"Stringsinger, are you familiar with the Battle of Blair Mountain, or Matewan? That was the real south too."

Thank you for bringing this up Kendall. I am reading this thread with mixed feelings. I come from 5 generations of coal miners in West KY and I am a state certified underground miner myself. KY gets bashed from both sides over something that happened way before anybody now was born. We split down the middle and being a border state we still catch it. There are so many stereotypes going on in this thread I can't help but wonder how anybody can write anything about the subject. I am not meaning to be harsh or anything but both sides are stereotyping southerners. My family and friends do not sit around discussing when "the South will rise again". We do talk about when the economy will pick up, what places are hiring, and other social issues. Most of us have college degrees and have traveled the world over. There are some that cling to ideallistic image of the old south but for the most part people are very much rooted in modern times. Tradition does have a strong hold but even with that most realize this is the 21st century. People are people regardless of where you go. I know I am focused on trying to do the best I can for my family and like all parents worry about the future for my kids. It seems to me that some people grasp negative stereotypes just as staunchly as others hold romanticism of "the old south". I am not bashing anybody that has posted and reading this thread has not moved me to take a side. I just know how my friends and family are and therefore I know that several are wrong on both sides. Defending or bashing both have their stereotypes without really realizing it.