"Rehab is for quitters."

[Mozgus]

So this is quickly becoming the "Why we hate rednecks" thread?

It's my fault...

Hey I don't mind. Redneck isn't a race. It really is a lifestyle choice.

[DuManchu]

I've got nothing against rednecks, I just grew up surrounded by them (Hays, KS). It's more in line with the theme of the thread "shit that's unfunny that people think is funny."

I know I've got more in my head I think I just purposely blocked them out.

Oh I remember one now... "giggity" isn't funny.

Also, "oh snap!" is getting sort of played out, but can still have uses, I just see it used improperly 99% of the time. Kinda like the misuse of double bass drums in many new metal songs (it has it's place, but that place isn't EVERY SONG). </rant>

[GSZX1337]

"I'm Rick James, bitch!" was never funny

[ott0bot]

All I know is that rehab is for quitters, right? nudge, nudge, wink.


ugh

[Ramatut4001]

"I'm Rick James, bitch!" was never funny

I don't know about that!

[neilwron]

I for one really hate those shirts that mallrats seem to eat up that say things that are supposed to portray that somehow you are different or a little crazier than everyone else like "I used to be schitzophrenic but we're ok now" or "my other shirt is a straight jacket". Usually these are found at your local hot topic store.....in case you cast your lot with these morons....

[General Chaos]

So this is quickly becoming the "Why we hate rednecks" thread?

I've always struggled to differentiate between hicks, hillbillies and rednecks, though I'll gladly condone a thread dedicated to hating any of them.

[aaron]

i work at a carwash in rural indiana. i see a lot of those stickers. calvin pissing on the word "terrorists" is probably the best one i've seen so far.

[Ack]

Bill Watterson has actually threatened with lawsuits repeatedly over those things. He controls all the rights to C&H, and has never let anything beyond print collections and a few little odds and ends get released.

For the record, it usually breaks down like this. Hillbillies live in the hills, specifically along the Appalachian mountain range. They're thought to be most prevalent in the Carolinas and Virginia, but they in fact continue on as far as the range extends.

Hicks live in rural, isolated areas, generally cut off from technology and popular culture. That's part of why older, outdated modes of thinking run through their areas. They live in every state in this country, and the ones in Maine I met also happened to be damn good cooks. They, like hillbillies, aren't bad people necessarily, just ignorant of much of the world around them. Still, there are useful things to learn from both of them, especially concerning folk remedies, divination, weather information and the like. Also, these two can make some wicked moonshine.

Rednecks are the weird group, the ones that live in major cities but willingly allow themselves to be influenced by Hick or Hillbilly culture. In general, they tend to do crappy jobs involving manual labor, much of which is outdoors. Redneck is the term for the color of their skin after toiling bent over in the sun all day.

As you may have noticed, the majority of these guys are found everywhere in the country, not just in the South, which is generally the place designated their home. This is partly because of the pseudo-racist attitudes that seems to dominate in the cultures(though it isn't all true. I've met plenty of non-racist rednecks, and plenty of racist folks who fell into none of these categories), which is often associated with the South due to slavery(though the entire nation was racist or prejudiced, you lying Yankee bastards, and has been against everybody under the sun at one point or another). Also, as they generally have little money and less education, they're associated with "poorer" states, most often considered southern states such as Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and so on.

A certain sense of militancy, defiance, and pride is also prevalent in the community, partly extending from the rural nature of the environment(when trapped in nature on a regular basis, you DO want a gun), as well as the Civil War. The Civil War is an interesting note in Southern culture, because not only does it lead to a massive change in the means by which the highest social class maintained itself, it was also exceedingly bloody and nasty, yet an under-equipped and under-prepared South was able to hold on for four years while cut off from the rest of the world.

But that's a discussion for another day.

[glynnahab]

Good post, Ack. There was some interesting stuff in there I hadn't heard of.

Over here in southern Louisiana, we have a special kind of redneck called a 'coonass'. Basically, the redneck of your definition is cross-bred with a French-speaking Nova Scotian (sp?). Usually their ideals are thought-systems are the same. But the dialect is unlike anything I've heard anywhere. It's really funny when you run across the uber-coonass with a really thick accent.

If you read this aloud phonetically, you'll get the idea:

"Mais (pronounced 'may') bruh, you gone cetch you some good fish in dat dare pawned."

(PS - I am technically a 'coonass', but I don't have the accent. It's kinda weird because just about everyone else does. I can imitate it really well, though.)