South vs. North?

[SWTXBelle]

CH2tf - so you had maybe one conversation about this with a southerner, but you heard the "At least we won the war" comment once or twice? Doesn't that kind of prove my point? The fact that you had only the one conversation despite going to grad school in the south seems to also support another observation of mine - that most southerners are too polite to bring up the subject.
In all my years in NJ I never brought up the subject - but upon hearing my accent northerners felt obliged to comment on the north vs. south thing. If southerners were exactly the same, you should have been the reciepient of many of the same kind of comments I was subjected to, and yet by your own admission you were not.
Sociologists have noted that southerners tend to identify with their region to an extent that northerners do not; linguists have found to their surprise that instead of dying out, regional accents are in fact continuing to be an important identifying charcteristic of regional groups. I would hope that everyone could appreciate regional differences without resorting to insults.
I don't want grits in Maine, scrapple in Georgia, Tex-Mex in Tennessee or Philly Cheese steaks in Florida. I'm using food as my metaphor, but I'm personally glad that different areas of the country continue to be unique, and only wish everyone could appreciate the diversity of this country. Years as an Air Force brat taught me that there is something to enjoy no matter where you live. I enjoy visiting other areas of the country, and have often decried in my newspaper column the spread of strip centers and chain restaurants - too many areas of the country look exactly alike!
I'm also very glad I live in the south - told my husband the Yalie that I'd follow him anywhere, as long as it was below the Mason-Dixon.

[Ch2tf]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

CH2tf - so you had maybe one conversation about this with a southerner, but you heard the "At least we won the war" comment once or twice? Doesn't that kind of prove my point? The fact that you had only the one conversation despite going to grad school in the south seems to also support another observation of mine - that most southerners are too polite to bring up the subject.

If that is what you choose to believe that is fine. I've had the conversation with a southerner (more than one if you include my cousins, but since the back in forth between them and my dad was more of light banter I didn't count it). I didn't/don't have the conversation because I choose not to indulge in it. People are going to have strong feelings about where they come from and it's pointless to go back and forth and it's one of those arguments where the two sides are never going to come into agreement with each other.

[SWTXBelle]

Then I'm curious as to why you posted to this thread???

FSUZeta - I know, I know. I lived in Melbourne, FLA for years and was amazed at those snowbirds who were sooooo unhappy. For the love of God, move back north! Life is too short to be miserable where you are living.
Lest you think we stayed in the north when we were unhappy - when my family was in NJ, my father was a vice-president at a Fortune 500 company. He told the president to move us south - or he would quit. They didn't believe it - look at your title! look at your salary! No one would leave here!
He did. Packed up his wife and 4 kids, and moved home to Texas. We spent a summer haying and ranching while he looked for a new executive position. I didn't appreciate at the time the bravery that took. He got a great job with a company he has been with since 1978 - and I learned to do something rather than sit around and complain.

[shinerbock]

Naples would be one of the greatest places on earth if not for the yankees. I really like that town. Thankfully the snowbirds in the Destin area aren't as bad.

[banditone]

Oklahoma isn't "south" by any stretch of the imagination right?

[shinerbock]

Oklahoma isn't south, but there are similarities

[AlexMack]

Um...we don't want the snowbirds either. They suck up here too. It's not a northern thing it's a crotchety old person thing.

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

CH2tf - so you had maybe one conversation about this with a southerner, but you heard the "At least we won the war" comment once or twice? Doesn't that kind of prove my point? The fact that you had only the one conversation despite going to grad school in the south seems to also support another observation of mine - that most southerners are too polite to bring up the subject.
In all my years in NJ I never brought up the subject - but upon hearing my accent northerners felt obliged to comment on the north vs. south thing. If southerners were exactly the same, you should have been the reciepient of many of the same kind of comments I was subjected to, and yet by your own admission you were not.
Sociologists have noted that southerners tend to identify with their region to an extent that northerners do not; linguists have found to their surprise that instead of dying out, regional accents are in fact continuing to be an important identifying charcteristic of regional groups. I would hope that everyone could appreciate regional differences without resorting to insults.
I don't want grits in Maine, scrapple in Georgia, Tex-Mex in Tennessee or Philly Cheese steaks in Florida. I'm using food as my metaphor, but I'm personally glad that different areas of the country continue to be unique, and only wish everyone could appreciate the diversity of this country. Years as an Air Force brat taught me that there is something to enjoy no matter where you live. I enjoy visiting other areas of the country, and have often decried in my newspaper column the spread of strip centers and chain restaurants - too many areas of the country look exactly alike!
I'm also very glad I live in the south - told my husband the Yalie that I'd follow him anywhere, as long as it was below the Mason-Dixon.

Great post, especially, "I would hope that everyone could appreciate regional differences without resorting to insults." Having been raised by a Southern mother (who loved my daddy enough to move North), I've come up against my share of hostile remarks. Unfortunately, Northerners feel free to knock the main principles of my being raised Southern, and Southerners can't forgive me for living where I can best use my education. And I'm not about to compromise my values either way!

ETA: I'm DAR & UDC, too.