern whites, but did nothing for the blacks. This false sense of superiority though has continued to this day, and plays a big role in the North's attitude towards the South. However, I do not think this is the main reason that the North does not like the South. The main reason for this, I believe, is that the North is jealous of the rich culture that the South possesses. Regardless of race, Southern pride is stronger than any other region's pride. It is unwavering. There is good reason for this too. So much of the entire country's culture stems from the South. I would say that the most prevalent example is music. The oldest form of traditional music in North America combined the styles of Europe and Africa. The music was called "old-time music and basically started with Fiddlin John Carson from the Appalachians. Then there is the creation of blues music. Created in the Mississippi Delta region, this is the music that influenced the creation of Rock and Roll, the most influential music in the world. All of the greatest musicians can trace their music's roots back to this area. Most of the greatest musicians came from this area. Ray Charles, Robert Johnson, BB King, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Roy Orbison, and Elvis all are from the South. They are the influence for the greatest bands on earth. From the Stones to Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, and the Beatles. Without the South, the British invasion in music would never have occurred. Along with music, the greatest american novel was written by a southern woman about the South. Pulitzer Prize Winner Margaret Mitchell wrote Gone With the Wind. For people who do not understand how influential this book was, in the late 30's, if you had not read this book you were considered illiterate. The cultural richness of the South along with the South's pride are what really angers the North. The North no longer has an identity. What in this day and age can we say is great about the region. There is no real legacy that the North brings to the table. The only thing the North can do is continue to talk down on the South. As if people from the South even cared. After going to Boston and Philly, I don't believe the North can even say that it is the beacon of racial tolerance. I heard more racial slurs thrown around in the North than I ever did in the South. It makes me wonder if they'll ever get over their insecurity and start treating the South with a little respect.
"Freedman " is a term from the early middle ages, actually-it was just strung out a bit. NO pun intended. I suspect it may have something to do with deep frying everying.
It is also the fact that the southern folks tend to make decions based on religion, rather than reason, intellect and science.
What horseshit! Southerners respect religion for sure, but my friend I would be careful to think when dealing with a Southerner that reason, intellect, or science are absent. After all, who sent men to the moon? A bunch of Germans and Alabamians. Who built the only missile to ever intercept another missile in the exo-atomosphere? ( My dad ) a bunch of Alabamians. The list of southerners with high levels of reason, intellect, and science is a very long list indeed. Why do I think alot of Northerners are jealous of Southerners? I think it could be for some of the reasons stated above and because our women are prettier and if we had not run out of money during the Great War of Southern Independence we would've kicked their ass and they know it!
Yes, there a minority of Southerners who are given a bad name by the non thinking idiots who elect people like George Bush. In the red states, there are people who were smart enough not to vote for Bush, they are the minority...
Couldn't disagree more. California girls are much, much better. Southern girls are too fat. This speaking from experience.
They know not what they do Z! Misguided politics does not make people entirely non thinking idiots. As a matter of fact an argument could be made that being highly political minded is a form of stupidity. Ever read "The Best and The Brightest"? Believe it or not Southern Culture and Society in many ways is vastly superior to Northern Culture and Society. This is why there is such a large influx of people moving into the south from the north. I deal with people relocating to the south everyday and almost always hear " The people here are so nice", "I came to visit and loved it so much I decided to move here", etc. etc. So CUT US SOME SLACK!
Northern pussies move there because they can't handle the winter, some move for jobs, some move for lower cost of living, non Patriots move there to avoid taxation, but they don't move for the culture...