NationStates Jolt Archive

If so, why do Southern States vote Republican, as they are more likely than Democrats to cut those subsidies?

I'm not sure on an absolute dollar amount, particularly with Boston's "Big Dig", but on a per capita amount they'll beat the northern states easily. Much of what the southern states recieve is essentailly welfare, corporate, agricultural, and otherwise. What's really interesting about the southern states is they don't particularly vote in their best interests, even though an impressive amount of pork has gone their way. I suspect this has to do with income levels, and the kinds of jobs and work weeks that are prevalent. AM talk radio, gossip at church and work are probably much more persuasive if you're busting your ass 60+ hours a week, much of which might be spent conforming to arcane bureaucratic regulations. If you don't have the time to read a couple of news papers, and watch cable news, and keep up with what is the new hotness is in the country, neglecting the issue of money entirely, it'd would be pretty difficult to form a clear picture of the world and your place in it. Not to mention, look at the rankings of the educational systems. These are the real dividends of cheap oil, 70's inflation, and the Regean era cuts in education. Pretty brutal.

The South used to vote a straight deomcrat ticket, until the Civil Rights Movement, when the Liberal wing of the Democratic Party began to side with advocates for Civil Rights reform. Thats when they switched to the Republican Party. 'Dixiecrats,' get it? And it is not even that all of the people were racist, but many of them did feel that segregation was necessary, so they sided with thier politicians and became republicans.

Here's all you need to know about the south (i know because i live there): As a majority, southern voters don't like change. That is why they tend to vote republican, republicans fear change. Its not about the work weeks and i whole heartedly disagree with the whole welfare crap that the other poster was saying. In the south, the majority wants to do things the same way they have always done things and thats all there is to it. The progressive policies of other parties are frightening and chaotic. Not for me, i'm very liberal, but for the older generation, that, i don't know, actually votes.

I think it is not so much a matter of subsidies per se, but taxes. Northern (well blue states actually) as a whole pay more in taxes than they recieve in subsidies. The opposite is true for the red states. But that's understandable as northern states pay more in taxes in the first place.

But since the average income in the blue states is higher, I don't see why this should surprise anyone, especially given that those same blue state people who bitch about this also support progressive taxation. (hoist by thier own petard there I think.)

There is also the question of farm subsidies. But I can't see that changing anytime, no matter who controls washington.

(Interestingly enough, the same thing goes on within New York State, with the rich southern bit paying most of the tax, and therefore recieving less back from albany than it sends in).