Here is an interesting piece on the voting preferences of western Pennsylvanians who local Congressman John Murtha described matter-of-factly as racist. An excerpt:So a canvasser goes to a woman's door in Washington, Pennsylvania. Knocks. Woman answers. Knocker asks who she's planning to vote for. She isn't sure, has to ask her husband who she's voting for. Husband is off in another room watching some game. Canvasser hears him yell back, "We're votin' for the n***er!"
Woman turns back to canvasser, and says brightly and matter of factly: "We're voting for the n***er."
In this economy, racism is officially a luxury. How is John McCain going to win if he can't win those voters? John Murtha's "racist" western Pennsylvania district, where this story takes place, is some of the roughest turf in the nation. But Barack Obama is on the ground and making inroads due to unusually strong organizing leadership.
Voters who still call black people niggers are unlikely to be abashed about stating their true voting preferences, so perhaps this Bradley effect people talk about is not as widespread as I fear it is.
Makes ya wanta laugh and cry at the same time, but I guess they can say what they want as long as they vote for him.
I have my own theory about the 'Bradley effect' that I haven't heard anywhere else. Here it is:
California is split into two culturally distinct regions, Northern California and Southern California. I was born and raised in the latter and now live in the former, about half my life spent in each. To a greater or lesser degree, the folks in NorCal are somewhat snobbish towards SoCal and look down their noses at it as being nekulturny. The fact that there is very little basis in fact for this is immaterial.
I think maybe there's a parallel between New York City and Upstate New York that's similar. I also think NY and CA have more in common than either would like to admit re the cultural divide between the fast talkin' city slickers and the dumbass country fucks. I've been both, so I ain't takin' sides! But I digress.
The folks in SoCal couldn't care less, are maybe not even aware of the Northerners' attitude. They think Frisco is, like, way cool. I think that pisses the NorCalians off even more.
Tom Bradley was a SoCal man, and I think he got beat out of the governorship by a negative reaction from NorCal voters as much as, maybe more than, by his skin color, as in, "Us superior beings up here ain't votin' fer no cultural barbarian from down there, nosiree! Won't do at all, ain't happenin'."
Yes, there are racists in California, just like everywhere. And just like everywhere, most of 'em are white. We are also a Pacific Rim melting pot, many skin shades, many languages (many delicious foods too!). I think you can take your driver's license exam in Tagalog if you need to, as well as many other languages. Watch a Chinaman, say, interact with a Sikh, say, after a fenderbender sometime, ostensibly in English. Heh. I'll take a large popcorn, please!
Just my take. Please comment.
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