It's always puzzling and yet consistent how the nation politically divides along these lines: http://www.cnn.com/election/2012/ecalculator?hpt=hp_abar#?battleground I think the thought of a black inner city family getting a handout is the tipping point for many voters in these red states who would rather vote against that happening over and above meeting their own individual needs with respect to healthcare, taxes and retirement. Throw in a dose of religious conservatism and you have the ingredients that make up the map.
Not every American believes that spending out the ass is the best way to go. http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2009/11/10-states-in-deep-fiscal-trouble.html Not one of those states is dark red. Coincidence? I think not.
speaking of great divide.. isn't this a backroom item? Honestly, if we just wanna let it all hang out for a game day free for all, I'm game.. I just want to make sure what the rules are... in that Nick Saban kinda way.
Or just delete the damn thing. The map is spread along those lines because unions and minorities, which cluster in the blue states, vote Democratic. There are many reasons for this, some real and some perceived. Yet you, Dave, posit that it is because of racist greed in red states...causing us all to vote against our own "individual needs." Moderators...please delete this sh$t.
For whatever the reasons Stu the map seems to be consistent in every election no matter the billions spent by both sides to convince the denizens of those states otherwise. There is a cultural divide in this nation that also affects specifically our political structure as well. I would guess that the internet and political media/political entertainment age have had something to do with it.
The cultural divide...sure...but that doesn't make it a racist thing. Internet/media political age has certainly changed the way elections work and possibly the outcomes...but I doubt it has much to do with the distribution of the map.
About 2/3rds of all the "inner city" folks who receive welfare and food stamps live in just three BLUE states: California, New York and Illinois. In fact, the majority lives in just one state: California. Are those financially broken states blue because they're more compassionate? Or are they blue because the Democratic machines in those states use public assistance programs to buy votes?