Urban Democrats and Rural Republicans

[Ravi]

Mo, we all depend on each other. If city people didn't buy what rural people were selling you'd have to give up your internet. Oh, and there probably wouldn't be an internet.

 

[Missourian]

It's not roads and bridges in red states... it's welfare.

But nice almost discussing the issues. It's cool.

I don't understand what you're complaining about.

Your party is the welfare party.

Your party is the tax the rich because they need to pay more to help the poor party.

But then you complain that the rich states pay too much federal tax and are forced to give to the poorer states.

You should have voted Republican.

 

[Missourian]

Mo, we all depend on each other. If city people didn't buy what rural people were selling you'd have to give up your internet. Oh, and there probably wouldn't be an internet.

I agree with you 100%.

I think you misunderstand my intent. I am not anti-city. City living is not for me but I live close to a minor metropolitan and enjoy the benefits of city life.

I only propose that city dwellers have a much higher dependence on infrastructure than rural dwellers and that dependence has a bearing on the staggering imbalance of.city Democrats and rural Republicans.

 

[Ravi]

Because Dems are better at running huge infrastructures?

 

[Amanda]

I agree with you 100%.

I think you misunderstand my intent. I am not anti-city. City living is not for me but I live close to a minor metropolitan and enjoy the benefits of city life.

I only propose that city dwellers have a much higher dependence on infrastructure than rural dwellers and that dependence has a bearing on the staggering imbalance of.city Democrats and rural Republicans.

I get what you're saying and I don't feel threatened by it. I think others are reacting to an unspoken implication of your conclusion. What exactly that is... I don't know, but I think if we could get them to articulate that point we might learn something (at least about the way they think, if nothing else ).

 

[Red Dawn]

I think urban dwellers have become accustom to being dependent.

Oh God, that was great! Thanks!

I assume that was a joke?

Farmers are probably the most government dependent people this nation has ever known. Whether its agricultural susidies, or dams built at taxpayer expense to deliver subsidized, cheap irrigation water, to price supports, to having an entire well funded Federal cabinet level department to service 1% of the nations population.


This was great! Gracias!

 

[WillowTree]

Red states are receiving all of the forms of aid and assistance listed above. And if by Dollification you mean my trademark products, proven fact and superb analysis, then step into my office. For instance, agriculture accounts for 1 percent of our GDP.

Economy of the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

so you wouldn't have a problem living without agriculture.. that's fine.

 

[jillian]

I don't understand what you're complaining about.

Your party is the welfare party.

Your party is the tax the rich because they need to pay more to help the poor party.

But then you complain that the rich states pay too much federal tax and are forced to give to the poorer states.

You should have voted Republican.

Yet another bubbameitzer.... I'll remind you a democratic president signed welfare reform into law.

and if you really believe what you're saying after 8 years of the repubs wasting our money to enrich the rich... well, sorry, I think real people's issues should be addressed before corporatists are enriched. living on the national credit card is now a republican hallmark. aren't you proud?

And I do vote republican locally when the republican candidate is better. I won't ever vote for a repub on the federal level again, though... too much perversion of the Constitution by right wing loonies; too much fiscal irresponsibility.

And voting repub got you GWB...

so no thanks. I wouldn't take responsibility for having put him in power on a bet.

 

[auditor0007]

1. Cities outproduce the rural areas by at least 10 to 1.

2. The red states are net consumers of tax dollars; the blue states are subsidizing them, in everything from agricultural subsidies to loans to electrification projects to roads to hospitals to to USDA assistance to welfare to flood coverage. Y'all are welcome!

The red states are the net contributors of the most important commodity there is, food. Let's get serious here. Red states get more tax dollars per person because they still need a minimal amount of funding for a slew full of things. The blue states get much larger amounts of these funds, but they don't need quite as much per person. It's not that difficult to figure out.

Also, here is an example of how red states receiving federal funding is a benefit to blue states. Blue states have many more people, and they count on goods being transported between them, which involves transporting through red states. Federal funding that helps pay for the roads in those red states benefits the blue states more than it does the red states. If those roads weren't available for transportation, the blue states would not be able to receive and ship the goods between themselves.

The bottom line is that we need both rural agricultural production as well as manufacturing and industrialization. One without the other makes us a weaker society. So quit the stupid bickering about why being in a blue state or red state is better or worse.

 

[auditor0007]

Oh God, that was great! Thanks!

I assume that was a joke?

Farmers are probably the most government dependent people this nation has ever known. Whether its agricultural susidies, or dams built at taxpayer expense to deliver subsidized, cheap irrigation water, to price supports, to having an entire well funded Federal cabinet level department to service 1% of the nations population.


This was great! Gracias!

And it all comes back to the consumer, that being you included, in lower food costs.

 

[Zoomie1980]

The red states are the net contributors of the most important commodity there is, food. Let's get serious here. Red states get more tax dollars per person because they still need a minimal amount of funding for a slew full of things. The blue states get much larger amounts of these funds, but they don't need quite as much per person. It's not that difficult to figure out.

Also, here is an example of how red states receiving federal funding is a benefit to blue states. Blue states have many more people, and they count on goods being transported between them, which involves transporting through red states. Federal funding that helps pay for the roads in those red states benefits the blue states more than it does the red states. If those roads weren't available for transportation, the blue states would not be able to receive and ship the goods between themselves.

The bottom line is that we need both rural agricultural production as well as manufacturing and industrialization. One without the other makes us a weaker society. So quit the stupid bickering about why being in a blue state or red state is better or worse.

Except the overwhelming majority of goods are shipped by rail. And the Railroads pay for their own infrastructure and get absolutely NO help from government.

 

[Red Dawn]

I already covered it. It you don't want to pay for the roads any bridges that bring you consumer products, only buy things produced in NY. But when you run out, don't come crying to us.

Nice try and changing your argument hoping no one would notice.

No one has said we don't need government spending for agriculture, roads, industry, and science.

However, it was you who said rural folks were self reliant and didn't need government help. Wrong.

They are the most government dependent people in the nation

 

[Red Dawn]

I already covered it. It you don't want to pay for the roads any bridges that bring you consumer products, only buy things produced in NY. But when you run out, don't come crying to us.

Nice try at changing your argument hoping no one would notice.

No one has said we don't need government spending for agriculture, roads, industry, and science.

However, it was you who said rural folks were self reliant and didn't need government help. Wrong.

They are the most government dependent people in the nation

 

[garyd]

Dolly is of course wrong. If anything it is the other way around. Population density alone sees to that.

Sorry but in rural areas if your septic tank clogs up you don't call the mayor you call a plumber and that after you've called the guy that opoerates the local honey pump truck.

Some government is always going to be necessary, Jillian, the argument is largely over what constitutes too much of a necessary evil. Governments by their very nature tend to reduce human freedom usually to simplifyy things for the bureaucrats who if they were the sharpest knife in the drawer to begin with would be somewhere else making more money in the private sector.

 

[michiganFats]

I think that regional attitudes aren't taken into account on those maps. I split my time between Michigan and Texas, and Texas Democrats are generally more conservative than Michigan Republicans IMHO. I've also noticed that Liberals in the western part of the country tend to focus on individual rights issues, while their brethren in the East are more into "Cradle to Grave" politics. I'd be interested to see a map that breaks the country down into, Red, Blue, and White for neutral showing the political makeup of the county commissions. I bet it would be different, and it would probably not change anywhere near as much as the Presidential maps. Or, I could be wrong, I've been drinking tonight.

 

[Missourian]

Nice try at changing your argument hoping no one would notice.

No one has said we don't need government spending for agriculture, roads, industry, and science.

However, it was you who said rural folks were self reliant and didn't need government help. Wrong.

I'm pretty sure what I said was if the government shut down in my county, I might not even notice, but if the same thing happened in a metropolitan, it would be a disaster.

What I'm getting at is if the government shut down in my county, I might not even notice, but if the same thing happened in a metropolitan, it would be a disaster.

Reading comprehension is your friend.

They are the most government dependent people in the nation

See above.

 

[garyd]

It's hard to explain to city folks how things work in the country. It's alot like trying to explain the Theory of relativity to a three year old.

 

[Missourian]

Except the overwhelming majority of goods are shipped by rail. And the Railroads pay for their own infrastructure and get absolutely NO help from government.

I had to double check that this claim was not accurate.


Highways

■ Over 90% of the products made or shipped in the US travel on the nation's highways and bridges.

■ 74% of goods shipped in the US are transported exclusively by trucks.

■ There are over 160,000 miles of major roads that need resurfacing or reconstruction.

■ Currently, there is a $325.4 billion backlog of economic highway and bridge projectswaiting to be completed.

■ Road congestion cost the US economy about $63.1 billion in 2003.

■ Trucks carry three quarters of the value of freight shipped in the United States and twothirds of the weight.

■ Trucks moved more than $6.2 trillion and 7.8 billion tons of manufactured goods and rawmaterials in 2002.

■ Trucks are expected to move more than 75% more tons of freight in 2020.


Link

 

[michiganFats]

When I buy groceries, I use my car to carry them from the store to my driveway, but I have to carry them by hand the last few yards into my kitchen. Both means of transport are important.

 

[Missourian]

Farmers are probably the hardest working most under appreciated people this nation has ever known.

Fixed it for ya.