South Carolina (solid Bu$h/Jesus country) loses 76,000 manufacturing jobs.

[DemoTex]

76,000 manufacturing jobs lost in five-year downturn

South Carolina shed more than 76,000 manufacturing jobs over the past five years, 4.2 percent of its total labor force and one of the worst percentage losses in the nation. (snip)

An analysis by The Greenville News of state employment numbers shows that the replacement jobs were, overall, lower paying and less likely to become lifelong careers. (snip)

South Carolina ranks among the worst in the nation for manufacturing job losses as a percentage of total employment, according to figures from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. The state ranks fourth behind Michigan, North Carolina and New Hampshire for losses over the past five years. (more at link below)

http://greenvilleonline.com/news/specialreport/2005/03/31/2005033161701.htm

Another 275 job cuts were announced today by the Kemet Corporation of Greenville, SC (manufactures capacitors for the electronics industry). Kemet will also cut 300 jobs in Mexico.

These people just don't get it. They love Bu$h, but he won't even kiss them while he is screwing them.

They elected Jim DeMint (R-Hell) to the Senate seat vacated by retiring Democrat Fritz Hollings. During a debate with Democratic candidate Inez Tennenbaum in October 2004, DeMint said gays and lesbians should not be allowed to teach in public schools.

The 4th Congressional District, which includes ultra-Fundy Bob Jones University, elected a right-winger to Congress - Bob Inglis - who in March 2005 voted against House Resolution 136 to investigate a homosexual male prostitute and pornographer ("Jeff Gannon") who was working in the White House press room as a "correspondent" for GOP-affiliated Talon News for over two years.

You cannot tell these people anything negative about Bu$h, DeMint, or Inglis. They just stick their fingers in their ears and sing La-La-La-La-La-La! GOP Senator Lindsey Graham's teflon is wearing off though, because he has shown some modicum of reason as of late. Reason: the kiss of death in Bob Jones country.

[UrbScotty]

1. Jesus Country?

I wonder how they treat the least of Christ's people?

[slor]

2. At least they can stand in the unemployment line without fear of...

a gay married couple checking them out.

[ztn]

lol

:toast:

[oneighty]

3. I have had

about 15 years or more living in South Carolina. It is a strange area, really strange.

My wife is from South Carolina she is a progressive thinker and there is not a racist thought in her head, unlike her family.

Hey Demo Tex! (waving gnats away)

180

[mitchtv]

4. funny thing about Karma

it works

[PsN2Wind]

5. Come on now, DemoTex

All those good South Carolinans know, "the Lord will provide"!!!

[MidwestTransplant]

6. I could not believe that debate on MTP

I mean, that guy is just such a damn moron. I think Tim Russert couldn't believe what he was dealing with. The people in SC got what they deserved if they voted for that moron.

[ztn]

7. This is how it works.

pillage their pockets and wave a bible while sporting a cowboy hat and it all becomes OK. It's like taking candy from a baby.:puke:

[Last Lemming]

8. I live in SC now

the thunk is the sound of my head hitting the wall
they live in a dreamland and in that dreamland all that is spoken is Bush
one nurse turned to me once and said dead serious "how can gays be like that when it says right in the Bible they are going to hell. . ."
It's like a foreign country where a kind of English is spoken

Got a couple of co-workers very impressed by Wes Clarke. Tell they main stream Dems that that guy went over very well down here

[ztn]

9. I believe that one...

Wes had that asthetic, abstract "honest man" quality that is COMPULSORY for them before they even listen to a candidate.

But unlike Bush, it's genuine.

[DemoTex]

10. The upstate is worse than the low country.

IMHO. But you are right about their "dreamland". "All show and no substance" gets these rubes excited every time. They are positively orgasmic when Bu$h talks tough and bullies other countries around, especially France.

[onager]

12. I grew up there...

In the Upstate. When I was just a wee fluffy speck of white trash, my Mom car-pooled to work in a cotton mill with John Edwards' parents. (The Senator, not the phony talk-to-the-dead guy.)

The last of the J.P. Stevens cotton mills just closed for good in that area, which is truly the end of an era. I did a turn in those places as a high-schooler, like most residents did.

According to my Mom, Miss Lindsey is the pol feeling the most heat from the job losses. That may be because Graham made some promises he had no way of keeping, about preserving jobs, etc.

I was back there visiting once when that asshat Inglis was running. Every time he opened his mouth, the word "family values" popped out. He was clearly nothing but a puppet with Ralph Reed's hand up his butt, and I'm fairly sure Inglis couldn't spell "economics" if you spotted him 3 of the vowels and 5 of the consonants.

[leftofthedial]

11. Gawd bless George Bush

He is saving our country

[politicasista]

13. Sadly, it's racism.

[comsymp]

14. Sadly, that's a popular misconception

Google "Roger Milliken" for the REAL reason SC is Republican country.

[DemoTex]

15. Roger Milliken might be an economic reason SC is GOP.

But Strom Thurmond and the Dixiecrat's racism was just what the crackers wanted politically in post-war SC. That became the core when Nixon played the race card in the South.

The strength of fundamentalist religions in SC (especially Bob Jones University) was instrumental in delivering droves to the GOP when the Repubs co-opted religion.

[QC]

16. You call people "crackers" and "rubes" and then complain about bigotry.

Who says irony is dead?

[Name removed]

19. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[QC]

22. No, not touchy.

Just not very tolerant of hypocrisy.

[comsymp]

23. "Crackers," Race & Fundamentalism -

ON EDIT: (meant to address this first) While I do believe that Milliken is a factor, he's also a symptom.

There's no denying that religion and race play a part in the Republicanization of SC (and other Southern - and presumably Midwestern / Western / Rust Belt states)- at least among some ppl (and to varying degrees among those).

But too many here opt for the simplistic approach of choosing one factor and then blaming all the ills of the world on that. My post above was a response to the suggestion by another poster that the problem was racism, exclusively, which created the R majority in SC ("sadly, it's racism"). Sure, there are some who prefer the GOP's attitudes toward race - some folks are virulently racist; others see Affirmative Action (long defined as quotas - another communication failure by the Dems, IMO) as offensive to their sense of fair play. Believe it or not, many, many working class folks down here genuinely don't have a problem with race. But your stereotypical Redneck in a doublewide, who makes $20-25K/yr... or less..., is living paycheck-to-paycheck and drives a 15 year old POS, just doesn't see himself as having an unfair advantage over others. THAT is part of what the GOP tapped into. And, of course, there are others to whom race is simply not, and never has been, an issue.

As already stated, economic issues play, and have played for a century, a large role. Republicans have historically labeled themselves protectionist, and that's a big deal to textile / mfg states. Hell, that's the whole point of the story in your OP.

Additionally, another cultural value down here is Respect For Authoritah - when our religious / political leaders tell us something, many Southerners tend to believe 'em. While I'm congenitally skeptical, I appreciate - and even admire - others who are more trusting.

Libertarianism plays a role, as well - especially in areas like property rights, taxation and individual rights. For decades, Dems were (still are) seen as the party of governmental regulation. The tobacco and hog farmers have not been pleased with many of the health and environmental measures pushed by Dems. Plant workers tend to believe that unionization and increased regulation will cut their jobs. A lotta folks feel they would rather take a few health / safety risks and continue to draw a paycheck - especially when there are few alternate sources of income in their area.

Another factor which rarely gets mentioned is Southerners' tendency towards stubbornness. Not surprisingly, we (as a group - broad generalization here) aren't inclined to support a group who labels us as backwards, ignorant, evil, etc. There's a reason for the resentment many here feel towards the Northeastern Liberal Elite®. From conversations I've had over the years, this was also a significant factor behind the whole State House - CBF thing. We haaaaate having "uppity Yankees" telling us what to do.

So the point is, trying to boil *any* issue down to one or two root causes is, at the very least, intellectually lazy, and definitely not a good way to solve problems.

[Kerrytravelers]

17. Good. They deserve it. If you're stupid enough to vote *, you're too

stupid to hold down a job.

I no longer have any sympathy for the stupid. Darwinsim will eventually take care of them (hopefully for the rest of us.)

[Clark2008]

18. But I'm sure not all of those 76,000 voted for Bush

I live in the South (TN) and I didn't vote for Bush, yet I'm laid off.
Gee - thanks for the support. :eyes:

[Kerrytravelers]

21. Clearly not every single one voted for *.

I said I no longer have sympathy for the stupid. If you didn't vote for *, then you're not part of the stupid.

[DemoTex]

20. One last good kick!

:kick:

[blindpig]

24. one carpetbaggers POV

I moved down here from Baltimore in a fit of economic & personal desperation in 1982. Back then there was alway work in the textile business and a friend offered to put me up. Business and personal commitment has kept me here. As have open spaces(relative to Md) and more wildlife. It is a mistake to paint this area with an overly broad brush. While fundies and stupidity do rule those characterizations are more broad than deep.

The fundies get their way because they are loud and organized. Even here they are a significant minority at best. But they understand what the Jesuits understood, the value of childhood conditioning. The gray, amorphous middle may not agree with the hysterical ravings but can be cowed by religious guilt and the human desire for inclusion. A little help from the Christian Left, Sermon on the Mount in hand, couldn't hurt.

The jobs situation is maddening, Demint and Inglese are flat out raping these people and they go along like good codependents. They see no alternative and are offered no hope. This is the great failing of a Democratic Party more beholden to the business interest than the people. A return to New Deal principles in deed and action(Dennis Kucinich, anyone?)is the best cure for this suicidal apathy. As it stands the working class sees no help coming from Democrats.

Race is still a factor, though sublimated. Flat out racist are hard to find, situational racism is not uncommon but not openly displayed either. People are improving, these things take time. Perhaps another generation.

Oh yes, let's not talk about guns. If we leave the situation at status quo, preferring to allow more stringent regulations to be a local concern, we'll be better off at the polls. It is dismaying how many votes we lose over guns. Don't make no sense to me but that's the way it is.

But WTF do I know?

[comsymp]

25. Damn, I forgot to mention the guns!

Great post and excellent points, btw.