"White Rural Rage", Created Out Of Thin Air To Further Demonize And Divide Americans
"Leave it to MSNBC to trot out alleged “experts” to warn everyone of the inherent dangerousness of being white and living rural." - John Hanson, "The POLITICAL INSIDER"
Rural America deserves better treatment than this, rather than being conveniently villainized and exaggerated into the dangerous boogeyman of modern America.
“White Rural Rage” also accuses white rural America of being a hotbed of Christian nationalism, using assumptions without the evidence to back it up. And they argue that white rural Americans are more supportive of political violence, painting them as a very real and violent threat to the rest of the U.S., when the very study they cite to back this up actually found the opposite.
- Kristin Lunz Trujillo is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of South Carolina. One of the authors whose research was perverted in the book. Kristin grew up on a corn and soybean farm in the upper Midwest.
Cohost Mika Brzezinski asked the pair, “Why are white rural voters a threat to democracy at this point? You would think, looking at Joe Biden and Donald Trump’s background, that the opposite would be true.”
Schaller replied that they “lay out the fourfold interconnected threat that white rural voters pose to the country,” in their new book. “They are the most anti-gay, xenophobic in the scholarly publications. QAnon support and subscribers, COVID denialism, Obama birtherism.”
The author also argued that white rural Americans continue to espouse “anti-democratic sentiments.”
“They don’t believe in an independent press, free speech. They’re most likely to say the president should be backed unilaterally without checks from the courts, and the strongest white Christian nationalists,” Schaller said. “Fourth, they’re most likely to excuse or justify violence as acceptable.”
Here is is an excerpt from the book. By reading it you will understand the true meaning of the words “disinformation” and “misinformation.”
Rule 13. “Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions.
- Saul Alinsky, “Rules for Radicals”
It was applauded across the leftist world as confirmation for their frankly racist beliefs about white rural Americans
The continuum of white rage is "laid out in devastating, terrifying and baffling detail" in the book. - Paul Krugman, New York Times
In the popular imagination of many Americans, particularly those on the left side of the political spectrum, the typical MAGA supporter is a rural resident who hates Black and Brown people, loathes liberals, loves gods and guns, believes in myriad conspiracy theories, has little faith in democracy, and is willing to use violence to achieve their goals, as thousands did on Jan. 6.
According to a new book, White Rural Rage: The Threat to American Democracy, these aren’t hurtful, elitist stereotypes by Acela Corridor denizens and bubble-dwelling liberals… they’re facts. - Michael A. Cohen, DAILYBEAST
Comments regarding the authors and their outrageous conclusions about the scholarly publications they misrepresent
The book reeks of tell-tale signs of being written first and finding facts second. Only after they settled on a salacious title, it seems, did they go out and try to find what they already agreed to see, with little to no attention paid to whether any of it was true. - Nicholas F. Jacobs is an assistant professor of government at Colby College and the co-author, with Daniel M. Shea, of The Rural Voter: The Politics of Place and the Disuniting of America
A new book, White Rural Rage, paints white rural Americans, a small and shrinking minority of the country, as the greatest threat to American democracy. The authors, political scientist Tom Schaller and journalist Paul Waldman, try to buttress this argument by citing scholarly publications. We are two of the scholars whose work they cite, and we cry foul.
The overarching argument of White Rural Rage is that ruralness can be equated with racism, xenophobia, conspiracism, and anti-democratic beliefs. But rigorous scholarship shows that rural identity is not reducible to these beliefs, which are vastly more numerous outside rural communities than within them. To get to a conclusion so at odds with the scholarly consensus, Schaller and Waldman repeatedly commit academic malpractice.
Over and over, Schaller and Waldman depend the well-known "ecological" fallacy to support their most provocative claims. So they write, because authoritarianism predicted support for Donald Trump in the 2016 Republican primaries, and rural residents support Trump, rural residents are the most likely to be authoritarian (p. 179). Or, in a lengthy aside on “Christian nationalism” they string together that fact that because white evangelicals are most likely to support Christian nationalist beliefs and because 43 percent of rural residents identify as evangelical, the hotbed of Christian nationalism is in rural communities (p. 183). Perhaps the most egregious form of guilt-by-association comes in a weakly sourced analysis of who supports “constitutional sheriffs.” Not a single study of public opinion is even cited in that section (p. 186). Anecdotes abound.
It gets worse. In several instances, the authors misinterpret what the academic research they cite says. For example, they use a report by the Chicago Project on Security and Threats to argue that "rural Americans are overrepresented among those with insurrectionist tendencies." But the actual report concludes exactly the opposite: "The more rural the county, the lower the county rate of sending insurrectionists" to the January 6 Capitol riot. Moreover, when a peer-reviewed article in the journal Political Behavior compared rural and non-rural beliefs on whether politically motivated violence is a valid means for pursuing political change, it revealed that rural Americans are actually less supportive of political violence. - Nicholas F. Jacobs and B. Cal Munis, Ph.D.
Peer reviewed articles co-authored by Nicholas F. Jacobs and B. Cal Munis, Ph.D.
2022. “Place-based Resentment in Contemporary U.S. Elections: The Individual Sources of America's Urban-Rural Divide,"Political Research Quarterly
2020. “Staying in Place: Federalism and the Political Economy of Place Attachment," Publius: The Journal of Federalism
2019. “Experimental Evidence on the Relationship Between Place-based Appeals and Voter Evaluations,"Political Research Quarterly
Only a few of the serious flaws in the book
The vast majority of data the authors cite lacks any consistent definition of what they mean by the word “rural.”
The authors seemed to have a complete disregard for sample size. It appeared the smaller the better. The smaller the sample, the larger the margin of error, yet Schaller and Waldman never report once in the book margins of error.
Only two surveys in the entire book conform to basic standards of survey research and even attempt to try and present an accurate picture of rural America.
Throughout the book, Schaller and Waldman solely rely on group comparisons – a true indication that their analysis is driven more by a desire to confirm one’s beliefs than to find real evidence for “rural rage.” - Nicholas F. Jacobs
Nowhere in the book is there any curiosity to understand what motivates rural people. Why are they supposedly so enraged? Why do rural residents supposedly hold the beliefs the authors attribute to them? What makes them, as a group, more likely to vote for someone like Donald Trump?
More outrageous academic malpractice from the authors
There is such a thing as rural resentment. Rural people feel ignored by politicians and that they are overlooked with resources. In the Carlton Complex wildfire, I mention in It's Fire Season Again, 146 homes and 470 structures were destroyed. FEMA denied assistance. In the Texas floods of 2017, FEMA also denied assistance. The ferry at Keller, WA was a single ship in operation since the 1940's, with repeated requests from the state of Washington for a new one. Meanwhile, Seattle had multiple ferries replaced. That "experts" from outside their community know what's best for them. What used to be mainstream American beliefs and lifestyles are mocked. They are continually referred to as "flyover country", mocked in movies, the media, etc. Jokes about other groups are forbidden. "Redneck" jokes are just fine.
The authors of “White Rural Rage” morphed rural resentment into the catchier word "rage". More disgustingly? They dishonestly directly linked racial resentment and prejudice to it.
Actual facts about rural America:
“White rural America” is actually about 22% non-white.
Fewer than 6% of rural Americans work in agriculture.
Rural, suburban and urban residents, although being pitted against each other, face the same basic issues
Skyrocketing inflation, unaffordable housing, limited employment opportunities, skyrocketing health care costs, out of control crime rates, psychotic teachers and “health care professionals” victimizing children are just a few.
Rural Americans are proud of their heritage and where they live. One example:
The Omak, WA Stampede established in 1932
The rodeo that became the Omak Stampede was just a dream of two Okanogan County stockmen, Leo Moomaw and Tim Bernard, who had started a rodeo string in 1932.
They approached Omak businessmen with their idea of having a real rodeo in Omak and inviting famous cowboys to participate. The response was overwhelming from the businessmen and cowboys who came from the U.S. and Canada.
Fun fact: The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, formed in 1975, was previously the Rodeo Cowboys Association (RCA), formed in 1945, from the Cowboys’ Turtle Association, which was formed in 1936. What the heck was that?
In 1936, 61 contestants walked out of the Boston Garden Rodeo and reentered to sit in the stands as the last straw in protest of a continuing effort by rodeo organizers to shortchange them. The prizes did not even equal the entry fee. They signed a petition:
For the Boston Show, we the undersigned demand that the Purses be doubled and the Entrance Fees added in each and every event. Any contestant failing to sign this Petition will not be permitted to contest, by order of the undersigned.
Word spread to Chicago where the Worlds Greatest Rodeo was taking place:
We, the undersigned Cowboys showing at the Chicago Stadium do hereby agree not to go to the Boston Show, unless the demands of the Cowboys now at Boston are met.
The promoters, embarrassed, buckled.
The success of the strike led the group to organize officially as the Cowboys’ Turtle Association, because they were slow to organize but eventually “stuck their necks out.”
Since 1933, the Omak Stampede has grown into one of the largest and most respected rodeos in the Northwest.
The World Famous Suicide Race
The Suicide Race and name were created in 1935 by Omak furniture store owner Claire Pentz, the publicity director of the Omak Stampede at the time, in an effort to promote the rodeo. The idea came from endurance races held on the Colville Reservation and is still considered a spiritual joining of horse and rider with prayer in a sweat lodge and placing a sacred eagle feather on the horse. Most horses are wild off the reservation and most of the riders are Colville Tribal members or cowboys and cowgirls from the area.
It starts 50 ft. back from the edge of Suicide Hill, where riders get their horses to a full gallop before heading over the top of an approximately 62-degree sandy bluff near the Okanogan River across from the rodeo arena. From there, they ride their horses 225 feet down the bluff, swim across the river, up the bank, then make a 500-yard mad dash to the finish line in the center of the rodeo arena.
There are inherent dangers in any sporting event and the Suicide Race has gotten a bad rap over the years especially from animal rights activists. One year, PETA was going to stage a protest. The cowboys and Indians said bring it on! PETA never showed up.
Horses and riders have to pass three tests to demonstrate their ability to run in the race and cross the river:
An initial veterinarian exam to make sure the horse is physically healthy.
A swim test to ensure horses can cross the river.
A hill test where riders ride their horses off the hill at a controlled speed. A horse that balks is not used. However, horses were born to run and it rarely happens.
The Omak Powow and Indian Encampment (their words)
At the same time the Stampede and Suicide Race are going on, there is a gathering organized by the Colville that includes a dancing and drumming competition. After the rodeo and race, my wife, many others and I go to watch the competition with the intricately designed costumes.
You ain't seen nothing yet..
Given that Joe's popularity keeps getting worse, despite all the illegal attacks on Trump, Trump appears on course to win. The desperation will keep ratcheting up.
Is this election denying and insurrection? Who is actually “destroying our sacred democracy?”
Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff (Calif.), Eric Swalwell (Calif.), Jamie Raskin (Md.), James Clyburn (S.C.), and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies (N.Y.) have refused to commit to confirming the 2024 election results if Trump wins in a potential rematch election against President Joe Biden.
In a recent survey by Rasmussen Reports 57% of Democrats surveyed said they would prefer Congress to refuse to certify a Trump victory. Nearly two-thirds of liberals felt the same way
Why is this significant? Jan. 6 all over again?
In fact, the former Capital Police Chief blames Pelosi for the Jan. 6 riot!
US Capitol Police Chief Steven A. Sund laid the blame directly on Nancy Pelosi for the breakdown in security, which led to the Jan 6 Riot at the Capitol in 2021, noting she refused to deploy the National Guard.
The Attorney General of the U.S. actually admitted he will fight voter ID laws and other election integrity measures!
Interesting how Democrats keep showing up in black churches yet none of them lose their 501c3 tax exempt status which forbids them to be involved in politics.
We need to resist the attempts to divide us as Americans because only we will be the source of our destruction
At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer. If it ever reach us it must spring up amongst us; it cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide.
- Abraham Lincoln, Young Men's Lyceum, 1863
Excellent post. More and more we hear White Nationalists or Christian Nationalists versus, of course, globalists. Globalism is good, nationalism is bad. This so hearkens to the Tower of Babble. If we could only get one person in charge, we can change everything. Unfortunately and eventually, that will succeed. That one person will be known as the anti-christ.
Liberals and the main stream media should fear God's wrath more than rural Americans... but they don't have a clue.