0168-Study: Cities Give Off Political Vibes

Breaking news here, cities actually give off political vibes - vibrations for the uninitiated, and it's no study, just me being goofy over a cup of coffee. But how do you feel the vibe, from where does it come? Actually the strongest vibe comes from the people themselves, and from a position you probably will not find surprising - on the road, driving ( or stuck in traffic if you prefer.) The second point of reference for political vibes come from the local political structure and law enforcement. The smaller the city the stronger the vibes. ("What brings you to our town, boy?")
 Let's start with Mobile,Alabama since that's where I am at the moment. Mobile is about 30 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. It has a population of about 190,000 just in the city but if you want to count the metropolitan area you are looking at just under a million. The vibe here is strongly conservative so if you are a liberal, and spotted, then you could be subjected to a slight by a "con."

The unexpected assault will likely come from behind the wheel of a car - or truck as the case will be in Mobile, because most people drive pick-up trucks. If you are suspected of being liberal someone could do any of the following:

1. Ride your bumper.
2. Hit you with the high beams
3. Smirk at you
4. Flip you off
5. Pass you AND flip you off
6. Or just simply run you off the road

The science or art, whichever it is, of spotting a liberal or conservative is not exact. Sometimes you could actually be wrong. Basically, in a city such as Mobile conservatives tend to be in a higher income bracket ( strong good old boy networks) and liberals have less money and drive less glamorous cars. There are of course exceptions and you can find wealthy liberals so "spotting" them will be more difficult. Frequently a bumper sticker will give you away. It's safe to say an Obama sticker means you are liberal and a McCain sticker makes you conservative. Strangely, almost all the "W" stickers are gone. I guess they went out of fashion.

It's safe to say in San Francisco you will find a plethora of liberals and a conservative minority. In San Francisco though you can't use the same spotting criteria because as the majority with their own good old boy, girl and gay networks many are flush with cash and drive nice rides. You can just assume the person driving in front of you is a liberal and go ahead and try to run them off the road.

San Francisco is a walking city, providing the possibility of a face-to-face with the political enemy. You could accidentally bump into them and try to knock them off the sidewalk or into the bushes, which if have stickers might be a plus. If you screamed or ranted at them no one would really notice or might mistake you for a homeless person who is having a bad day.

Most cities in Florida will give off a conservative vibe. Here you have millions of retirees and everyone knows that as you grow older you tend to also grow more conservative. There are a few liberals who maintain their integrity into old age but it's amazing what a few decades and pounds on the belly will do to a person's political zeitgeist.

We know Seattle has an aura of the liberal while Dallas is a bastion of conservatism. In fact, Texas is a very conservative state and I am not sure how liberals survive there unless they live in gated enclaves with vetted, liberal security guards.

My casual, very unscientific unproven mere speculation take on the political vibe of a few other cities and places, some which I have been and some not:

1. The entire state of Mississippi: Do I need to say?
2. New Orleans: Conservative and they don't just give off vibes they use voodoo on their political opponents.
3. Portland, Oregon: Capital LIB
4. Denver: Strangely conservative. You would expect liberal but Dencon's show a propensity for hard-core values and many people move there to get away from "diversity."
5. Detroit: Left-leaning but that's a good thing, right?
6. Cincinnati: the working-class tend to absorb conservative values that include traditional nuclear family and a suspicion of outsiders which in today's environment might be a plus.
7.Nashville: country music. working class. conservative structure.
8. Las Vegas: there are no politics there, only lots of money and entertainment.
9. Oakland, Calif.: there's no there there, according to Gertrude Stein.

The next time you look in your rear view mirror and the person behind you is smirking and you have no idea why, think politics. There's a very good chance you have been spotted. And next time you're at the DMV you might reconsider changing that vanity plate from DIHRDLIB to just a few random letters and numbers. It makes life a lot easier, and safer. (Image: Van-Pools.com)