Posted on 11/07/2004 1:02:40 PM PST by quidnunc
Welcome to the heart and soul of America. A sign greets visitors outside a truck stop with a resounding: "Let freedom reign." There is one white, wooden evangelical church and lots of Bush-Cheney posters along the roadside. The message on the way out is: "Support our troops."
This is Crittenden, Kentucky, a Bible-belt hamlet where the sale of alcohol is banned. Yet it is not completely stuck in a prohibition era time-warp. People drink; they just have to travel outside county lines to find it. They marry, but they also get divorced. They are anti-abortion, but will rally around a girl who gets pregnant. They believe marriage is between a man and a woman, but have gay friends and relatives. They worry about the war because they know soldiers who are fighting in Iraq.
Overwhelmingly they backed George W Bush for president. It is in these heartlands that Karl Rove — "the architect", as Bush called his aide admiringly in his victory speech — laid the ground for the Republicans' electoral success. While the popular vote split 51%-48%, the broader picture shows that Bush won convincingly across the American suburbs and rural areas, pushing the Democrats out of the south and midwest and into their coastal, urban strongholds.
When John Kerry gracefully conceded defeat in the grand surroundings of Faneuil Hall in Boston, Massachusetts, he told supporters: "I wish, you don't know how much, I could have brought this race home for you." As he relives what might have been, he may well wonder whether he was out of step with the hopes and dreams of America's hinterland.
Crittenden is no more than a mile long and yet it spans Middle America. Here people aspire to moral values, but don't always live up to them. They regard Bush as an all-American family man who overcame his character flaws and drink problems, worked to forge a happy marriage with an admirable stay-at-home wife and brought up two flighty girls who are good at heart.
-snip-
We are not perfect but neither to we glorify every deviant movie star who thinks they are representing the values of this country.
Excellent point.
This is the best of the post-election analyses to date. Well worth the long read.
There should be a citcom like the Osbournes, only the name is "The Kerry's" Think of the players. No fiction would need to be written. Just take the first seasons episodes from Newsweek. Did you read all that crap. The whole family is certifiable. It would be hilarious.
One other point...We do not have the market cornered on God. We believe in God but we do not force God onto anyone that does not want to believe BUT we do not want liberals, newspapers, activist judges or anyone else to take God away from us.
The dirty secret, however, is that only a minority -- much less than this "55%" -- approve of the full sweeping permissiveness of Roe and its reptilian offspring.
Home folks for me...born and raised in Kentucky...I'm the sort of voter the Kerry supporters (and Guardian readers)just don't understand...
Interesting how the colors are reversed. Red for commies, blue for patriotic Americans...
IN YOUR FACE HOLLYWEIRD !!!!!!!
Finally, a relatively fair description of part of middle America. The libs are convinced anyone who is against gay marriage hates gays. Middle Americans, particularly christian ones, are among the most tolerant and forgiving people on the planet. Had Kerry won the election you would not hear any of the vitriol from them that has become the trademark of Dems. They would accept the election and quietly move on with their lives.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.