Righteous rage, impotent fury: Thomas Frank returns to Kansas to hunt the last days of (truncated)

Salon ^ | November 2, 2014 | Thomas Frank

[centurion316]

One of the treasured vanities of my home state of Kansas is the idea that, although we are the nation’s laggards and late-comers in so many ways, there are other departments in which we are way ahead of everyone else, savoring the fast-food treats you will one day savor and debating the issues that you, too, will agonize over before too long. It’s an understandable fantasy for a people who are constantly reminded by the culture at large how lame and uncool they are, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t coming true, for once, in 2014. This week, Kansas may well be the one state that bucks all the national political trends.

Here you have several prominent conservatives, Republicans in one of the most Republican states in the country, running in a year that looks to be a Republican sweep nationwide, and these Kansas Republicans are either behind in the polls or barely keeping pace with their Democratic opponents.

[centurion316]

Thomas Frank, author of "What's the Matter with Kansas" and Kansas' most famous talking head, tells his loyal liberal readers at Salon why Orman is one of them. Pay no attention to the Independent label, he is confident that it will be gone once the election is over. He doesn't get much right, but on this point, Salon voters can feel safe casting their vote for Orman.

[KC_Conspirator]

Frank is an embarrassment to Kansas.

[oblomov]

Thomas Frank is dead wrong on political philosophy, but he is a good writer and is among a small handful of leftist writers I consider worth reading.

Orman is obviously a socialist/progressive, and conservatives who vote for him will spend six years regretting their decision.

[okie01]

My sis, the social worker, will cast her ballot for the Commies in Ellis County come Tuesday.

While she is currently thrilled by the prospect of defeating Brownback, Roberts, et al, may she be deeply disappointed come Wednesday morning.

[MUDDOG]

He is a good writer.

But his main thesis in "What's the Matter" was that hard times make the people more conservative, not more liberal. (And that was the matter with Kansas!)

Yet now he's saying that the hard times in Kansas are going to cause the people to vote Democrat.

I don't think he has a clue.

[oblomov]

I agree. His framework obviously does not apply to the poor minority populations of NY, IL, CA, or other Dem strongholds. What’s the matter with NY? There are far more working class people in NYC than there are affluent “creative class” types.

I made this point in a debate against a left-winger several years ago. His head nearly exploded. He was convinced that poor urban minorities viewed urban hipsters as comrades-in-arms. I got the audience to laugh at him, and he became unnerved.

[driftless2]

I read WTMWK. The gist of the book is that average Kansans are taken in by conservative Republican talk about social values i.e. abortion, homo marriage when their real fight should be with rich i.e. conservative Republican plutocrats.

In other words, according to Frank, conservative Kansans should not be fighting against their economist interests. They should be for extracting (stealing...my interjection) the money of those rich plutocrats.

Unfortunately for Frank, most average Kansans are actually focused on their economic interests. That's why they usually vote for Republicans. Frank's got everything upside down.

[aquila48]

” They should be for extracting (stealing...my interjection) the money of those rich plutocrats.”

Exactly. He thinks that short term interest (stealing) trumps long term interest (actually working on a job) .

Fortunately unlike inner city blacks, the people of Kansas are wiser than that.

[centurion316]

Frank has a very low opinion of Kansans, except perhaps the liberal ones who live in Prairie Village and Lawrence. He thinks that we are too stupid to fend for ourselves and should be voting for Democrats who will take care of us using other peoples’ money.

[MUDDOG]

he became unnerved.

I would too, if I had to go up against you!

Good work.