racists in NJ

[RootedPhoenix]

I got called a white n by some lady on the bus once. I live in the Sacramento area, so it's certainly not just New Jersey.

(BTW, that is the weirdest insult I have heard yet. I'm whiter than Casper and have enough European heritage to fill half a family tree.)

People are just bonkers.

[Evil Queen]

That was kinda my point: Down south the Confederate flag is a cultural symbol and people there are familiar with the history behind it.

Up here, it seems to just be something you slap on a vehicle to appear "country", and many of the people displaying them seem to have problems with people of different races.

I'm sorry if I implied that Confederate flag=racist, ignorant hillbilly. That wasn't my intent.

That's okay Irv. I'll forgive ya. It's all the crappy movies that really give it a bad rep. (Deliverance is why I won't stop in Mississippi. Blame the media.)

[MyEccentricHell]

*Chiming in from NJ* He was just a random asshole bigot.

[AdminAssistant]

(Deliverance is why I won't stop in Mississippi. Blame the media.)

Wasn't that set in Georgia?

My Mom's fam is from Mississippi, they have the BEST accents. I love it.

[Brightglaive]

That's okay Irv. I'll forgive ya. It's all the crappy movies that really give it a bad rep. (Deliverance is why I won't stop in Mississippi. Blame the media.)

I've gone through Mississippi and stayed in several places there. (My parents were looking for family burial plots for geneological research.) The people are extremely polite and downright nice. I don't think I met one person that wouldn't have given the shirt off their back if you needed it, regardless of race. They were downhome "folks".

I think deliverance stereotyped backwoods people that may have existed as Whiskey/Rum runners in the Appalachians in the 1920s and were probably based on the Hatfield-Mccoy Blood feud of Kentucky/West Virginia in the late 1800s. Funny thing is....it was filmed mostly in Georgia (in the Tallulah Gorge near Toccoa, Georgia and on the Chattooga River) and was about a fictional river in Georgia. I'm not getting the Mississippi state tie-in there.

[Jester]

I have met many Southerners who were the nicest people imaginable. I have also met Southerners who were the most racist assholes imaginable. Of course, the above statements can be uttered replacing "Southerners" with just about any other region in the country. Because of the history of slavery and segregation, though, Southerners are labeled racist more often than people from other parts of the nation. The fact that many of them fly the Confederate flag, which a lot of people DO consider racist, doesn't help. (NOTE: I am not commenting on whether or not the flag IS racist. I am just pointing out that a lot of people do view it as such.)

As for Mississippi, I have met exactly one person from there that I can recall. And she was the nicest, sweetest person imaginable....until you got her pissed off. Then you had to duck. But in either case, color had nothing to do with her reactions to you.

[AdminAssistant]

As for Mississippi, I have met exactly one person from there that I can recall. And she was the nicest, sweetest person imaginable....until you got her pissed off. Then you had to duck.

That could be any of my great-aunts....or my Mom.....or ME, for that matter.

[Evil Queen]

Like I said, blame the media. Though I will give Mississippi this; they had the cleanest, nicest looking rest stops I'd ever seen (along I-10). But when you can drive across the state in three hours, it kinda isn't worth stopping for more then a couple hours.

[protege]

Up here, it seems to just be something you slap on a vehicle to appear "country", and many of the people displaying them seem to have problems with people of different races.

That's why many people think that *anyone* who has a Confederate flag on their vehicle/home/clothing is seen as an ignorant idiot. I don't exactly know *why* it shows up all over rural *Pennsylvania* since we were *not* part of the Confederacy...but yes, most of the people who display it up here are ignorant, trailer park rednecks. Way to reinforce the stereotype, you idiots!

I don't think the flag itself is racist, just the time period from when it originated--segregation and slavery were in full swing then. Also, up until the 1960s, the south was well-known for racial strife.

[Jester]

That could be any of my great-aunts....or my Mom.....or ME, for that matter.

I doubt it, unless you worked with me in Key West for a few years, and dated a couple of my friends here......

I don't exactly know *why* it shows up all over rural *Pennsylvania* since we were *not* part of the Confederacy...

Kind of ironic, don't ya think, considering one of the Union's key victories was IN Pennsylvania.

And by the way, I can understand, even if I don't always agree with, Southerners flying the Confederate flag. I can understand people in Missouri doing it too, a little less so, but I can get it, since historically Missouri was split between support for the Union and Confederacy. It's a bit of a stretch, I admit, but I can see it.

Now, unless they are originally from Dixie and just happened to relocate to the Keystone State, what the FUCK are people in PA doing flying the Stars and Bars? Seriously? You're about as Southern as Ted freakin' Kennedy. You wanna be a rebel, son? Take down that idiotic rebel flag*, and get some tattoos and piercings and dye your hair weird colors like all of the other rebellious teens!

*(Lest any of my Southern friends get the wrong idea, I am merely referring to the flag as idiotic for anyone flying it who is from freakin' Pennsylvania. Sort of like a Georgian talking about "Nawtheastehs" or "Hahvahd Yahd."

[DesignFox]

I was born in Atlantic City, does that make me an honorary non-benny? I don't think Trenton counts as Benny territory. :P

For all the non-New Jersians, or for those of you who never lived on the "shore" a Benny is a person from Bayone, Elizabeth, Newark or New York. You have to be from up north to be a Benny.

The more southern shore towns (Atlantic City comes to mind) tend to deal more with "Shoebies" who were the tourists from Pennsylvania who came by train with their lunch in a shoebox.

That's your New Jersey tourist lingo/history lesson for today.

I don't exactly know *why* it shows up all over rural *Pennsylvania* since we were *not* part of the Confederacy...

It was explained to me by people I know in Pennsylvania. Apparently, rural Pennsy is Alabama transplanted. So, a lot of those people ARE originally from the South. If you drive through some of the towns, you'll see the Confederate flag, pigs hung from the tree being prepared for a pig roast on BBQ days, etc. They aren't shy about things some of us Yankees aren't accustomed to!

[Pezzle]

The more southern shore towns (Atlantic City comes to mind) tend to deal more with "Shoebies" who were the tourists from Pennsylvania who came by train with their lunch in a shoebox.

AH see I always thought it was from the tourist's atrocious habit of wearing crew cut socks with sandals.

[Jester]

It was explained to me by people I know in Pennsylvania. Apparently, rural Pennsy is Alabama transplanted. So, a lot of those people ARE originally from the South.

Not exactly. I think you may have misunderstood your friends.

See, I have heard many people describe Pennsylvania thusly: "You have Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, and in between is Alabama!"

But this is not a LITERAL thing. They are saying that between the two major cities, mid-PA is just a bunch of rural hicks.....but they are not ACTUALLY from down South. They only THINK they are.

Which explains the Confederate flag, but not quite the way you thought.

[protege]

But this is not a LITERAL thing. They are saying that between the two major cities, mid-PA is just a bunch of rural hicks.....but they are not ACTUALLY from down South. They only THINK they are.

It wouldn't surprise me if most of those fools had family trees that didn't fork Seriously though, Jester is right. There's not really much between Pittsburgh and Philly, mainly because how the state was settled over 200 years ago. Philly grew because of its location and from shipping. Pittsburgh was simply an outpost on the frontier--then deposits of iron and coal were found, and our industry took off. Throw in our glass and brick works, and we're now one of the busiest inland ports.

The middle part of the state wasn't as lucky. Thick forests, impassible (at the time) mountains, and shallow rivers (like the Susquehanna) simply made it difficult for settlement. Only reason some areas there are growing, is because of their proximity to places like Altoona, Harrisburg and Philly. Others (Lancaster) are growing because of the tourist trade.

For the most part though, it's still pretty rural, and yes, plenty of rednecks can be found in the area. Still don't understand about the flags...since we were not part of the Confederacy, and drove out the CSA troops at Gettysburg. I guess I don't understand just why you'd want to associate with the losing side

[DesignFox]

Not exactly. I think you may have misunderstood your friends.

See, I have heard many people describe Pennsylvania thusly: "You have Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, and in between is Alabama!"

But this is not a LITERAL thing. They are saying that between the two major cities, mid-PA is just a bunch of rural hicks.....but they are not ACTUALLY from down South. They only THINK they are.

Ah. Maybe I did misunderstand. They said precisely what you did above...

But, they ARE from down south originally, so that could be why I misinterpreted what they said. (no they don't pig roast, nor do they hang a Confederate flag)

The husband was in the Coast Gaurd and they moved around the states a lot...retiring in Pennsylvania..but they lived in Lousiana, Alabama, Texas....before coming north. Every once in awhile you can detect their accent- particularly when the drinks start flowing