Why does everyone rush to the aid of W. Virginians, but if you're educated and from San Francisco

[Cant trust em]

you get thrown under the bus?

There may be some jackasses on DU who are making fun of the uneducated but there are mainstream politicians and media pundits that make their entire careers making fun of people who went to college, read books and drink nice coffee. No one in the media would ever dare make fun of ignorant racists in former confederate states, but they sure can get a lot of mileage out of bashing Birkenstock wearing, sushi-eating, liberal eggheads. This blue-collar suck up is making me want to gag.

[rockymountaindem]

1. Well, theoretically you've had all the advantages in life

and have the financial means to afford your own defense, if you will. That's the theory.

[MattBaggins]

18. lol

wut?

[rockymountaindem]

21. As in, being rich and educated means people will take notice of what you say

and that it would be easy to join with like-minded people to promote common interests. Poor people without education are more likely to be ignored and therefore shouldn't be made fun of.

[2rth2pwr]

2. Because, many times they are the people who like to laugh at the W. Virginians.

[Cant trust em]

6. like W. Virginians never make fun of San Francisco.

You and I both know better.

[2rth2pwr]

9. They are normally not the ones that have the power, and ability to

direct research and gov't money.

[rockymountaindem]

12. Yet WV gets tons of pork thanks to Sen. Byrd

He's even willing to brag about it on TV.

[unlawflcombatnt]

14. Exactly

They're the ones that determine who is nominated and who wins, by buying enough media propaganda time to get working Americans to vote against their best interests -- as Obama is trying to do now.

[EFerrari]

66. How do you figure that? Except for the time she spent shilling for NAFTA,

their positions on labor are nearly identical. :crazy:

[Cant trust em]

73. People seem very interested in what they have to say right now

my anti-war and progressive opinions have pretty much been tossed aside. I (and most of DU) am politically toxic to most politicians.

Let me be clear that I'm not advocating that it's OK to make fun of West Virginia, but it does piss me off that it's popular to take shots at me and it's totally OK for America to laugh their ass off. None of this stereotyping bullshit is OK.

[grassfed]

26. 5th gen SFer, educated, financially ok, and never heard slurs against poor whites

[stratomagi]

51. I live in Pittsburgh and around here calling someone West Virginian is code for retarded

Doesn't matter your politics its universal around here. Same phenomenon when I lived in Philly, but there it was New Jersey.

[AllentownJake]

64. Yep

We hate Jersey on the eastern side of the state...never found out why...just the way we are raised.

When we got the NJ state quarters there was talk of taking them to the border and throwing them back.

[jgraz]

3. Making fun of people at the top is funnier than making fun of those at the bottom.

And I say this as a latte-drinking, Volvo-driving, sushi-eating, Mephisto-wearing, college-educated Berkeley liberal.

[TomInTib]

10. Yep. Kinda like living in Mayberry with a whole slew of zeros tacked onto the end.

At least here in TinyTown, anyway.

The wealthy are so much fun to laugh at because they really know how to f**k it up, large.

[jillan]

4. Are you saying that no one in W. Va is educated? Or wears Birkenstocks?

C'mon, you can't be serious.

[Cant trust em]

77. That's not what I'm saying at all.

I'm just saying that if a politician spent time making fun of educated liberal elites, then they'd be applauded. But if a politician promoted negative stereotypes about West Virginia, they'd get killed for it.

We just watched this happen over Obama's bittergate comments. It was perceived that he was taking a shot small town America and he got killed by the media for a couple of weeks. At that same time Hillary Clinton used that opportunity to show how much of a woman of the people she is and made fun of liberal elites.

It's just annoying that it's common to promote one stereotype and then turn around and cry foul for other stereotypes. Shouldn't we just say that stereotyping isn't cool?

[Jamastiene]

5. How many boogers do you see

Looking down your nose at me?

[Cant trust em]

8. Zero. Wouldn't I have to look up my nose to see boogers? NT

[PBS Poll-435]

49. Nose ez higher than the eyez when fully elitism accomplished.

Try harder!

:rofl:

[Cant trust em]

87. I knew that there must have been some axiom that I missed here somewhere

That's why I'm so crappy at Wheel of Fortune.

[PBS Poll-435]

92. Jeopardy.

It is called Jeopardy!

[Cant trust em]

96. This one is Jeopardy?

[PBS Poll-435]

97. Tee Hee...

I thought you got the pseudo-European "stick-up-butt" that makes the schnoz point towards the Heavens.

[Cant trust em]

99. Oh man. I love Europe.

My cousin is talking about doing a Hungary, Czech Republic trip next year. It's either that or South America for me.

[PBS Poll-435]

108. Budapest is so beautiful. Do It!!

[rpannier]

7. Because Poverty isn't funny

[EFerrari]

13. Poverty can be funny but it usually has to be your poverty

not someone else's.

[rpannier]

74. Exactly

Many people make jokes about their finances and that's acceptable.

It's also the spirit of the humor.

Edgy humor can be very funny -- but it's a fine line.

When the humor is designed to raise you up and demean others it ceases to be funny.

[EFerrari]

90. I thought of this counter example though and don't know what to do with it.

"I saw yo mamma kickin a can down the street. Asked her, what you doing? She said, Movin."

Why is that funny? Maybe it's the unexpected exaggeration. Or maybe, it's funny because you or anybody can't control yo momma? :)

[thunder rising]

15. The end of poverty is NOT money ... it's education. You'd think part of Byrd's pork could hire a

better teacher or two.

[PBS Poll-435]

17. Wow. I swear I have seen this argument made before...

I just can't place it.

Free Parking... No, thats not it!

I will tell you when it comes to me.

[schrodinger_I]

11. It is funny...

I am an educated BMW and Porsche driving liberal
but I worked 2 jobs to put myself through school.

It is however easy to make fun of people who are ignorant
or racist. That attitude/mentality does exist in many areas
of the South to include West Virginia but by no means
represents all people that live in the South.

[PBS Poll-435]

16. Gee...Who needs defending more?

I would say the people who government has FAILED for too long.

[galaxy21]

19. Yeah, but THEY voted in the government that screwed them over

[PBS Poll-435]

22. WV? KY?

They voted for Clinton.

WV is almost exclusively Democratic.

From their House of Delegates to the State Senate to their Congressional delegation.

[AllentownJake]

23. WV and KY

both voted for Bush II

They vote for democrats locally however ever since we became more enviromental they have been going over to the Repukes because it is in their best economic interest as far as coal goes. Clean coal is 10 years away.

Their dems don't exactly have the best enviromental record..

[PBS Poll-435]

27. WV voted for the Democratic Candidate from 1984-1996 Win or Lose

[AllentownJake]

28. That was 12 years ago

Before we started going after coal the way we are with our carbon standards.

That's what killed Gore and Kerry in 2000 and 2004 there.

These people aren't ignorant. They know what our enviromental policies as an executive branch means. Less coal.

The Kyota Protocol was in 1997 after the 1996 election.

[PBS Poll-435]

34. Thankfully your argument has been exposed as a fallacy.

Since you don't even know the name of the treaty.

WV is a Democratic state and they don't really care for Obama.

They do like the Clintons, however.

[AllentownJake]

35. Kyoto Protocol

Signed December 11, 1997

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Protocol

[PBS Poll-435]

38. Praise Jesus for teh Googlez

WV couldn't relate to Gore & Kerry. Bottom line.

A leader shows the wisdom that brings people to their side.

They were unable, to our detriment.

[AllentownJake]

39. Well I'm not that worried anymore

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5941804

Apparently McCain is even less popular than Barack according to your standard of the Primary counting.

So goes WV so goes the nation

:rofl:

[PBS Poll-435]

46. My "Standard?"

They are a Democratic State and the marginalization of its people is nothing to ROFL about.

If Gore had won them over, Bush* Jr. would be nothing but a footnote in Cliff's Notes.

[AllentownJake]

The map changes

No one knows what the map is going to be this year.

I'm not interested in running 2000 and 2004 again.

[PBS Poll-435]

54. Either am I. I prefer the 1996 map. That worked for me.

LA all the way north to MN, WV, OH, PA, KY.

391 Electoral Votes is yummy.

[AllentownJake]

62. Well

We'll see how this turns out.

We aren't running a popular President against a ridiculous old party hack who the media laughs at.

[PBS Poll-435]

68. No. We are either running a popular black Senator from Illinois or a popular female Senator from NY

Against a ridiculous old party hack who the media laughs at.

It is a great time to be a Democrat!

:toast:

[AllentownJake]

69. Hopefully

They start laughing at the old son of a bitch more once we get this little civil disagreement we are having.

:toast:

[PBS Poll-435]

75. Oh they will.

Ol' McPlane has more skeletons in his closet than Jeff'y Dahmer.

[AllentownJake]

80. I've been telling people for years

Not to be fooled by him. Just because him and Bush got into it doesn't make him a good guy. He's the heir to Goldwater and the only asshole that would be crafty enough to write an exemption into campaign finance laws for his wife's Jet.

[PBS Poll-435]

83. He is very crafty, I will give you that.

But Goldwater was a purist. He was wrong, but he had character.

McCain has neither. He has sold his soul so many times that Cindy is starting to hang up on the pawn shops.

[gmudem]

76. Bill won WV and KY because of Perot

Quite simply. Also, Bill is an actual Southerner with some personal appeal. Hillary is NOT Bill. Yeah Hillary has a better chance of winning WV's 5 electoral votes than Obama in the GE (not that it matters because she has no chance of being the nominee.)

Of course Obama will put Colorado, Virginia, Iowa, North Carolina, Alaska, Nevada, etc. in play.

But again, this conversation is purely theoretical because Clinton has no chance of being the nominee.

[PBS Poll-435]

79. Alaska!

I think I just peed.

Thanks a lot.

[gmudem]

113. Feel free to look at the polls

The 2 Obama-McCain polls done in Alaska have McCain up 48-43.

And now you have to change your huggies for no reason.

[PBS Poll-435]

115. A Republican wins Alaska?

Shocking!

[gmudem]

119. Jeez I just have to explain everything don't I

If Obama could manage to lose Alaska by only 5 points and even spend some money there that would be shocking. Bush beat Kerry there 62-35 in 04. To go from a 27 point loss to a 5 point loss would be pretty impressive.

[PBS Poll-435]

120. But, But...

I thought polls this far out are useless...

At least that is what I hear...

[PBS Poll-435]

85. So which is it?

Bill won WV (a Democratic State) because of Perot or because he was a Southerner?

[gmudem]

114. Combination of both

That being said Hillary is neither a Southerner, and even in Barr is in the race he won't get nearly as much support as Perot.

For some reason I don't feel like dealing with Hillary's weakness in the Pacific Northwest as Connecticut, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Hawaii just so we might have a chance to win West Virginia.

And Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee. Everything else is just bluster.

[last_texas_dem]

84. (Just a nitpick)

WV didn't vote for the Democratic candidate in '84; only MN and DC voted for the Dem that year. The fact that they were one of the few states voting for Dukakis in '88 has always impressed me, though; it was an interesting group of states voting Democratic in that election. Sadly, it shows how much WV seems to have moved towards voting on social rather than economic issues in presidential elections.

[ileus]

25. for 80 or more years....Democrats have run the state on all levels.

[AllentownJake]

32. Since the Kyota Protocol

We've lost it on any Presidential Election cause as much as people joke they are toothless idiots. They aren't

What's the enviromental record of those congressman and senators?

[PBS Poll-435]

36. Similar to Dorgan/Conrad, Landrieu, Lincoln/Pryor

[NashVegas]

20. You Want to Talk About Thrown Under the Bus?

People living in poverty are invisible in America.

People living in ignorance were invisible, now we see them on TV every week, on Wife Swap. We point at these objects of ridicule and say, "thank goodness we're too smart, educated, and good looking to live like that."

No, instead, we hand them over to Rush Limbaugh, we hand them over to O'Liely, we hand them over to Shotgun Annie.

[cbayer]

24. Blue collar suck up?

Being made fun of because you are privileged is not the same thing as being made fun of because your are underprivileged.

[LooseWilly]

82. So, is this a corollary of "separate but equal"?

I could see it if you said something like "well it's just so easy to make fun of someone because they're underprivileged, that it takes some of the fun out of it..." but, this homily thing about the woe is me, or even worse, woe is them... blah blah blah...

I'm from the other side of the bay from SF... I say make fun of me all you want... and I'll make fun of you (or them)... and we'll just call it even. And while we're at it, how many saw the link that pointed out that 42.8% West Virginians are, in fact, toothless.... the most toothless state in the Union.... (California was 4th, behind Hawaii, Utah, and Connecticut).

In fact, I'd like to thank this thread... up until now I've been perfectly content to settle for making fun of the rich and poor here in California... now I'm feeling inspired to "widen my horizons"...

[Cant trust em]

118. That's all I'm really looking for. I'm an equal opportunity humorist. NT

[iwearshoesinky]

29. WV left Virginia to rejoin the Union during the Civil War

Get some facts straight.

[PBS Poll-435]

41. And that would be an example 100+ years of anti-"Southern" attitude.

nt

[Cant trust em]

86. Thanks for the tip. I forgot about that piece of history.

It's too late for me to edit though.

[Condem]

30. You know, I've seen it in a couple of threads here:

West Virginia WANTS to vote democratic. Well then, why the fuck don't you?

[AllentownJake]

33. Kyota

They aren't fucking stupid. They know what a democratic Presidency does to their biggest industry.

[Condem]

37. Jake

Took a bicycle ride through WV back in 86. Got shot at with a pellet gun, had a KFC box thrown at me and spit upon... all in 30 miles or so. A real intelligent bunch!

[cboy4]

42. That's outrageous you had a KFC box thrown at you and

were spit upon.

[Condem]

45. Or spat, cboy

[cboy4]

Or spat, yea....It's just amazing how someone actually had

a KFC box all prepared to throw at you as you pedaled by!

Imagine the odds! :wow:

[Condem]

65. No, cboy

Fixing a flat. And nothing but bones.

[AllentownJake]

44. That could happen in my state PA too

If you went into the wrong area sadly.

[Condem]

50. Nah. Jake

I'm from PA. Never had a problem. And I rode everywhere. OK, maybe not downtown Philly.

[AllentownJake]

53. I was thinking West Philly

and it wouldn't have been a pellet gun and you wouldn't have your bike anymore.

[Condem]

56. It WAS a nice bike, Jake

The best riding was Gettysburg. Nothing close!

[AllentownJake]

59. We really have a great state

One of the finest in the union.

[Condem]

67. It was my home, Jake

Now Iowa is!

[wvbygod]

63. So condemn a whole state for your anecdote?

I don't see any bigotry against a whole city for any anecdotal muggings here.

The actions of one person do not define a whole populace.

[Condem]

70. It's condem, wvbygod.

Shall I sing a certain song to appease you? Sorry, man. Memories.

[Rose Siding]

31. Here's my take- Here we have a Democrat, a Clinton, exploiting ingnorance

...for political reasons.

I felt the same way when her surrogate bad mouthed libs in that intro a while back.

[thatsrightimirish]

40. In San Francisco

We do not get our money by working hard. There is no poverty and the streets are paved with gold. When we see a homeless person, we throw lattes at them until they cross the bay bridge, then they're Oaklands problem.


PS. We are all gay and contribute nothing to American society.

[EFerrari]

60. I'm living in the wrong damn San Francisco!

lol

[roseBudd]

43. It's republican frame and for a dem candidate to sink to using it is

counterproductive to the Democratic party.

[Bicoastal]

47. A lot of people are assuming here than a college education equals wealth....

And not just wealth, but generational wealth.

I can tell you right now that isn't true. You can DEFINITELY be poor and have a college education--in fact, for many, their college education only made them POORER!

[razors edge]

72. That's the case for a lot

of people in Appalachia, a college degree and working at the jiffy lube.

[wvbygod]

48. Anyone who thinks WV was a confederate state is uneducated

To induce gagging check your mirror.

[newmajority]

52. The whore media wants the sheeple to think that SF is all "hippies" and "queers"

As opposed to "normal" people who occasionally wear bedsheets while setting crosses on fire, while discussing how they'll never vote for ....uh, you know.... "one of THEM people"

[stratomagi]

55. Thats why if I move to the west coast it'll be Portland

Similar to San Fran but without all the media stigma.

[PBS Poll-435]

57. Plus...Portland has a river AND the Ocean (Kinda)

Within an hour's drive!

[EFerrari]

61. Cool. More dope and interior decor for me.

:)

[Cant trust em]

89. Nice to see you on this thread.

Are you going to the Nader/Gonzalez event at the Roxie this month?

[Cant trust em]

88. Portland's really nice.

A lot of good outdoor activities to be had.

That being said, even with all of the media stigma, I adore San Francisco and want to live here for a long time.

[McCamy Taylor]

58. It is funny to pretend to mock the elite, because they have it all. Bashing the poor aint funny.

[VolcanoJen]

71. It's actually all part of the same strategy.

Divide and conquer. Split us among ourselves, make us look at each other suspiciously, make us either jealous of one, or sorry for the other.

It's classic Atwater and surely goes back further, but he perfected it, and this kind of politics has been our reality since 1988 at its apex.

Throw the country against a wall, watch it smash into bits, and scoop up the largest chunks for ourselves, has been the GOP Mantra of the Atwater/Gingrich/Rove/Delay years. A little melodramatic of me to be sure, but it does feel to me like this kind of thing has run its course, and that this year really is different.

[knixphan]

78. ding ding ding!

[PBS Poll-435]

81. Jen -

You are brilliant.

That is all that needs to be said.

Except you are an asset as well.

There. Done.

:toast:

[VolcanoJen]

94. Ummmm.....

... wow.

:hug: :hug: prodn2000 :hug: :hug:

You know I always get a big kick out of roundhousin' with you. You're tough, and you're good. :-)

[PBS Poll-435]

95. Your response is amazing.

Thanks!

:hug: VolcanoJen :hug:

A few years from now, small children are going to ask, "So, Teacher, are there still Republicans around today?"

And she(or he) will reply, "only in obscurity..."




Honestly, you are a fighter if I have ever seen one.

Visualize Jan 09!

[VolcanoJen]

101. "Visualize January 09!"

Remember, more than a few years ago, when so many of us started putting these simple numbers in our sig lines, wearing the buttons on our jackets, putting the stickers on our cars. It was a wink and a nod to each other, and it was always such a joy when the realization crossed some stranger's face, and they would just smile ear to ear in recognition.

1-20-09

We have so much more in common and very little that divides. In that post above, well, I really feel that we recognize it now, we understand so much more fully what they've done to us, and how they so effectively decimated our party and achieved Republican rule. The amazing part is that we had this campaign, and it was long, and it criss-crossed the nation and hit every region, and while we argued and bickered and hated, we also slowly were learning about each other.

I learned more about America and my countrymen in the last five months than I have learned in the whole of my life.

For that I am thankful, and I hope we can all see that, when the tears dry, when the smoke clears.

1-20-09

:hug: My Fellow DUers, My Community :hug:

[TheDonkey]

91. Hillary supporters on DU have been lashing out against "latte liberals" and let Hillary surrogates

slam others for being educated and do nothing to speak out. Fauxrage is alive and well.

[PBS Poll-435]

93. Wow. What? Who? When?

Huh?

I enjoy an occasional triple shot latte every once in awhile, but jeez

Huh?

[Arugula Latte]

98. I'm a poster child for this kind of hate. I've lived in Berkeley, San Francisco, Cambridge, Mass. &

Portland, Ore. I've got a master's degree. I'm 100% a cat person. I loves me some lattes. :9

Apparently, I'm not quite Amurikin enough for Hillary's taste.

[TBF]

100. I've got a dog instead of cats, but somehow I doubt Hillary will go out for chai lattes

with me either. That's ok, because I'd just spend the time telling her about how inspired I am by Obama. And she'd want to talk about bowling or something.

[Moochy]

105. But you could peer pressure her into taking a wheat grass shot with you I bet!

chug chug chug!

[Cant trust em]

103. You should be ashamed of yourself!

:sarcasm:

[Arugula Latte]

106. As my penance I'm putting on a flag pin, cracking a Bud, and listening to Toby Keith

[Cant trust em]

107. You'll listen to Toby Keith and like it!

Or there's that totally overplayed John Cougar Mellencamp song that I actually liked before it was shoved down my throat.

[smalll]

102. Looks like a lot of Obama supporters might want to start up a new organization - the NAARP -

the National Association for the Advancement of Rich People. Of course, that would include a lot of Republicans, so maybe you can make it the NAAHRP - the National Association for the Advancement of Hip Rich People.

Rich Power!
The well-to-do are people too!
Cultural Creatives of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your Blackberries!
We're posh, have dosh, get used to it!

:eyes:

[Cali_Democrat]

104. The American media has made it cool to be stupid

Americans voted for Bush because the media told them he was the kind of guy you could have a beer with. The Americans people will swallow anything the media shoves down their throat. That's why the media bashes San Fran and liberals, but worships at the feet of Joe Sixpack. The media knows they can easily manipulate Joe Sixpack, so they cater to rednecks.

[hollowdweller]

109. I'm from WV and you DO have a point

For instance how is it the GOP gets away with using Pelosi as a bogeywoman and insinuates that she wants to bring some sort of "California" values to the heartland in their attack commercials but the Dems never use for instance Jesse Helms, Klansmen, or stupid peckerwoods in their commercials as examples of what republicans bring? Could it be there's more peckerwoods than progressives?

Oh and by the way I have some Birkenstocks(and a shotgun) :-)

[1awake]

110. ignorant racists in former confederate states??

I don't even know exactly how to respond to your post, though I assume its less about West Virginia people and more about your feelings of being "shit on" it seems. You need to understand, while your point may be valid, using West Virginia was silly. I ask honestly.. is there any other state in this union that is made fun of more? We have our own little corner of the market on being looked down upon, no jobs, very little chance for education, and no single politician has ever offered any form of a plan that resembled anything other than hot air.

People in West Virginia would vote Democratic a majority of the time, but every single presidential hopeful usually holds policies that would kill what little job opportunities still remain. Do we care about the environment.. of course. But we like to feed our kids alittle more.

[mrreowwr_kittty]

111. Sorry but New Jersey is made fun of way more than any other state.

I lived there for 3 years and I thought they had a pretty good sense of humor about it.

[1awake]

112. not even remotely close cat,

but I'll grant you NJ people are way up there on the list :)


.. But then this kinda argument is one I would love to not be the winner of.

[Cant trust em]

117. You're right, it is more about me getting shit on.

It just pisses me off that politicians can't wait to get here to fundraise, but then trash us behind our backs. I understand becoming a punchline for some late night comic's spiel, but do I really need to put up with it from mainstream politicians?

WV just happens to be the state that is in the topic right now. I don't really know anything about the state, though I have driven through part of it.

[Leopolds Ghost]

122. MTR is just going to keep sucking jobs out of your state. Do the math. Employees needed per ton

What is ignorant is West Virginian companies convincing voters that more efficient industries means more jobs. It means less jobs. By definition of the word efficient.

[JackBeck]

116. Divide and conquer.

Why anyone pays attention to what the mainstream media says anymore is beyond me. They will be ultimately be rendered insignificant if we can block the privatization of the internet.

But let's continue to feed the beast that is a parasite on individual thought. It's done it's job well around here during the Primaries.

I agree with your OP, though. No one ever talks about the poor and uneducated in San Fran or NYC. It's easier to vilify those who have found success in these so-called "liberal enclaves", regardless of what it took for them to get there, than to actually address the more pressing issues that exist not only in West Virginia, but in every community in this country.

[Leopolds Ghost]

121. Ignorant much? WV is not a former Confederate state. Not even close.

And read up on the history of armed union struggles in WV.

No, I'm not a Hillary supporter, either.

[Freedom Train]

123. Well, we can at least take pleasure in YOU not being educated!

West Virginia was never a Confederate state and was in fact founded as a result of direct opposition to joining the Confederacy.

And, the working man built this country. Of course he should be sucked up to. The working man is this party's natural base, even if he is sometimes goaded into voting against his interests (i.e. Republican). What the hell did the "educated" San Franciscans ever do for this country except sip latte and smoke dope? The only thing the do is cost us elections, since they play right into the stereotypes about our party that the Republicans continually push.

[Cant trust em]

124. Actually it's educated San Franciscans that keep funding this party

I guess we're too elite to not talk shit about, but they'll take our money while they're in town.

Moreover, I guess the green revolution and being the epicenter for gay civil rights doesn't equate for anything in your book. I could go on, but that's just the Reader's Digest version.