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Wassup USA

13567

Replies

  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.
  • carbkiller1971
    carbkiller1971 Posts: 1,426 Member
    newmeadow wrote: »
    I'm American spend summers in Europe Big difference Europe everything tiny Americans like it big cars homes land meals you can't even turn around in a bathroom in Europe Lol Europeans dress nice when they leave the house American don't even get out of their pjs and wear bunny slippers to shop Americans that have never travelled believe America IS the planet. Lol and in general we don't give a *kitten* what others think we do for ourselves, while at the same time are the most charitable ppl we believes there's not better place to live than America and the immagrants who come say the same thing I e been around Europe , some Middle East and some islands there is no better place to live and thrive than America I hope it will remain this way but you never know we can't stay on top forever

    Americans don't shop in their pajamas and slippers in my experience. I've seen it maybe 4 times tops and I'm 50 years old. That's something glorified in Youtube videos.

    Americans who've never traveled before are probably busy working hard earning their own keep, possibly just getting by financially, and aren't privy to the luxury of international travel. On their precious days off from hard work, they want to relax, clean the house and eat a meal out. Not spend their life savings standing in a 5 hour line at an airport, checking luggage, and taking a 14 hour flight to Europe with two layovers.

    America is the best place to live and thrive in the world. And when we Americans speak more kindly, gently, and accurately about our own selves as Americans, our own country (it's called America. Not Murica), we'll be perpetuating the positive growth and perception of our own country, not the ugly tiresome stereotypes that non Americans love to sneer and snicker at.

    Euros and Brits and other foreigners who haven't been to America, particularly to the flyover states, are only familiar with the Americans who travel internationally. Generally the well-to-do, more privileged Americans. Once they come here and meet a more humble variety of Americans, which are the vast majority of Americans, they are pleasantly and endearingly surprised and go back home with a more positive impression of our population as a whole.


    You must not shop at my Walmart
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).
  • Just_Mel_
    Just_Mel_ Posts: 3,992 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor
  • BedsideTableKangaroo
    BedsideTableKangaroo Posts: 736 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    newmeadow wrote: »
    Funny that you love our accents. The only American accents I think sound good (or at least not bad) are New England, NY, NJ, PA, Appalachian and the Carolinas.

    Most Americans adore British accents, particularly Scottish. I really like a Scottish accent.

    what about Texans?

    ..... don't mess with Texas!

    As my (Texan) husband would day, 'Damn skippy!' Plus, Texas is huge. People from west Texas don't speak with the same accent as people from southeast Texas (although I guess maybe to the untrained ear they all drawl alike :tongue: )

    i grew up in west texas. then spent 10 years in east texas where my countrified accent definitely softened. since then, i've been in austin. being around a more diverse population has probably altered my accent even more.

    i'm sure it's still texan, especially with certain words, but my accent isn't as texan as the stereotype. unless i get together or talk with someone i grew up with - then it creeps back.
  • Motorsheen
    Motorsheen Posts: 20,508 Member
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    I've been in one tornado, that was enough.....

    Here is it's aftermath:

    web1_tornado1-1.jpg
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    I think Dave Ramsey says it best about the American way of life, "We buy things we don't need, with money we don't have, to impress people we don't like."

    The American dream has went from a white picket fence to the biggest house on the street with a brand new car in the driveway. It's very sad.

    That is sadly kind of true for a lot of Americans. Not all, but a lot.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member

    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor

    Hiya :lol:

    For the record, I don't actually live in Moore. My aunt and uncle do though, and stood on their front porch watching the big one in 1999 bear down on them (it turned at the last minute; fickle things, are tornadoes!) Then they had another close call in 2013.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    newmeadow wrote: »
    It honestly really comes down to where you live in America and what your experiences are. I've lived all over including other countries outside the U.S., so my perspective is a lot less close-minded than when I was 15 years younger and only knew the hillbilly/white trash stereotype (because those are the people who lived in the area I grew up in) growing up in the rural areas of the Midwest.

    The car one is definitely true. I haven't been to Europe yet (I really want to), but compared to Japanese homes/cars.. American spaces are HUUUUUUUGE. Really, it took a bit to get used to driving a van around that was the size of a normal car here.. and the Japanese considered the beater van I drove to be spacious. Also, watching my 6'4" husband drive any car in Japan was hilarious as everything made it look like he was driving one of those cars you see clowns drive in cartoons.

    Um, what? The irony of your wording clearly escapes you.

    Pity you grew up with "stereotypes." Who were they exactly?

    Everyone I knew, and know, grew up with real people.



    It's not really ironic when it's true. The people in the area I grew up in were exactly like the stereotypes people have in mind when they think of hillbillies and/or white trash. Sure they are real people in the context that they actually existed, but they prided themselves on maintaining the stereotype that they knew they represented and acted accordingly.

    Very few people where I was living at that time were not stereotypical. Again, sure they were real people, but they lived up to the stereotypes instead of working to dispel them.
  • serenityfrye
    serenityfrye Posts: 360 Member
    The country is so diverse it's very hard to really pin it down. I've lived in New England, the South and now the Midwest and they're all very very different environments - from the accent to the mannerisms to the politics to the landscape. When I lived in the South I worked in the blue ridge mountains for a bit and some of my co workers literally spoke without consonants. Apparently that's deep mountain dialect. It was, um, interesting for sure.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    edited May 2017
    newmeadow wrote: »
    Americans don't shop in their pajamas and slippers in my experience. I've seen it maybe 4 times tops and I'm 50 years old. That's something glorified in Youtube videos.

    You must live in a more upscale place in America than some of us do. I've seen people shop in their pajamas in numerous states. It's more common than you think.

    That's not to say everyone shops in their pajamas, but it's become a lot more commonplace than when I was a teen, that's for sure.

  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    Motorsheen wrote: »
    newmeadow wrote: »
    Funny that you love our accents. The only American accents I think sound good (or at least not bad) are New England, NY, NJ, PA, Appalachian and the Carolinas.

    Most Americans adore British accents, particularly Scottish. I really like a Scottish accent.

    what about Texans?

    ..... don't mess with Texas!

    As my (Texan) husband would day, 'Damn skippy!' Plus, Texas is huge. People from west Texas don't speak with the same accent as people from southeast Texas (although I guess maybe to the untrained ear they all drawl alike :tongue: )

    Texas could literally be three different states (like California, I suppose). It's crazy how much the geography changes (and the accents) in just a couple of hours.. and it takes a loooooooooong time to drive through the state.
  • Just_Mel_
    Just_Mel_ Posts: 3,992 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor

    Hiya :lol:

    For the record, I don't actually live in Moore. My aunt and uncle do though, and stood on their front porch watching the big one in 1999 bear down on them (it turned at the last minute; fickle things, are tornadoes!) Then they had another close call in 2013.

    Yeah I don't either, but all Okies are neighbors.
    We had a tiny EF0 funnel a mile from my house last month. No damage but enough to freak the kids out and have to take shelter.

    Weather is a way of life here. This time of year, you just stay aware of the forecast.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    Americans are I suppose as human as everyone else. We are diverse (some are hillbillies, some like white picket fences, some rude - others not so much). Right now we are extremely polarized politically, something we have been in the past and I am sure we will be in the future. We like to think we are unique to the point that many are very uniform in their "uniqueness". Some Americans love this country and others hate it and everything it stands for historically. As for me, living on the west coast in a state that pretty much feels superior to the rest of the country to the point of creating their own country, I believe we are very fortunate to have been born or had the opportunity to live in one of the most scenic countries in the world that does in fact provide opportunity to those who choose to pursue those opportunities.

    This just reminds me of this, which is a real thing (you're probably already familiar with, living in Cali and all):

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jefferson_(proposed_Pacific_state)
  • slider728
    slider728 Posts: 1,494 Member
    I've never been to the UK but I'm an American who has been to 19 other countries, so I've seen America as an insider and seen what they look like compared to other cultures as well.

    Have you ever been to a party where there is that one belligerent, loud person, that is kind of annoying, everyone is trying to avoid, but that person has no clue that they are kind of being an a-hole? That is an American.

    America is the place that invented McDonald's. That alone says a lot. We are the society that strives to do more, quicker, and faster than everyone else, but seems to disregard the cost of doing so.

    People are the best and worst I have seen. American's are all about the greater good unless they have to make an effort themselves. Many would be willing to give $20 to a charity if they don't have to do anything, but most would not get up and serve sandwiches to the homeless. I've seen people walk/drive by people who are hurt and dying and not lift a finger.

    American's are very sociable as long as it is on their own terms. Many people just want to be left alone and not interact with anyone. Many people can't tell you who their neighbors are and rarely have neighbors over for dinner.

    But there are times where Americans do come together and really gives you pride in your community. When people are in their darkest hours, the community seems to rise up to the occasion and try to make things right.

    A child went missing in my town a few weeks ago. People by the thousands volunteered to spend their days searching for the missing child.

    When Hurricane Katrina happened, a local trucking company had the idea of taking a semi trailer of water and food down south (it was a coordinated effort with a relief organization down south). A few announcements were made that day. I heard the announcement that morning and decided to go help sort and load the trailer. I thought that maybe they would load a trailer. I bought a few things and showed up right about the time it started. There wasn't much at first but in the 6 to 8 hours I helped, we loaded 6 or 7 semi trailers of food. The line of cars got to be so long, the police came out to sort traffic out.

    Having grew up on the water, one of the best events that touched me was the boat rescue/evacuation of Manhattan when the Twin Towers fell on 9/11/01. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDOrzF7B2Kg
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor

    Hiya :lol:

    For the record, I don't actually live in Moore. My aunt and uncle do though, and stood on their front porch watching the big one in 1999 bear down on them (it turned at the last minute; fickle things, are tornadoes!) Then they had another close call in 2013.

    Yeah I don't either, but all Okies are neighbors.
    We had a tiny EF0 funnel a mile from my house last month. No damage but enough to freak the kids out and have to take shelter.

    Weather is a way of life here. This time of year, you just stay aware of the forecast.

    And everyone becomes an amateur meteorologist :laugh: Cap, wall cloud, and supercell find their way into everyday conversation.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    newmeadow wrote: »
    newmeadow wrote: »
    Americans don't shop in their pajamas and slippers in my experience. I've seen it maybe 4 times tops and I'm 50 years old. That's something glorified in Youtube videos.

    You must live in a more upscale place in America than some of us do. I've seen people shop in their pajamas in numerous states. It's more common than you think. I have no idea why people shop in their pajamas, but they definitely do.

    That's not to say everyone shops in their pajamas, but it's become a lot more commonplace than when I was a teen, that's for sure.

    I live in a city in New England that is about the farthest thing from upscale than you could imagine. There are literally no gentrified areas in this city and home ownership is the exception rather than the norm.

    The only time I've seen people out in on the streets in their pajamas was to quickly run to the corner variety store for some food staples and then run back to an apartment with small children in it.

    And a few times, while waiting in the lobby of my church, I've seen women in pajamas walking by. They were on their way to the basement of the church where there's a food bank that gives away free food. Possibly they only owned one set of clothes, which were maybe being laundered, and all they had to wear that day were pajamas. There was a homeless shelter 3 blocks away.

    Honestly, I've seen more pajama wearing shoppers in places that are soon-to-be gentrified or were recently gentrified. Definitely saw it a lot in my old college town and it's super-gentrified now to the point of being unrecognizable. I used to see them more in rural areas like the small town I grew up in, but not as much anymore. Not sure if that's because the people in my small hometown finally started caring about what they wore when they were out (probably not) or if the people who previously wore said attire finally left the area for parts unknown.

    To be fair, I have no judgment about people who wear pajamas as clothes or who don't feel like getting dressed (for whatever reason). It doesn't bother me one bit what they choose to wear, but a lot of others definitely seem to care and see it as a detriment to our image (whatever that is supposed to be).

    Also, that's really cool that you have a church that offers a food bank. We could use some more places like that out here as we are a small rural town in the middle of a desert with a fairly high amount of homeless people. The nearest Wal*Mart is about 15-20 minutes away and it's definitely not in a gentrified part of the town.

    I've only driven through New England. What's it like compared to other parts of the country?
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor

    Hiya :lol:

    For the record, I don't actually live in Moore. My aunt and uncle do though, and stood on their front porch watching the big one in 1999 bear down on them (it turned at the last minute; fickle things, are tornadoes!) Then they had another close call in 2013.

    Yeah I don't either, but all Okies are neighbors.
    We had a tiny EF0 funnel a mile from my house last month. No damage but enough to freak the kids out and have to take shelter.

    Weather is a way of life here. This time of year, you just stay aware of the forecast.

    And everyone becomes an amateur meteorologist :laugh: Cap, wall cloud, and supercell find their way into everyday conversation.

    Do you know any storm chasers? I grew up in Missouri and several of my friends became slightly obsessed with tornado activity and identifying potential chasing opportunities, lol. Some of them still chase storms as a hobby.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    edited May 2017
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    pinuplove wrote: »
    I'm in Oklahoma. We have lots of tornadoes.

    I often wonder how you guys live with the threat of those things. If we get a bit windy here it's a big deal but tornados ? Scary. We do suffer a lot of flooding here especially down in England

    I paid a high price to get an aluminum roof rated to withstand 100 mph winds on my house. I had my fence built with steel posts. A recent tornado dropped a piece of debris in front of my house that it had picked up near Albuquerque, which is 800 miles west of here. My house and fence was undamaged. Most of the others in my neighborhood lost shingles and several lost fences. The worst possible case of having a tornado suck your home up into the sky with you in it is very rare. One of my cousins lives out in west Texas and she emailed me a video of a tornado out there. The person recording it did so by walking along beside the tornado filming with a smart phone.

    Unless you live in Moore, OK :tongue:

    800 miles for debris is pretty impressive! I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and have yet to see a tornado IRL, although I was within a few hundred yards of one and didn't know it one night. Flattened a not-too-distant neighbor's house (rural area).

    Hi neighbor

    Hiya :lol:

    For the record, I don't actually live in Moore. My aunt and uncle do though, and stood on their front porch watching the big one in 1999 bear down on them (it turned at the last minute; fickle things, are tornadoes!) Then they had another close call in 2013.

    Yeah I don't either, but all Okies are neighbors.
    We had a tiny EF0 funnel a mile from my house last month. No damage but enough to freak the kids out and have to take shelter.

    Weather is a way of life here. This time of year, you just stay aware of the forecast.

    And everyone becomes an amateur meteorologist :laugh: Cap, wall cloud, and supercell find their way into everyday conversation.

    Do you know any storm chasers? I grew up in Missouri and several of my friends became slightly obsessed with tornado activity and identifying potential chasing opportunities, lol. Some of them still chase storms as a hobby.

    Not personally, but as friends of friends, yes. Adrenaline junkies, the whole lot of them! :tongue: It's a dangerous hobby, but I can see the appeal. They do get some beautiful footage.
  • KosmosKitten
    KosmosKitten Posts: 10,476 Member
    edited May 2017
    newmeadow wrote: »
    newmeadow wrote: »
    It honestly really comes down to where you live in America and what your experiences are. I've lived all over including other countries outside the U.S., so my perspective is a lot less close-minded than when I was 15 years younger and only knew the hillbilly/white trash stereotype (because those are the people who lived in the area I grew up in) growing up in the rural areas of the Midwest.

    The car one is definitely true. I haven't been to Europe yet (I really want to), but compared to Japanese homes/cars.. American spaces are HUUUUUUUGE. Really, it took a bit to get used to driving a van around that was the size of a normal car here.. and the Japanese considered the beater van I drove to be spacious. Also, watching my 6'4" husband drive any car in Japan was hilarious as everything made it look like he was driving one of those cars you see clowns drive in cartoons.

    Um, what? The irony of your wording clearly escapes you.

    Pity you grew up with "stereotypes." Who were they exactly?

    Everyone I knew, and know, grew up with real people.



    It's not really ironic when it's true. The people in the area I grew up in were exactly like the stereotypes people have in mind when they think of hillbillies and/or white trash. Sure they are real people in the context that they actually existed, but they prided themselves on maintaining the stereotype that they knew they represented and acted accordingly.

    Very few people where I was living at that time were not stereotypical. Again, sure they were real people, but they lived up to the stereotypes instead of working to dispel them.

    Words matter, and they have meaning. Think about what this term really means. Think about the outcry, and the backlash, if you were to use any other color, other than white, to describe people that you label as trash.

    The only people I consider to be trash are sociopaths that torture, destroy and murder other people. Clearly you aren't talking about such a demographic. You're probably talking about white people who exist on the bottom of the socio/economic ladder, who dress poorly and who use double negatives. No. They are not trash. You shouldn't call them trash.

    Actually, I was referring to the people I grew up around who thought it was totally okay to be an alcoholic and/or drug user and abuse their children sexually, mentally and physically as well as attempt to molest and defile said child's friends. They just also happened to be in the stereotype demographic you are getting onto me about.

    When I say white trash, I mean trash. I don't mean people who are hard on their luck or who can't get ahead in life because the job opportunities were not available in our town. I knew lots of people in that category and they were great people even if they couldn't afford the nice things other people in the town had.

    Don't presume to know where I grew up or what I dealt with. I do not use the term lightly, even if you think I am or that I am using it to generalize an entire area of people. I'm not. Plenty of people in Arkansas and Missouri were fantastic people, even if most of us were poor.

    Again, when I use the term white trash, I mean exactly that. They were filth.

    Editing to add: I forgot to mention the men and women who constantly had police called on them for domestic disputes (usually involving children, but not always). Women who clearly were being abused by their husbands and vice versa. The victim is not trash, but the abuser is, in my opinion.