"Libs keep moving in and trying to change things!!" What does this even mean?

[OnionPatch]

I recently moved to a rural area, my life's dream. I was raised on a big farm in the country and am no stranger to country life. However, I had a career in IT and had to live near big cities for my work. I always tried to at least have an acre or so for a garden, chickens, etc., so I've never been an actual "big city" person, even if I drove there for work.

Now I'm really out here in the country and not near a big city and am loving my little country place. But I keep hearing people talk about how the city folks move here and change everything by voting blue. I wouldn't vote red if someone put a gun to my head, but I'm not about to start changing everything around here. What do they even mean by that?

Can someone clarify for me the issues that are on these people's minds? In what way does a liberal moving to the country affect their country neighbors? Or are they just angry that you're going to make their precinct or county blue for national elections?

[Dennis Donovan]

1. They're fed a steady diet of victimhood on Fox News and other RW outlets

Deep down, they're people who have gotten theirs in life and resent anyone else getting theirs.

[OnionPatch]

19. I wish so much they weren't in such a bubble

I know they think we are too, but when every single person in the whole community votes the same way, there's some misinformation and propaganda going on. You'd think they'd be embarrassed to be so lock-step homogenous in their politics.

[Scrivener7]

2. You're going to bus in drag queens for story hours. You know you are.

The irony of that is that if drag queens did ever move into those areas and these people got over themselves and were neighborly, they'd probably become MUCH happier people.

[OnionPatch]

7. I actually made a remark like that on Facebook, lol

[LakeArenal]

3. When we lived near Madison WI I heard that a lot.

But people moving to country pay taxes that improve their roads, property values and schools.

However, those things blow right past their complaints.

[OnionPatch]

11. I was thinking maybe it's the schools

Maybe they're worried we won't let them force our kids to pray. Luckily, my kid is grown. I have no idea what the schools here are like. Maybe they think we'll put litter boxes in the classrooms?

[LakeArenal]

22. I was a teacher in the olden days.

Things ARE vastly different. Lots of teacher in WI retired during the Walker Union purge.

[Walleye]

4. Probably because you're gonna make them use pronouns

[mwmisses4289]

5. Change.

You represent change that they see as bad- helping your neighbors, inclusiveness, things that would benefit the community. Also, they like to gripe- if there was nothing to gripe about, they would gripe about that.

[OnionPatch]

10. My Republican neighbors have been really nice to us.

I'll give them that. Yet they had a Trump sign in the yard so it's hard to reconcile that. I just think they've been brainwashed by their churches. They're confined to their bubble. I'm guessing they may make comments in their homes, not in front of me, lol. They know we moved here from California, so......The comments I hear are not from them, but from local forums, newpapers, community gatherings and such. Not to my face, ever.

[OrlandoDem2]

6. I wish a lot of libs would move to NC and GA in the next 2 years and flip those states.

Hell, if you’re Blue but live in FL, SC, TN, or AL you might as well live across the border and turn those 2 Purple states solid Blue!

[OnionPatch]

8. I hear ya! I'm in Virginia. It's blue, but just barely.

I think I need to stay and help keep it blue. But I've had serious thoughts of moving to rural NY or Mass. I'll see how the next few years go....

[UpInArms]

9. We moved to a rural area in 1991

and for 30+ years, I have had the locals imply that I came here to change them with my big city ways.

FWIW, I was raised in the country and always wanted to move away from metropolitan life …

It’s definitely been an eye opener.

[OnionPatch]

12. Yes! I never wanted to live in the city.

I left because there was no way for me to make a living in the country. I've been trying to get back to the country my whole life, and I resent being treated like I'm some sort of alien outsider. I can probably milk a cow better than most of them, lol!

I actually shocked one of my neighbors by talking cattle with him. Whoda thunk that liberal lady from California would know anything about cattle? Lol. My grandfather raised white-faced herefords and had a few holsteins for milking.

FYI, I've been a liberal since I was a teenager on the farm, so city living didn't exactly form my politics. I'm assuming the diversity I experienced kept me liberal, though.

[usonian]

13. I moved to the foothills from the SF Bay area about 10 years ago.

I conclude that people move here mainly to get away from other people. I don't visit and knock on doors because everyone is armed.

When I moved here, I thought that old friends would visit because I have a spectacular view and can get them into Yosemite for free with my senior and veteran's passes. I just have to be in the same vehicle.

Ten years is a long time to wait.

So, I can't say that it's country folks who want to avoid people; it seems to be everyone. That's our sick culture. Friends I have who are 50 miles away (and a bus ride, at that), stay put.

It's like town and country are two distant universes apart.

I may yet find a way to enjoy the glorious sunrises and sunsets and still have the company of friends. I do visit those nearby towns about once a week. It's not that hard, except when the roads (both of them) are foggy, which happens.

Life should be a mixture of experiences, not a monotony or hermitage. Growing up in the Boston area, our summer vacation trips to the distant lands of New Hampshire or (gasp) even Maine, were exciting for a kid.

But most of the time was at home, watching an endless parade of jets descending to Logan airport. Now, they are at 30,000 ft (can hear them most of the time) headed for the big right or left turn at Hanford, and making contrails that criss-cross my cloud photos.


The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

[TrunKated]

14. Well...

[OnionPatch]

18. I always wondered why Lisa was so mad about moving to the country.

Sounded like a good deal to me. I mean, if they could get a real phone....

Also, did Oliver really hurt any of his neighbors? He was clueless, sure, but what did he do to ruin the town?

[Kali]

15. they mean being tolerant of non-white, non-straight people

voting for social programs to help people, Democrats. you know, not being an asshole bigot.

[Kali]

16. and to be fair to actual rural people...

a lot of city people do move to the "country" and start wanting things like garbage pick up, wild animal control, paved roads, and the types of services they didn't like paying taxes for in the city so they moved out to the sticks. we call them pilgrims and sneer and ridicule them.

[OnionPatch]

17. But this sounds more like a city versus country thing

Than a liberal versus conservative thing. Do they not know that lots of city people are conservatives? Some of those city people moving to the countryside are voting red. I assume they don't know that a lot of city people are just displaced country people like me who couldn't make it in their home town/rural area. We aren't all ignorant of country ways. The people I hear complaining are specifically talking about liberals moving to their red areas and voting blue.

[Kali]

20. I think we all make a lot of assumptions and generalizations about others.

conservatives are by definition averse to change. rural people tend to be conservative. the world tends to march towards progress and that change causes fear in many people. scapegoating and blaming others when you are afraid is common.

[Redleg]

21. Like renaming "Robert E. Lee Highschool" to "Harriet Tubman Highschool"

Like wanting less pig shit to end up in our water supply. Like not beating the shit out of gay students just because they are gay. Like not being questioned why you have been absent from the local church meetings. Like not wanting your public school to be pushing christian nationalism in the classrooms.

It seems to me that rural folks often say we city dwellers and suburbanites look down our noses at them. It is true that some of us do. It is equally true that some rural folks look down their noses at us too. "Try that in a small town."