Axis of Twang

Rosemary from Dean's World points to a Bill Maher transcript in which Maher lectures us backwards, ignorant rednecks on the upcoming presidential election:

New rule: Southerners have to at least consider voting for candidates from the North.

North Carolina Sen. John Edwards has a powerful argument in his bid to be the Democratic nominee when he says, "What I give people is a candidate who can win everywhere in America."

Translation: "We Southerners ain't gonna vote for no Yankee! You suckers up North will take our Clintons and Carters, but we just ain't buyin' Kerrys and Deans."

Since I voted for Bush I and Bob Dole, neither of whom are Southerners, I wouldn't claim either Clinton or Carter as fellow travelers despite their Southern roots. It is the baloney they drawl that turns me off. On the other hand, Tony Blair's English-accented defense of the Iraq invasion and war on terror is music to my redneck ears. Maher continues:

And that's a shame. Not just for Democrats but for democracy itself. And I feel bad for the millions of intelligent people who live in a region still dominated by so much prejudice that anyone who wants to be president better have a twang in his voice and pronounce all four E's in the word "shit."

No Bill. What is really a shame is that there are way too many arrogant blowhards whose prejudices allow them make pronouncements such as these without any knowledge of the facts. This tendency to demean and underestimate Southerners is going to continue backfiring for the Democrats, as demonstrated again and again by that illiterate, redneck cowboy in the White House who outsmarts and out-maneuvers them at every turn. And that is no shee-eet.

Sorry, but responding only to people who look and sound like you is small-minded, so if Southerners don't want to have an inferiority complex, I say, "Stop doing things that make reasonable people think you're inferior!"

Since most Southerners don't have an inferiority complex, I'd say this supposed inferiority is embedded in your own small mind. Reasonable people don't think we're inferior, Bill. As long as you and your pompous, elitist friends are blinkered by your superiority complex you will continue to be blind-sided by the Axis of Twang. It couldn't happen to a nicer group of people.

Update: Outside the Beltway has additional comments on this topic well worth reading.

Update II: I forgot to link to Dean's comments on the show which are also excellent.