What do you think of as "the South?"

[Audrey]

Just wondering as I saw some crazy states mentioned as being in the South on another thread.

 

If you took a poll around me, I think the majority would say it starts at Virginia, then NC, SC, GA, AL, MS, and LA definitely. They might include TN and AR. FL and anything north of VA are "Yankee" tainted, and TX is just its own thing out there. This is the impression I got growing up here (though I've been labeled a "foreigner" since my parents were from New England).

 

So, where are you from and what do you think of as the South?

 

Florida is definitely The South thankyouverymuch and, quite frankly, I find your "yankee tainted" comment obnoxious and exceedingly ignorant.

[Joker]

There are northern parts of Florida that are very Southern. I grew up in small town Texas, but it has nothing on where I live now in Florida. I most definitely consider North Florida to be the South.

Edited August 3, 2012 by Horton

[tabrizia]

It's the 11 states that were part of the Confederacy: South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas.

 

Delaware and Maryland are definitely NOT the South. :001_huh:

 

*Geographically,* Virginia, Maryland and Delaware are Mid-Atlantic states; politically, socially, and socially, Virginia is Southern. Don't even mess with us Virginians on that one. :D

 

Now that I'm living in Texas, I can tell you that it is definitely Southern. :D

 

:iagree: though it depends on where in Virginia as to if it is Southern or not I would not consider NOVA Southern, anywhere south of that though yes.

 

 

I grew up in Maryland.... trust me, no one there considers themselves a Southerner. Mid-Atlantic or East Coast is what we considered ourselves.

 

I have lived in Boston, Atlanta and Maryland (between DC and Baltimore). The only one of those three that is part of the South is Atlanta. Maryland is not Southern it is a lot closer to Boston then Atlanta. Maryland is Mid-Atlantic, not the South.

[Farrar]

Florida is definitely The South thankyouverymuch and, quite frankly, I find your "yankee tainted" comment obnoxious and exceedingly ignorant.

 

Growing up, I always heard the recent Yankee transplants say things like, "I hate the south, except for Florida. But that's not really the south." It always made me feel a nasty resentment toward both Florida and Yankee transplants. But that was probably unfair to Florida.

[8circles]

Florida is definitely The South thankyouverymuch and, quite frankly, I find your "yankee tainted" comment obnoxious and exceedingly ignorant.

 

Serious question, not snarky. I can't tell if you are serious or not about the yanked comment. As a yankee, have I been slammed and didn't know it? I read her comment as trying to be funny.

[1GirlTwinBoys]

I grew up in Louisville and certainly never considered it to be part of the South. I think Kentucky can be divided into north and south. I am in TN now and it is so southern and wonderful. I would certainly consider VA and WV in the south.

 

 

I grew up in Louisville too, lived there my entire life until a few months ago.:) I always felt part of the south.

[Maverick_Mom]

Way back in the 1980s Joel Garreau (used to write for the Washington Post) wrote a great book entitled The Nine Nations of North America. His premise was that our 50-States designation was pretty but ultimately meaningless. He felt that the meaningful delineations were cultural and economic and did not necessarily respect state boundaries. So instead of 50 states, we had 9 nations:

 

1. New England (which included parts of Canada)

2. The Foundry

3. The Breadbasket

4. Dixie

5. The Empty Quarter

6. MexAmerica

7. The Islands

8. Ecotopia

9, Quebec

 

You can read more about the book here.

 

But for the purposes of this discussion, Garreau's Dixie would include:

 

the former Confederate States of America (today the southeastern United States) centered on Atlanta, and including most of eastern Texas. Garreau's "Dixie" also includes Kentucky (which had both a Union and a nominal Confederate government); southern and southeastern portions of Missouri, southern Illinois, and southern Indiana; and the "Little Dixie" region of southeastern Oklahoma. Finally, the region also includes most of Florida, as far south as the cities of Fort Myers and Naples. Capital: Atlanta.

 

It's just a theory. You don't have to agree with it. :D But it really was a great book. I wish he'd update it.

[Sahamamama]

The Mid-Atlantic is:

 

• New York
  
• New Jersey
  
• Pennsylvania
  
• Delaware
  
• Maryland (but some Marylanders consider themselves Southerners from what they've told me)
  
• Washington, DC
  

The South is:

• Virginia (Colonial South)
  
• North Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• South Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• Georgia (Colonial South)
  
• Florida (sort of depends on which part of Florida, but the farther north you go, the more "Southern" it gets)
  
• West Virginia (Appalachian South)
  
• Tennessee (Appalachian South)
  
• Kentucky (Appalachian South)
  
• Alabama (Deep South)
  
• Mississippi (Deep South)
  
• Louisiana (Deep South)
  
• Arkansas (Deep South)
  

[Slartibartfast]

Serious question, not snarky. I can't tell if you are serious or not about the yanked comment. As a yankee, have I been slammed and didn't know it? I read her comment as trying to be funny.

 

IMO it is being funny. I talk about Texas the same way but I am from Oklahoma. :tongue_smilie:

[tex-mex]

:confused: Sweet tea is everywhere in Texas...???

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

And Southern Living magazine has its own edition for Texas as a region in the south.

http://www.southernliving.com/travel/summer-in-the-south-00417000078093/

 

They even have a "Tex-Mex" menu WITH sweet tea:

http://www.southernliving.com/food/entertaining/make-ahead-tex-mex-menu-00417000079189/

[Ibbygirl]

Growing up, I always heard the recent Yankee transplants say things like, "I hate the south, except for Florida. But that's not really the south." It always made me feel a nasty resentment toward both Florida and Yankee transplants. But that was probably unfair to Florida.

 

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

Edited August 3, 2012 by Ibbygirl

[Sahamamama]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

Yes, this. Friends of ours are Florida natives, and they say the most annoying part of living in Florida is when someone from New York or New Jersey moves down to Florida to save on taxes and to avoid shoveling winter snow, then complains, "It's hot. It's so very hot. How can you stand it? It's so hot."

 

Really? The whole time the Floridian is thinking, "Go home."

[TravelingChris]

It was funny to me on my vacation that I am on that I traveled north from Huntsville and the Southern accent was much stronger in Kentucky than in Huntsville. But then I think the Southern accent is much stronger in rural areas than in more urban areas.

[Heather in Neverland]

From about mid-Ohio on down. :D

[MtnMama]

I'm from WV, and consider all but the Northern Panhandle the South. I don't think anyone who has visited WV would disagree :).

[Ibbygirl]

:confused: Your reaction seriously has me puzzled. :confused:

 

Not Audrey, but as a Floridian I think I can answer this. :)

 

Let me frame it in more Southern terms. Imagine Atlanta when it fell and the Carpetbaggers came flooding in. How do you think it made the native Georgians feel? Now imagine someone telling them that they aren't real Southerners because they are "Yankee tainted."

[deacongirl]

I grew up in Louisville too, lived there my entire life until a few months ago.:) I always felt part of the south.

Interesting. My mom is from KY, and I have lived in NC and GA, and northern FL. I would totally consider Louisville culturally Southern.

[deacongirl]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

Jacksonville is culturally Southern--really more like northern GA.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

Try living in Cleveland. :D We get mocked on national television all the time.

 

From about mid-Ohio on down. :D

 

You and my husband agree, although he thinks anything south of our county is the deep south. :lol:

[TN Mama]

Oklahoma wasn't a state during the Civil war. It doesn't consider itself "southern," it identifies more with Texas and Southwestern states.

 

Oklahoma is definintely not the south.

 

I would also agree that MO (south of STL) is included in the south.

[8circles]

Way back in the 1980s Joel Garreau (used to write for the Washington Post) wrote a great book entitled The Nine Nations of North America. His premise was that our 50-States designation was pretty but ultimately meaningless. He felt that the meaningful delineations were cultural and economic and did not necessarily respect state boundaries. So instead of 50 states, we had 9 nations:

 

1. New England (which included parts of Canada)

2. The Foundry

3. The Breadbasket

4. Dixie

5. The Empty Quarter

6. MexAmerica

7. The Islands

8. Ecotopia

9, Quebec

 

You can read more about the book here.

 

But for the purposes of this discussion, Garreau's Dixie would include:

 

 

 

It's just a theory. You don't have to agree with it. :D But it really was a great book. I wish he'd update it.

Never heard of the book but it sounds like id agree with him. Thanks for the recommendation.

[8circles]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

I get it. If I were a FL native id be bothered by that as well. But if we red the original comment as derogatory then both FL and the north are being slammed. Better to take it as a funny way to state her opinion.

[Kathryn]

Florida is definitely The South thankyouverymuch and, quite frankly, I find your "yankee tainted" comment obnoxious and exceedingly ignorant.

 

:confused: Are you serious? I thought I made it clear that I wasn't even talk about my own opinion, I was outlining what the general talk/opinion is where I live. I get it. My parents moved here the year before I was born. I've never lived anywhere else besides South Carolina. But, I am still not considered "Southern" by a whole lot of people here. My mannerisms, accent, food culture, politics, history, etc., aren't "Southern" enough. My own father-in-law called me a "foreigner."

 

As for Florida, my best friend from high school was from the country of the Florida panhandle. Let's just say her family was definitely Southern and when we went to visit it was a whole new dimension of Southerness for me. DH has family in Jacksonville--definitely Southern. My "Yankee" grandparents built a house in Port Charlotte. I'm well aware that FL is a mix, just as a lot of other states are these days. Again, I wasn't stating my own opinion. I specifically said "the majority around me."

[Parrothead]

The Mid-Atlantic is:

 

• New York
  
• New Jersey
  
• Pennsylvania
  
• Delaware
  
• Maryland (but some Marylanders consider themselves Southerners from what they've told me)
  
• Washington, DC
  

The South is:

• Virginia (Colonial South)
  
• North Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• South Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• Georgia (Colonial South)
  
• Florida (sort of depends on which part of Florida, but the farther north you go, the more "Southern" it gets)
  
• West Virginia (Appalachian South)
  
• Tennessee (Appalachian South)
  
• Kentucky (Appalachian South)
  
• Alabama (Deep South)
  
• Mississippi (Deep South)
  
• Louisiana (Deep South)
  
• Arkansas (Deep South)
  

:iagree: with this list.

[Ravin]

I would include those states south of the Mason-Dixon line that ceceded in the War Between the States, with the exception of Florida and Texas, of which I would include only rural Florida and only the Eastern part of Texas.

[Parrothead]

Way back in the 1980s Joel Garreau (used to write for the Washington Post) wrote a great book entitled The Nine Nations of North America. His premise was that our 50-States designation was pretty but ultimately meaningless. He felt that the meaningful delineations were cultural and economic and did not necessarily respect state boundaries. So instead of 50 states, we had 9 nations:

 

1. New England (which included parts of Canada)

2. The Foundry

3. The Breadbasket

4. Dixie

5. The Empty Quarter

6. MexAmerica

7. The Islands

8. Ecotopia

9, Quebec

 

You can read more about the book here.

 

But for the purposes of this discussion, Garreau's Dixie would include:

 

 

 

It's just a theory. You don't have to agree with it. :D But it really was a great book. I wish he'd update it.

This was interesting. I agree with pretty much everything on his map except the Empty Quarter. It needs to be divided right along the international boarder. On the US side there is a ranch/farm lifestyle that I never saw on the Canadian side. And his Mexamerica needs to come a little bit further north. Not much, just a bit.

[elegantlion]

This was interesting. I agree with pretty much everything on his map except the Empty Quarter. It needs to be divided right along the international boarder. On the US side there is a ranch/farm lifestyle that I never saw on the Canadian side. And his Mexamerica needs to come a little bit further north. Not much, just a bit.

 

I agreed with most of it too. The information stated it was from 1981, so it's outdated now in some areas.

[Cera]

Everything South of the Mason Dixon Line and East of the Mississippi.

[mlbuchina]

The north is southern, the south is northern :lol:

 

In regards to FL, this is true.

 

I was born and bread in the Heart of Dixie, so for me, the South is as follows:

 

LA, MS, AL, GA (except for Atlanta:tongue_smilie:), the panhandle of FL, GA, TN, SC, NC

 

States bordering those may have pockets of "southern" culture, but are not the South. I lived nine years in VA, and I would never call it the South. However, I lived in Norfolk, so there you go. I'm sure it has some of those pockets I mentioned. :D

[Firefly]

From Connecticut and I agree with the list below. I've always considered everything south of DC, "the south."

 

The Mid-Atlantic is:

 

• New York
  
• New Jersey
  
• Pennsylvania
  
• Delaware
  
• Maryland (but some Marylanders consider themselves Southerners from what they've told me)
  
• Washington, DC
  

The South is:

• Virginia (Colonial South)
  
• North Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• South Carolina (Colonial South)
  
• Georgia (Colonial South)
  
• Florida (sort of depends on which part of Florida, but the farther north you go, the more "Southern" it gets)
  
• West Virginia (Appalachian South)
  
• Tennessee (Appalachian South)
  
• Kentucky (Appalachian South)
  
• Alabama (Deep South)
  
• Mississippi (Deep South)
  
• Louisiana (Deep South)
  
• Arkansas (Deep South)
  

[BigMamaBird]

I vote for anything Tennessee and lower. Kentucky is sort of half and half.

[mlbuchina]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

You aren't alone, Ibbygirl. I have heard the same stuff all my life. After I married, and we moved to Norfolk, I had people tell me they hated AL and would NEVER go there. They had never been there, but they hated it and would never go there.:confused:

 

Lynyrd Skynyrd is awesome. That is all.

[Mommyfaithe]

Anything below NYC is the South for us:D

 

Seriously, Anything below the Mason Dixon line....so, from Delaware south.....that is where the drawl begins;)

[Lady Florida.]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

 

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

 

I'm not a native but my kid is. :D I was 13 when we moved to Florida, so it's not like I had a choice. I consider myself a Floridian, and I love living here. I had no choice to move here, but I had a choice when I became an adult: leave Florida or stay. I chose to stay.

 

I remember Orlando before the theme parks. Yes, even before Disney. It hurts me to see more and more of this beautiful state paved over.

[stripe]

Just wondering as I saw some crazy states mentioned as being in the South on another thread.

 

If you took a poll around me, I think the majority would say it starts at Virginia, then NC, SC, GA, AL, MS, and LA definitely.

I think Kentucky is more southern than Virginia. They eat biscuits and pie and drink lots of sweet tea.

 

I think Florida, Texas, and Louisiana are each sort of in their own category.

[Audrey]

I hate to say it, but people hating us is a pretty common refrain down here in Florida. I'm a native Floridian (4 generations) and my entire life I've heard people from other states that have moved here talk about how much they hate it here. Or how we're not this or not that. It's hurtful and Floridians who happen to actually like their home just fine get sick of being told their home sucks all the time.

 

I don't know if Audrey's comment was tongue-in-cheek or if she meant it exactly as she said it, but if she did I kinda understand where she's coming from. We've been a verbal dumping ground here from other states for a long time and it's not very nice. Some of us resent being invaded and taken over, having all the things we grew up with and loved being trashed by people who have no connections here and don't care if it gets trashed all the while telling us to our faces how much we suck. And as Floridians shouldn't we be allowed to speak for ourselves and not need anyone else to tell us who we are or what we are or what we are not? I mean, we actually live here after all ya know? Yeah, I can understand why Audrey might be touchy about it.

 

Now on a lighter note, Lynyrd Skynyrd, probably one of the best known Southern rock bands were from Jacksonville, Fla. And on that note, I'll step down from my soap box. :D

 

 

What she said.

 

Read your history. Florida is most certainly The South. Capital T. Capital S. She earned it. The OP's comments were just more of the same crapola you hear from people who have only ever visited Florida. She is The South, just as much as any other Southern state.

 

That "Yankee tainted" crap just crossed the line an inch too far, IMO. And yes... it is an insult. A big one. If you didn't know that before. Now you do.

[mktkcb]

well, I'm a California native & I consider the South to be S. Carolina to Louisiana linearly, with Arkansas, Tennessee, and N. Carolina in the iffy category. Texas is sort of iffy too, but I lean Southwest with it, and it doesn't come immediately to mind when I hear The South.

[Ellie]

As a "Southerner" I would call this the list I find most accurate. I'd barely consider Virginia southern but definitely not WV, KY, DE, or MO. If it gets truly cold then it's impossible to be part of the South.

 

Honey child, Virginia invented the South. It is why the capital of the Confederacy was Richmond. :D

 

Jefferson Davis was at first opposed, believing the capital should reside in the Deep South, where the feelings for secession were most fervent. However, the Confederate Congress approved the move and adjourned May 21, and scheduled to meet in Richmond two months later. As Dr. James McPherson writes in Battle Cry of Freedom, "Virginia brought crucial resources to the Confederacy. Her population was the South's largest. Her industrial capacity was nearly as great as that of the seven original Confederate states combined. The Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond was the only plant in the South capable of manufacturing heavy ordnance. Virginia's heritage from the generation of Washington, Jefferson, and Madison gave her immense prestige..."

[8circles]

That "Yankee tainted" crap just crossed the line an inch too far, IMO. And yes... it is an insult. A big one. If you didn't know that before. Now you do.

I didnt make the comment bit i'm sorry that comment hurt you. I do think "yankee tainted" is an insult, as a yankee, I just didn't realize that it would be taken seriously.

[nukeswife]

VA is definitely part of the South, now if you live in the Norfolk area, because of all of us military transplants it may not seem like it, but if you ask a native they will tell you without a doubt VA is a southern state.

 

Also in the tea area if you ask for iced tea and don't specify unsweet you'll get sweet tea. I hate going to visit my family in WI now because sweet tea is nowhere to be found. Sure I can add sugar to the yucky unsweetened iced tea but like many others have said, that's just tea that's been sweetened and not really sweet tea.

 

 

I will also say I was born in WI, but have lived in the south most of my married life.

[deacongirl]

I have lived in Naples, Orlando, Jacksonville area, Atlanta, and North Carolina. (New Jersey and CA too, FWIW)

 

Yes, South Florida is geographically the South, but IMO it really doesn't share anything culturally with what most people consider the South. Miami is a fantastic, vibrant city--it doesn't make it better or worse to say that South Florida really has very little in common with what I, and the Southerners (born and bred) I know consider the South.

[Crimson Wife]

I think Kentucky is more southern than Virginia. They eat biscuits and pie and drink lots of sweet tea.

 

I lived in KY for 6 months and found it *VERY* Southern.

 

My IL's live in Delaware and it's definitely not Southern at all. It's very much Mid-Atlantic culturally- a lot of the things I think of as being stereotypically "Jersey" are big in DE as well.

[Kathryn]

What she said.

 

Read your history. Florida is most certainly The South. Capital T. Capital S. She earned it. The OP's comments were just more of the same crapola you hear from people who have only ever visited Florida. She is The South, just as much as any other Southern state.

 

That "Yankee tainted" crap just crossed the line an inch too far, IMO. And yes... it is an insult. A big one. If you didn't know that before. Now you do.

 

I am seriously baffled by your hostility towards me. I've stated twice that those are NOT my opinions. They are those of the people I live around. I've been called a "Yankee" by the people I grew up around more times than I can count.

 

As an aside, I've seen more than one person not count SC as "Southern." I think it's strange, considering this state started the Civil War, but obviously we all have different ideas about what makes a state "Southern."

[Slartibartfast]

Not Audrey, but as a Floridian I think I can answer this. :)

 

Let me frame it in more Southern terms. Imagine Atlanta when it fell and the Carpetbaggers came flooding in. How do you think it made the native Georgians feel? Now imagine someone telling them that they aren't real Southerners because they are "Yankee tainted."

 

No one here has lived through reconstruction.

[Slartibartfast]

As a "Southerner" I would call this the list I find most accurate. I'd barely consider Virginia southern but definitely not WV, KY, DE, or MO. If it gets truly cold then it's impossible to be part of the South.

 

Many include MO because of its enthusiasm towards burning down bits of free states.

[Ibbygirl]

No one here has lived through reconstruction.

 

I know it's not a perfect analogy. We're not at war with the North either.

 

My point though was to try to use a framework that is understood by Southerners to try to explain to them first of all why Florida is indeed Southern and second why Audrey got so upset with the comments that the previous poster posted.

 

I don't think anyone who hasn't lived here really understands just how exploited this state has been. Our whole history we've had crooked politicians and unscrupulous outsiders coming in here and exploiting our state.

 

How many miles of coast land do we have here in Florida? 1,350 miles. Now of those 1,350 how many people who have a home there are native Floridians? Very few.

 

People who make big wages in other states come down here and buy up all the land and houses and drive the prices up. They build strip malls and condos, hotels and highrises. These people don't even live here, at least not until the winter time.

 

The Floridians who live here can't afford the cost of living here anymore and many cannot even afford a house and this is OUR HOME.

 

We have fresh water springs here in abundance. They were beautiful. They had pristine clear sweet water, an abundance of fish and animals, white powder soft sands and they looked like a piece of paradise. They are completely trashed now! The water is no longer sweet, you can't see the sand anymore on the bottom because they're covered with algae. The fish are gone except for some minnows.

 

We had beautiful reefs here, that are either dying or are already gone forever.

 

I don't think I need to continue do I?

 

My point with the Georgians and the Carpetbaggers is that we who live here, have roots here and love our state have to struggle to make a life in it. Unless you are from here and have witnessed the changes for yourself, I don't think you can really understand just how drastic they have been. It's one thing if people come down here and love it too and show respect for it and want to be a part of her care. I personally don't have issue with that. It's a free country and people can live where they want, BUT the wholesale exploitation, the meanness of the invading hoards and their constant complaining about our home that we love gets very old very fast.

[Slartibartfast]

I know it's not a perfect analogy. We're not at war with the North either.

 

My point though was to try to use a framework that is understood by Southerners to try to explain to them first of all why Florida is indeed Southern and second why Audrey got so upset with the comments that the previous poster posted.

 

I don't think anyone who hasn't lived here really understands just how exploited this state has been. Our whole history we've had crooked politicians and unscrupulous outsiders coming in here and exploiting our state.

 

How many miles of coast land do we have here in Florida? 1,350 miles. Now of those 1,350 how many people who have a home there are native Floridians? Very few.

 

People who make big wages in other states come down here and buy up all the land and houses and drive the prices up. They build strip malls and condos, hotels and highrises. These people don't even live here, at least not until the winter time.

 

The Floridians who live here can't afford the cost of living here anymore and many cannot even afford a house and this is OUR HOME.

 

We have fresh water springs here in abundance. They were beautiful. They had pristine clear sweet water, an abundance of fish and animals, white powder soft sands and they looked like a piece of paradise. They are completely trashed now! The water is no longer sweet, you can't see the sand anymore on the bottom because they're covered with algae. The fish are gone except for some minnows.

 

We had beautiful reefs here, that are either dying or are already gone forever.

 

I don't think I need to continue do I?

 

My point with the Georgians and the Carpetbaggers is that we who live here, have roots here and love our state have to struggle to make a life in it. Unless you are from here and have witnessed the changes for yourself, I don't think you can really understand just how drastic they have been. It's one thing if people come down here and love it too and show respect for it and want to be a part of her care. I personally don't have issue with that. It's a free country and people can live where they want, BUT the wholesale exploitation, the meanness of the invading hoards and their constant complaining about our home that we love gets very old very fast.

 

I'm Native American.

 

Very little makes one sick like the exploitation and lack of good stewardship to one's home.

Edited August 3, 2012 by Sis

[Ibbygirl]

I'm Native American.

 

You win! :D

[Slartibartfast]

You win! :D

 

I meant more in empathy than trying to win :lol:

[Ibbygirl]

I meant more in empathy than trying to win :lol:

 

I meant it more in jest than a true competition hence this little guy :D. ;) hehe And I appreciate the empathy. I know you understand. :grouphug:

Edited August 3, 2012 by Ibbygirl