Hitching A Ride

The bandwagon effect is a cognitive bias that causes humans to automatically prefer to take actions that they believe lots of other people are taking, regardless of the “logic” of those actions. To hop on a bandwagon is to blindly follow others without evidence of it being the right choice. It’s a psychological phenomenon whereby people do something primarily because other people are doing it, regardless of their own beliefs, which they may ignore or override. In 2020 we saw more people hitchhiking their way across social issues than ever before, and I believe it’s more important than ever to make sure whatever you hitch a ride to you find out who is driving the vehicle first. To go against the “herd mentality” is dangerous in today’s cancel culture but it is critical to sustainability, and there is no place like the South that understands this more. We are steeped in history and recognize traditions that work for a modern-day, albeit polite, society. God, family, and country, in my opinion, are all bandwagons worth jumping on.

To those who love it, there is no accent quite like the southern accent, and there is no Southern accent quite like the Southern politician’s. Spend any time in the South, and you’ll hear the drawl. The men sound just a tiny bit folksier as if your doctor would be just as comfortable plowing a field as he would be reading an X-ray. The women just sound nice, so that the same words you hear in daily life across the U.S. somehow come off kinder and gentler. But there is nothing–absolutely nothing–subtle about the Southern politician’s accent. To hear the Southern politician talk is to hear the backwoods come to the big city. Their past profession doesn’t matter. Neither does their upbringing. There’s something about runnin’ for office in the South that exaggerates that drawl.

At its heart, Southern politics is cultural politics. That’s because Southern politics isn’t just about the South as it is–representing its concrete economic and religious interests, for example–it’s also about the South as it sees itself. The idea of the South is very important to the people who were raised there, and it has been for a very long time. The South sees itself as economically advanced but culturally traditional. It’s proud of its industry and technology, but it’s also proud of its faith and its families. The majority of the people don’t hunt or fish or farm, but they feel connected to people who do. A Tennessee lawyer may never leave a paved road, but he’ll drive a truck that can carry livestock. Even people who don’t own guns value the South’s gun culture. They may not have a firearm, but they will not tolerate a government that restricts their ability to defend themselves.

That’s the idea of the South, and we are in no rush to modernize if it means abandoning our morality. Southerners love God. They respect the traditions of faith and family–including manners and respect for elders. Southerners are connected to the land. They despise elitism. They’re suspicious of the government but not averse to its help. And they are definitely proud of their region and its way of life–even if its day-to-day reality is no longer so distinct.

Make no mistake, the idea of the South has changed–all for the better–over time. There are those who would argue that there has been minimal progress, but the populist heart still beats in the Southern working class which is made up of all races. The region has never been as economically conservative as the Southern GOP liked to think. There is no groundswell for entitlement reform. The so-called disability belt–the counties where residents disproportionately draw disability benefits–runs straight through the heart of the South.

How do you prove your bona fides? There’s nothing subtle about it. You hold your gun. You drive your truck. You show that you do all the things that your constituents might like but rarely do. They may not hunt, but you will. They may not haul hay, but you will. They may not own guns, but you will. To defend the Southern culture, your job is clear. You have to be more Southern than the South.

For those of us who want to be free of manipulation of those around us so that we are free to make choices that will enhance our wellbeing, here’s a word of advice from one Southerner. The next time you consider jumping on a bandwagon, make sure it is equipped with a working moral compass. before hitching a ride.