I love where this thread has wandered.
I have spent 100% of my life in Tennessee and Georgia, I have heard people from both states speak of Florida as "not the south." I have also heard people in Georgia tell me Tennessee is "not the real south." I've heard people in south Georgia call Atlanta the north because of all the transplants. I've seen people on GC lump Texas in with the south when everyone should realize that Texas is its own impressive self.
As a professional, I routinely do business in and frequently visit these states: Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. I've found that we all have more in common than not as southerners, you know, except for all those transplants in Atlanta.