Why is Anti-Government Sentiment More Common in Rural America? (myths, dollars, money)
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So I'm assuming these all might "self sufficient" people in rural areas won't be collecting Social Security, Social Security disability, Medicare, Medicaid, WIC, go to public schools, benefit from farming/agricultural subsidies, receive unemployment insurance, etc. Because for the 3 years I lived in a rural area I saw a lot of use of all of those. The only difference between a poor rural area and a poor urban area is that those in the rural area will rail against "socialism" as they collect government benefits.
In fact, in our area there is a high concentration of lawyers, doctors and business owners.
You will still be paying for those same government services, but you will not have access. At least you will not have to worry about being spied upon at every intersection.
Not true.
We pay very low property taxes in our township because we do not have fire protection or, fancy parks.
I love it. Having been to NYC many times, I can tell you that it is more provincial than many of the "rural" towns I have visited. Most New Yorkers have never left the city, let alone thier state or the country. One would offer that they are urban hillbillies.
Where I live, which is rural, the people are much more educated than east coast cities. EVERYONE has at least a high school education, most have college degrees, nearly everyone who wants a job has a job, and the people can consverse about current events quite readily.
It is a good thing that people in large urban centers stay there. Ignorance is bliss.
Why are people in more remote areas less enthusiastic about big government?
1. They do not have big government interfering with their lives as much and have seen that negative effect in large urban centers.
2. They have chosen to live away from urban centers and have made some sacrifices for personal independence. People who are more free thinking and independent will tend to not want the government to tell them what to do.
3. People in more rural settings have more independence regarding food, water and energy sources, and are therefore not as dependent upon others for their survival.
I could not agree more with everything you said. I moved from Los Angeles to rural Alaska (about 8 miles outside of Wasilla), primarily because of government interference. The Los Angeles County "Assault Weapon" Ban of 1989 was the final straw. They did not even include a grandfather clause. I was suddenly a criminal, overnight, just because of the firearm I had legally purchased in Los Angeles County just 5 years earlier.
I could have stayed in Los Angeles and made a lot more money, so it was a sacrifice to move to Alaska, but the price of living in paradise does not come cheap.
My primary energy sources are dependent upon cooperatives, but I do have alternative food resources, a well, and a septic system on my property. I have a back-up generator, should I lose power (which also means I lose my water), but I do not have a back-up should I lose natural gas.
We pay very low property taxes in our township because we do not have fire protection or, fancy parks.
That very well may be true, but you are also paying income taxes that pay for Section 8 housing, and numerous other state and federal programs that will not benefit you. It only benefits those living in urban areas.
Funny story ( to me ) .
My town is so small we have never had a mail man . We all have PO Boxes . When the Census forms first come to the post office , same thing every 10 years , no POBox # , ppostmaster sends them all back .
We get blank forms , fill them out , many dont put a street address on the form and so on . SO along comes a government car with a plain clothed man going door to door , looking around , up and down ( of course we don't put house numbers up , we have no mail man , no mail box , why bother ).
We don't get many strangers so many call go into the state police , we have no local police . At some point someone got his licence plate wrong and his car comes back stolen , LMAO .
The poor man is looking down at his paperwork , cussing us NJ hillbillies for improper form filing, he gets out of the car with out noticing the four guns drawn on him. He said " I'm with the Census" , police " show your ID " man " I didn't bring it " . Into the dirt goes the innocent sucker .
With children cheering ( you know this was the highlight of the year ) and adults feeling proud that they got a criminal off the street , in the back of the police he went and someone later towed the car . The car did have all our census forms on the front seat .
We don't believe anyone cares how many people live here , anymore. No one comes to count.
We were much nicer to the tax assessor , well my house didn't get done , I think the single dad who thought he was peeking at his teenage daughter scared him off . He did bring ID for the police , things went a little better for him.
No we don't like Government people comming to count us or raise our tax. Everyone was happy that we treated the men badly even though we were wrong . They only time they come is when they want some more money.
We like the police , we have zero crime in our town . Yes 0 . We follow the laws , feds stay away.
Have you been to rural America? If you have, the answer should be obvious -- it's ignorance.
That is a crock. There is ignorance everywhere.
American was largely built by independent minded souls. These are people who had the need or desire to escape the dire poverty from which they suffered in Europe. This was a spirit of independence and the hope that they could build a life from scratch in America. This is more true of the American West, and the American governmen pushed the agenda to farm everywhere in this country. The American government 'gave' many people a 160 acres (which they did not own to give but gave anyway) for people to succeed or fail. Most failed. It was not their fault, because the conditions to farm in the American West was almost impossible. There is a reason the Plains tribes lived as they did. They had better sense than the new immigrants. Anyway..... Those who did succeed had a dose of luck and an independent spirit. They also had government help. Irrigation? Government funded. Damns? Government funded. There is no way in hell they could have farmed the desert without the millions of dollars of water infrastructure that the American government built. Even so, they still were fiercely independent. At least, they thought they were. It could be that this is in the genes, and passed down through the generations. I'm not saying that is a fact, but it's a possibility. This type of person likes to be left alone to do their thing.
Until their cattle have no grass and no hay.
Until their farms and ranches burn in uncontrolled and unrelinquishing wildfires.
Until their farms are flooded and crops are lost.
Until they need water for irrigation at a cost of pennies on the dollar.
Until they want to lease grazing land from the BLM for a fraction of the cost if it was privately owned.
So, there are exceptions, and I suppose they do not believe the above to be in contrast to being independent of 'big government' or 'government assistance'.
And that is the quandry. Most people need a hand up at some point. Some people just won't admit it.
That very well may be true, but you are also paying income taxes that pay for Section 8 housing, and numerous other state and federal programs that will not benefit you. It only benefits those living in urban areas.
Even so, I am sure the people in our township would not want to live in section 8 housing.
Urban areas are magnificient!! Cities provide the opportunity for "country folks" to earn enough to buy back their childhood, i.e.,...move back to the country and enjoy the solitude, peace, quiet, and independence they enjoyed on the farm/ranch as youngsters.
"Ignorant" country people? Anyone who makes such a statement is not only "ignorant", but are stupid as well. Most people who make such statments are usually city dwellers who couldn't survive in a rural environment.
Even so, I am sure the people in our township would not want to live in section 8 housing.
I would not blame them either, since it would require them to move to an urban center in order to obtain that "privilege."
I would live in a tent first.
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