Your daddy was right. In eastern KY during the depression era the politicians and coal company officials were almost the only people there who managed to get by alright. For instance, if a man or woman could win a race for the local school board many of his or her family members could get jobs doing something at or around the school. The same thing applied to some degree to other political offices and government facilities, but the school positions were particularly useful for that purpose. With so many of the mines closed and no other industry in the region it was a matter of survival of the cleverest and most ruthless.
My wife's family was involved in politics in eastern KY during that time. One of her uncles served a short sentence for killing a rival politician on election day at the polling place. He happened to be a member of the "right" party faction at the time, so he got off with practically a slap on the wrist. The family had managed to get a sister elected to the school board at the last election, and the other candidate was of course a threat to their meal ticket. The killing was in self defense according to the family, but I think there was more to it than that since the other man wasn't armed.
I haven't visited down there since the last family funeral in the 1980s, but I understand that the old ways are fading away fast in those mountains now and prosperity has arrived at last. That's kinda sad in a way I guess, that was a unique part of America at one time and according to my wife not a bad place to grow up in spite of all it's many problems. But as "they" say, you can't stop progress. At least you can't if you count Walmart Super Centers, quarter-mile long strip malls, and fast food joints on every corner as progress.
I have to admit, I do miss home sometimes. I'm living in NC, and it's beautiful here, but Kentucky is one of the most breath-takingly beautiful places on earth. I miss the fact that my children didn't get to see what a farm was like and all of the critters. They didn't get to pick their food for dinner, then sit around on the front porch while we listened to bluegrass gospel on the radio or Daddy picked his guitar, or just listening to the grand-parents and great-grandparents shoot the breeze. And I'm not that old. Those were good times.