What is a Hoosier???

[artemis]

Originally Posted by Pickettj

I don't know why everyone considers Hoosiers to be hilljack, backward folks. Sure, we don't have a Sacs Fifth Avenue in every city and our politicians don't make legislative changes that the whole country follows, but we aren't a bunch of inbred hicks.

'Gee maw, I've not never seen such big, tall buildings before. Sure is excitin' comin' inta tha big city. But maw, I can't not figur' out whur to tie the harses.'

I don't know where this perception started, but it really should end. I've been to both coasts and both borders. Everywhere I've visited there have been small, backward towns and big, trendy cities. Indiana is a great state to live in and I am proud to be a Hoosier.

In general, a hoosier is a person who lives in Indiana. More specifically, and in my opinion, it is a person who is proud to be a part of their community and makes this great state their own. It's the helping neighbor, the volunteer at the community center and all of the local high school sports teams. The workers of Indiana and the veterans of our United States Military Services. We are a group that isn't afraid of the changing times but still takes the time to band together to help those that are in need. We aren't so tied up with ourselves and our paychecks that we've lost all sight of what matters. A Hoosier isn't the name of an inbred hick, but rather, the name of several million people living their lives happily and a few stragglers who just don't realize how good they have it in a community where the average home price is below the national average right along with the unemployment rate.

Bravo !!! Well said

[NurseAnes223]

Hoosier= I've remembered hearing the story of two men who got in a fight and when the fight has subsided, a bystander notices something bloody on the ground, picks it up and asks, "Who's Ear?" .... Basically, it means that we're all a bunch of hillbillies. Has anyone else ever heard the story?

[syntaxburn]

I know it will sound glib or snobbish (how is that really possible when talking about Hoosiers?), but I would say anyone who graduates from IU is NOT a Hoosier. Plenty of grads are glad to get out of the state and only came to Indiana for the business school or etc...A Hoosier is someone who was either born here, lived here for an extended period of time and/or has deep familial roots in Indiana. Of course, the vital ingredient in being a Hoosier is actually wanting to be one. Being a Hoosier is not all frame of mind nor is it all geographical. It is both imo. As to the hisotorical tracing of the name "Hoosier", it will never truly be known. There are literally dozens of theories.

Oh, and not that it's a prerequisite for being a Hoosier, but it certainly helps if you love basketball.

[Pickettj]

Originally Posted by nebulous1

Where are you??? The job market here is terrible. If you want to work at McDonald's and don't have a profession, maybe this is a good job market then.

I am in Central Indiana and a proud member of the steelworking community. There are several thousand manufacturing jobs in my community and several thousand more within an hour drive. No one around here is complaining about jobless rates unless they just can't pass the drug test. Those are the people who only see fast food around here. I can't speak for the entire state, none of us can. I can only speak for what I see and what I see are several happy communities in my area. If you don't live in a similar area, I'm sorry to hear it, but it doesn't change my perception of the definition of a hoosier.