For years Ive believed that Alabama is one of the most fucked up states of the Union

[MrScorpio]

This week is really giving a huge boost to my own level of confirmation bias about it.

[TBA]

1. I drove through the state in 2010

and the poverty was alarming. The south side of Montgomery looked like a 3rd world county.

[MineralMan]

3. It was far worse in 1965 when I drove to Alabama to

hear Dr. King speak. For a 19-year-old kid from a small town in California, it was an eye-opening, shocking experience. That trip changed my life in many ways. I have never been to Alabama since, and will never voluntarily go there during the rest of my life.

[Awsi Dooger]

22. I drove through Alabama with my parents several years later

I've told this story here previously. The Alabama state troopers were stopping every car and sticking George Wallace bumper stickers on the front and back. My dad refused. There were heated words from both sides. They attempted to apply the stickers. My dad stepped outside and stopped them. Increased heated words. Now there are cars lined up in both directions because all the troopers are surrounding my dad, trying to intimidate him. I was still in the car so I've never been exactly sure what was said at that point.

We drove away and were followed by two of the patrol cars. I had my head turned around in disbelief the entire time. They tailed us very closely to the state line, which was maybe 20 miles east.

That was my first stark glimpse at how the Deep South differed from everything else I was familiar with. We lived in Miami.

[Rhiannon12866]

35. Wow! That is just unbelievable - not that I don't believe you

Your Dad showed a lot of courage, I would have been scared witless!

[Docreed2003]

28. Damn...just when I thought I couldnt love you even more

You drop the bomb that you came to Alabama to hear Dr King????? Impressive MM!!! Love you and keep on contributing to this amazing community!

[MineralMan]

38. I missed the Selma march by one day, but got

to hear Dr. King deliver his "How Long?" speech. I listened from the back of the crowd, standing with a few other people.

[Docreed2003]

39. Amazing....

When I was in Med School in Memphis, I snuck into the church where MLK gave the “Moutaintop” speech, just to stand in the pulpit! That’s as close as I’ll ever get to MLK, so to hear your story is truly incredible!

[Alice11111]

30. Wow, good memory.

[MrScorpio]

4. That shit surprised the fuck out of me as well I

Especially when compared to those mansions sitting on massive lots on the other side of town.

[ecstatic]

42. What struck me as I drove through Alabama were the cotton fields

on either side of the highway.

[snooper2]

2. Missouri, Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi

No reason to live in any of those states...no redeeming values

[MrScorpio]

5. Ill take your word for it.

[Baitball Blogger]

6. What makes you think they're staying in Alabama?

This thing spreads as their residents bring their backwater ways to other states.

[snooper2]

9. Just checked, Alabama's state population is slowly ticking upward 5 million people total

http://population.us/al/



Just checked for DFW, we are at 7.2 million LOL

[Blue_true]

17. Northern Alabama tends to vote blue in places.

Haven't you seen those blue concentrations in northern Alabama and western Tennessee? Huntsville has one of the largest concentrations of advanced degrees outside of Silicon Valley, northern Virginia and the Boston metro region.

[Hoyt]

31. I sort of lived in Huntsville for awhile. There are more decent people there than most of

Alabama. I'm sure education has a big impact, although a lot of educated are in military contractors. Even though many of the old folks are George Wallace Democrats, they aren't as hateful like today's GOPers. That's still not good, but it's a whole lot worse elsewhere.

[Quemado]

19. Tennessee?

I grew up in Nebraska, spent 30 years in Texas. Now, I've lived in TN almost three years and am ready to move again.

More crime and poverty in TN than in TX.

[Gabi Hayes]

25. Most of the country, outside larger urban areas

and college towns, is Deliveranceville

Just look at the county by county electoral map

Even in blue states

Idiocracy, 500 years ahead of schedule

Did you see that HAM radio thread?

[nolabear]

47. That's not true.

I don't know about the first two but I know a little about Alabama and was raised in Mississippi. Alabama is the more conservative of the two believe it or not but both have coastal areas that are diverse, interesting and in some ways liberal.

I grew up on the MS coast. The entire distance from New Orleans to Pensacola FL is 200 mies. Most of the Mississippi coast is a combination of the American South, the unique bayou culture that comes from French Arcadia and the cultural influences of Native Americans, Spanish, French, Haitians and African Americans. There are so many Mexicans that in New Orleans Day of the Dead is a major holiday. Since the Vietnam War there has been an enormous immigrant population from Vietnam (seafood industry) and India (service industry). The cultures are rich and have given more in the arts than any other part of this country.

And other parts of the states are working hard for change. It's happening.

That doesn't excuse a man thing the fools we're seeing right now but watch that broad brush crap. It gets us nowhere with people who are in fact good allies if we let them be.

[klook]

53. Thank you.

I have good friends who are lifelong Democrats living in coastal Alabama and coastal Mississippi. And others living in the Birmingham suburbs and even rural West Alabama.

And last time I checked, there was a Democrat running against Moore for that Senate seat, and he was pulling even. That must mean there are honest-to-goodness Democratic voters living there, am I right? Maybe even some other good people, so I’ve heard.

Nah, couldn’t be in a true—in a state that’s nothing but dumb rednecks and downtrodden poor people of color, could it?

[nolabear]

54. I have a cousin and a good friend working their butts off for Jones.

I was actually born in Alabama but never lived there. But my mother’s people are there. The “old” folks are conservative, those of my generation (now kinda old. LOL) are Southern liberal, which can be a big mixture but are clearly Democratic. My own MS relatives are conservative but the ones I’m close to think 45 is abhorrent and children are to be protected from pedophiles. Hell, we even wore shoes and had indoor plumbing.

Liberals can be real assholes sometimes too.

[doc03]

52. Visited all of them a few weeks ago. I thought the Ozarks in Arkansas were pretty. Then

there is West Virginia it has turned out to be a Republican hell hole lately, they do have beautiful scenery though.

[Pacifist Patriot]

7. I lived there for three years.

I was in junior high. I have no intention of ever returning.

[NCTraveler]

8. My father was transferred to Alabama right before I was born.

Transferred to a real shit hole. When I was a couple of months old he requested a transfer because he didn’t want to raise me there.

That’s how I became a Floridian.

[juxtaposed]

11. huge improvement

[NCTraveler]

13. As long as things stay stable I would never move from where I am at.

I truly love living here. Pinellas County.

I also enjoy Florida politics. We have a solid group of Democrats and the fight never stops.

[juxtaposed]

14. I agree florida has great things but, it does have an underbelly just outside of pinellas

that is not that far above Al.
https://flic.kr/s/aHskf9fUuY

[NCTraveler]

16. +1

We have it all. Other than being nothing but flat, for the most part.

[Blue_true]

18. Flat?

I live in Florida. What the hell are you saying. We have a few 10 foot hills.

[csziggy]

49. I live in North Florida - we have 200 foot tall hills!

And even in peninsular Florida, Iron Mountain near Lake Wales, where Bok Tower was built, is 295 above sea level!

Sand Mountain, which used to be south of Fort Meade, was a man-made "mountain" of sand tailings from the phosphate process. At it's highest, it was taller than Iron Mountain. Historical note: my grandfather helped develop the process that created Sand Mountain with his name on the patent and managed the plant that created Sand Mountain. My father improved on that process and managed the plant that took down Sand Mountain!

Sand Mountain, Fort Meade Florida
rockcityfilms3
Published on Dec 13, 2014
Located two miles south of Fort Meade and owned by Swift and Co., Sand Mountain was started in 1948 and consisted of sand washed from phosphate rock. Within a short time the pile had grown to 200 feet tall and covered several acres. In fact, the sand pile was so high that Sand Mountain was actually taller than Bok Tower's perch, Iron Mountain, in Lake Wales.Sand Mountain, however, remained the property of the phosphate mines. By 1964, new technology made it possible for more phosphate to be extracted from piled sand. Mineral Company Corp. leveled the mountain.

[NCTraveler]

50. First I will build it..

Then I will take it away.

That’s great!!!

[onethatcares]

20. I like Pinellas too, but

it's getting harder to push back the red tide.

Thank gaud for St Petersburg though.

[NCTraveler]

21. It is.

We could really benefit from a greater youth turnout. We would benefit from a more laser like focus on the service industry as well. We have some solid progressives in the area. Running for certain seats is a daunting task.

[Sancho]

36. Some of my neighbors (Largo) are schizo or something...

...many retired (SS and Medicare), new transplants with kids in school, and constantly wanting government services: but they vote republican and donate to the GOP!!

It makes no sense to me - except that there's actually a good bit of underlying racism and sexism. Many "conservatives" have a house keeper from Brazil or yard help from Mexico or a handyman from Poland. It's all great as long as "they" live somewhere else and can't vote. Archie Bunker revisited.

Neighborhood meetings are 50/50 - and pretty contentious. We've banned yard signs because of all the shenanigans, so people put political bumper stickers on their cars and in their car windows.

The Claude Pepper days of solid blue Florida simply doesn't make inroads with the "villager crowd". About once a month I argue with one neighbor while putting out the trash or getting mail. He literally says he would never vote for a woman President no matter who runs!! He is a Boston transplant and MIT grad who retired from NASA. My view of the engineering profession and rocket scientists has been greatly diminished.

My students don't register and don't vote. Telling them about our battle to get the vote for women and 18 year olds helps, but they don't want to take time to go through the registration process, say that their vote doesn't matter anyway, or "don't know" who's running.

[ThoughtCriminal]

10. I left 35 years ago

I'll be visiting family there for Thanksgiving. What I'm thankful for:

My parents raised me to respect all races, religions, and genders. Not just tolerate. Respect. Sadly, I still see old friends, relatives, and classmates who were not so fortunate.

[alterfurz]

12. Sweet Home Alabama...

..."maybe just a little bit unusual" (Alabama State Auditor Jim Ziegler, defending Roy Moore)

[juxtaposed]

15. hit the nail on the head

[Gabi Hayes]

26. From that

To this

https://m.

[DAMANgoldberg]

23. Growing up there, Alabama does have redeeming qualities.

Auburn University - BIASED -
Lee County (Auburn and Opelika) - BIASED -
Huntsville
over-the-mountain Birmingham
University of Alabama Birmingham
HBCUs (Tuskeegee, Alabama A&M, Alabama State)
Oh, and the University of Alabama
Interstate 85 goes North to places you actually want to live, Atlanta and Charlotte.

[Elwood P Dowd]

44. I agree with you. Some really great people and places in Alabama

like Huntsville, Auburn, T-Town, parts of the B-Ham area, and the HBCUs.

[Gabi Hayes]

24. Anybody have a time machine?

Can we go back to 1860 and give those, what, 11 states, an exit slip, instead of letting them control our country since reclamation?

[Pope George Ringo II]

27. There's a reason the Mississippi state motto is, "Thank god we're not Alabama."

Of course, the Louisiana state motto is, "Thank god we're not Mississippi."

[Kablooie]

29. With my banjo on my knee.

[applegrove]

32. CNN has had on more than one Alabama Moore defender. It felt like

each defender were creepier than the previous.

[handmade34]

33. some good people though...

Tuskegee Airmen
Rosa Parks
Helen Keller
Emmylou Harris
Laverne Cox
awesome people of the sports world... Carl Lewis et. al.

Wilson Pickett, etc...

[Elwood P Dowd]

45. Bo Jackson, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Joe Lewis, Jessie Owens,

Charles Barkley, and many more great athletes from Alabama. Tim Cook, openly gay and Hillary/Obama supporter, is CEO of Apple. He is from Robertsdale, Alabama.

[handmade34]

46. ...

[JustAnotherGen]

55. My dad

[raccoon]

34. Yeah, but what about the other 49? Nt

[HAB911]

37. And to think, we call the Florida Panhandle LA

Lower Alabama

[former9thward]

40. What state are you part of?

I spent a few years in Alabama working for the University of Alabama. I found the people in the state to be far more friendlier than any other place I lived before or since.

[MrScorpio]

43. My great grandparents fled from Chambers County 90 years ago

As part of the Great Northern Migration to Michigan. Something about fleeing the Klan back then.

I have been back to the state... Once. Only because the Air Force sent me. That was back in 2003, when Moore was creating his Ten Commandments mess. Woo boy!

That was interesting to watch up close. I will say that people I met during my training time in Alabama were generally cordial. But being there, I had to balance that out with extreme wealth inequality for mostly poor black people (I accidentally drove into a shanty town In Montgomery), Moore’s religious nut bag hypocrite cult and some good ol’ boys driving around a parking lot in a pick up truck, waving the stars and bars while me and my multi-cultural group of fellow classmates were trying to enjoy our pizzas.

Sweet Home Alabama!

[TheBlackAdder]

41. "Pennsylvania - There's Philly, there's Pittsburgh, and a whole lot of Alabama in between."

[B2G]

48. Yeah, well based on the reports coming out of Hollywood,

California is giving it a damn good run for its money.

[yallerdawg]

51. New York gave us the Dotard.

There are creepy Republicans everywhere. 52 in the US Senate, right?

Schwarzenegger was where?

I don't know about all these commenters on "Alabama" but I'm takin' 4 actual votes for Doug Jones to the poll December 12th.

And y'all don't have to send me one penny!

[Gothmog]

56. There is a saying in Texas to the effect thank G-d for Mississippi and Alabama

These two states take turns keeping Texas from coming in dead last in a number of categories