This is why I don't have a problem when big cities tell the state (or feds) to fuck off.

Also, I've never experienced as blatant racism as in Tennessee.

Texan here: I've never seen or heard the kind of blatant racism that I found everywhere north and east of Tennessee's southwest corner.

I have a hypothesis on this, though. I think that the more pervasive that anti-racist beliefs are, that the more overt a racist needs to be so that they can make sure everyone knows they're a racist. Inversely, in a place like Texas where racism is more ingrained in society, you can be quieter and assume that you're talking to someone with racist beliefs. Then, a sort of perverse set of manners are formed where you don't blatantly say racist things—in fact, you gasp at bald-faced racism, clutch your pearls, and call that person uncouth.

But when you pass a series of miniature racist tests, or blow just the right dog-whistle, then you get the Southern racist's cry of approval: "this guy gets it!"

It's kinda like how moderately wealthy people like to flaunt their money, and make little comments around poor people to prove just how disconnected you are from reality. But then, when they're surrounded by other rich people, it's suddenly impolite to discuss wealth.

As a state, it's not worse than Alabama or Mississippi.

Isn't that about as bad as it can get?

Tennessee is a big place. It actually also has some strongly blue areas, believe it or not. As a state, it's not worse than Alabama or Mississippi.

I believe it, Chattanooga from what I have heard is pretty cool.

Ooof if you have to compare to Alabama or Mississipi though...

Again, the humans in those places are physically the same as anywhere, it is the ideas these places celebrate that makes them such dumb places. I don't mean there aren't cool people, cool people are everywhere!

The problem with meeting cool people from these places though is most people have to pick their battles and when you live in an aggressively toxic society that means accepting and normalizing the toxic things that aren't primary to the struggle between your beliefs and the society you are trapped in.

Connecting with people from these places thus often feels like walking through a pleasant, beautiful minefield.

The point is to emphasize a collective stupidity not jump on the bandwagon of caricaturizing individuals from certain places as dumb which unfortunately is something we are all wired to find satisfying and I despise this default capacity for individualized blame and cruelty that is within all of us.

As a result I try to annoyingly remind people in my writing that most evil is a product of architecture not individuals.

The difference between the north and south in the US is that in the south the working class don't even have the illusion of power, thus the social architecture of the south that I despise so much must be the target of my acidic criticism since blaming working class individuals just feeds into the problem and completely eliminates the possibility of solidarity.

Cut and Cover FTW. That's how many many cities got 10's of km of subways/metros in only a few years. They actually dug the roads up, did the work, and had it buried within 6 months or even less per km per construction front. It's way cheaper and faster than all of this deep tunnel work we keep seeing everything get all excited about these days.

Cut and Cover stations also have quick access to the streets. You don't need to spend 5 minutes riding the escalator up and down just to get to your train since it's basically 1.5 stories down the steps.

nashville has these dumbass rolling bars where a driver and bartender cart folks around who pretend to be powering it by bicycle.

woo girls are just drunk chicks on a weekend before a wedding. screaming woo.