Do Midwesterners have a strong regional indentity like Southerners?

[_Jumper_]

If so, will that pay off for Gephardt in the Midwest?

[JailBush]

1. It's tough when no one knows where the Midwest is!

I grew up in South Dakota, which I always considered the West. But some people apparently include it with the Great Lakes and Corn Belt states as the Midwest, with the REAL west apparently beginning somewhere in Wyoming or beyond.

One thing about South Dakota - there are lots of skunks. We smell'em along the roads every now and then. People know a skunk when they smell one, and that doesn't bode well for Gephardt.

[Don_G]

2. We Call Them Polecats In Kentucky

Which dosen't bode well for either Gephart or Lieberman.

[JailBush]

6. Ha!

Actually, I remember people calling them civet cats. I'm an animal nut, so I learned early on that civets are Old World animals, as are polecats. So Lieberman's a polecat, Gephardt a civet cat. Go figure.

[dreissig]

11. Civet Cats

Here's a web site that talks about civet cats, along with a list of synonyms for the same animal. None of these synonyms is "skunk".

http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary/civet+cat


African Civet Cat

[htuttle]

5. Naw, South Dakota is in the West

At least that's what we think in Wisconsin.

Have you ever noticed that vegetation line where the trees stop and the grassland starts near the SD/MN border? That is the line between the Midwest and the West.

SD has cowboys. The Midwest has farmers. (well, so does SD, but they have cowboys, so it's the West).

[JailBush]

7. That's what I always thought, but I've seen the Dakotas included

as part of the Midwest in books. It is a little confusing when you consider that the geographic center of the United States is near Belle Fourche, South Dakota, with the western third of the continent probably beyond Wyoming.

Then again, the terms "Midwest" and "West" are as much cultural as they are geographic.

[mitchum]

3. Yes, but they're pretty tight-lipped about it

[maggrwaggr]

4. No. Not like the south at all

my people are from Missouri and Iowa, and it's nothing like the south.

[Blue-Jay]

8. Sure we do.

We just don't have a cool flag.

[xray s]

9. Yes we do!

[Blue-Jay]

10. haha!

You know what I was talking about. :D

[Clark Can WIN]

12. Here in Nebraska

We consider ourselves, South Dakota, Iowa, and Kansas to be solidly midwest and would also include parts of Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, bits of Wisconsin and a little Minnesota but too far north.......... is just "up north".

I do think we tend to have a strong identity.

[dpibel]

13. Mebbe. Who's askin'?

When I was a young sprat on the wild plains of Nebrasky-o, we all thought we lived in the Midwest.

When I moved to Washington (state of), it got confusing, because folks out here think the Midwest is somewhere around Ohio.

I've come to think of the land of my nativity as "the plains states" or, if I'm feeling really grand, "the Great Plains."

I think the designation of those eastern states, like Minnesota and Ohio, as Midwest got started back in the day when everything west of the Mississippi was the vast, uncharted wilderness.

As for any identity politics helping Gephardt: Hell, there's only 50 or 60 people left in the whole great plains. They ain't gonna help nobody.

[AmericanLiberal]

14. oh but what about Iowa

Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri and West Virginia? that's a lot of people! And don't count out the plains, if South Dakota had gone for Gore in 2000 bin Laden might have been dead by now.

[Clark Can WIN]

15. Hey, you could be mah kilnfolk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And you'z makin me feel unneredpreciated.

We can do our parts to yahknow.

Seriously. Wouldn't you just LOVE to see the state of Nebraska light up in blue? It could happen. Even here there's lot's of pissed off Republicans. Give them the right candidate, like much of the midwest, someone who they can feel comfortable with and they will go blue.

I feelz it in mah bonz.

[dpibel]

17. Something I could never figure out

Nebraska has a long tradition (at least until Chuck Hagel got his voting machines installed) of electing pretty progressive, populist Democrats to the Senate.

But Nebraska always goes Repub for pres. Just don't make sense.

FWIW, a few years ago I asked a fundy Xtian realtor in St. Paul (NE, folks, not the big one up north) why Nebraskans thought they were Republicans when the R party was devoted to corporatizing agriculture and was doing all it could to destroy those nice family farms and ranches that Nebraskans all think they live on.

He said, without a trace of irony, "They know that, but they'd rather go out of business on their own terms." Now there's some hardheaded rugged individualism for ya.

[jpgray]

16. No, we don't.

Perhaps more in the rural areas--the old DFLers, but here in the cities, we aren't very insular.

[Coldgothicwoman]

18. In Indiana we do.

And sadly, that tendency is pretty split locally, but nationally overwhelmingly regressive. :(

I don't know one person, even amongst liberals here, that would support Richard Gephardt as their primary candidate.

He's not my primary...but if he gets the primary nod, he's getting my vote!

ABB!

[loyalsister]

19. Identity but not "pride"

Southerners take tremendous pride in being southern.
The Midwest identity is characterized by a being sort of low key sort of laid back. Somewhat conservative in the sense of "playing by the rules" and living an ordinary life. People are very friendly\neighborly. They appreciate interaction with public officials. It's part of the farmer mentality. Small towns are highly valued.
I'm not sure that I see a generalized benefit for Gep here, but I do think that part of Dean's message could resonate. Especially with his gun control history. Farmers do fall prey to the NRA. Gep is also missing the boat on the small town\community thing.

[sistersofmercy]

20. Part of this low key attitude comes in part because

and I'm speaking specifically for St Louis, because there are many influences in the region. Many who have resided in the area have ancestors who came from elsewhere, such as the South or Northeast, other countries, there wasn't much French or German bashing in this area because many who here are of that ancestry. The schools here generally teach French and German as a foreign language. In short, we have that low key "live and let live" attitude primarily because we are a melting pot and have managed to get along just fine.
After 9/11 this same low key attitude was what limited discriminatory incidents against people of Arabic origin or of Muslim faith.
As for a lack of pride, I strongly disagree with that statement. St Louisians are tremendously proud of their city and all the history that goes with it.

[janx]

23. I live in Colorado now, but I grew up in the St. Louis area

and am glad I did to this day. I remember when I was young, people from the coasts used to marvel at how kind and trusting (no, not stupid) St. Louisans were.

Hell, we were just happy!

[sistersofmercy]

25. Yep!

Out-of-towners always remark about how nice St Louisans are. I've only recently experienced this same polite, friendly attitude elsewhere, when I was just in Santa Fe. What a wonderful little city.

[janx]

21. I'm a native midwesterner. No, there isn't anything like

the South about it. I grew up in Missouri, as a matter of fact, and I'm a Deaniac through and through. My sister-in-law and her family are Iowans who voted for Gep for years. They're now Deaniacs too.

[Yupster]

22. No - don't think so

The south is pretty unique that way.

I guess it goes back to the shared sacrifices of the Civil War.

I think it is gradually lessening though, and is now much less than it was 50 years ago.

[adriennel]

24. nebulous midwest

Here in Michigan I never know if we're midwest, northeast, rust belt, or what. Probably a little of everything. We have a lot of issues in common with surrounding states, but I don't think these states necessarily share a sense of identity as strong as that in the southern states. Or, perhaps the "southern identity" is stronger in myth than reality, I'm not sure.
I don't think Gephardt's candidacy has even registered a blip on the scene here...at least he's not in my top five.