define redneck??? (Jackson, Ozark, Bolivar: house, travel, jobs)

[nostress13]

Originally Posted by LeavingFlorida05

If you drive a pickup, unecessarily, and listen to country music, that qualifies you in my book. If you have arguments about which is better, Ford or Chevy, that qualifies you as well.

P.S. Ford and Chevy both suck. American automobiles are a joke. The Chinese make more efficient automobiles than the US. The Chinese!

Hmm. My husband and I listen to country music along with alternative, jazz, folk, etc... and my husband intends to get a truck when we move from So Cal (either to Missouri or Colorado). We also have an SUV- Ford Expedition and an Audi, to be precise. We don't think we qualify as rednecks.

How would I define a redneck? Hmm, I don't know. Maybe spelling "unecessarily" with one N.

P.S. Do rednecks know about spellcheck?

[c3bunny]

Although I do agree that the foreign vehicles are more gas efficient, I won't trade my Ford Expedition in for nothing. (Okay maybe a Hummer, LOL) I drive a Ford because they can haul, tow, and are made strong. When I was in an accident about 6 months ago, a teenage girl in a Saturn nailed the side of my truck and her car was totalled. My truck didn't even look like it was even in an accident, maybe because she hit the running boards but the frame held strong. I was shaken up a bit but didn't have a scratch on me. The teenage girl was smacked in the face by an airbag and had broken glass all over with the engine all squashed up. My 7yrs old daughter was in the back seat and was also commenting how safe she felt in my truck.

My truck is great for pulling my boat and my travel trailer. My husband has a Toyota T-100 and it pulls the boat alright but it struggles pulling the travel trailer. He has decided to trade it in for a Ford F-250 once we move and buy a house.

Oh, I just wanted to say that it seems that everyone has a different opinion of what a Redneck is. Rednecks are neither good or bad, they are just different, different in what way? Well I guess it would depend on who you talk to.

[kyla]

I can see now, that redneck, is really just a view-point of the individual. I grew up on a farm near Hannibal, poor as dirt, as we used to say. I guess, i just thought redneck and KKK, well i know thats out-dated, but i dont know what they are called now, were sort of one and the same. I too, would not classify people as rednecks if they were: lower income, BQed, drank beer, or drove a pick-up. I thought it had more to do with closed minds. The undereducated thing i mentioned, was not necessarily "formal" education, but an upbringing lacking in tolerance of those who are different. I think that this is a most interesting thread. We are looking to buy a small farm in Carter county, and i hope that our neighbors are as quick witted, and fun to chat with as all of you.

[Ozarks21]

There's a difference between redneck and white trash. Principally, having a red neck suggests a work ethic while white trash suggests laziness. When used as an epithet, "redneck" means racist white trash.

It's kind of like this. I can call my friends rednecks and they can call me a redneck. But if a non-redneck calls us that it may be offensive. I think I see some parallels here to another classification of people.

[garth]

Originally Posted by LeavingFlorida05

I don't drive a pickup, either.

I don't drive a pickup either. Here's what I drive when I pull my RV around. Oh yeah, I also drive it around from time to time when I go to the hardware store, grocery store, or just because I enjoy it. In all cases it's solely used for private, non-commercail purposes, and it's registered that way.

Originally Posted by c3bunny

Although I do agree that the foreign vehicles are more gas efficient, I won't trade my Ford Expedition in for nothing.

I also wouldn't trade my truck in. Well, maybe for a newer one, but that's the only thing. BTW, in some respects my truck is a foreign vehicle. It's a Volvo that's as efficient as any other big truck on the road, but much less than any of the little japanese pickups. Then again, they couldn't pull a rabbit out of a hat, let alone my recreational vehicle on the road.

Does this thing make me a redneck? Heck, I don't know, but if it means working hard for what I have, earning my way, putting some away for a rainy day, taking care of my family, maybe being a bit on the portly side , not depending on the Government to take care of me, and caring for my neighbors, I'll be glad to be considered a redneck by anyone who chooses to do so.

Now if someone want to call me White Trash, we'll have something to discuss. Trash somes in a variety of colors, but "White" Trash is just a racial epithet, just like many other common phrases.

[Hillman]

People have called me Redneck,Hillbilly,and White Trash.Don't bother me I know my Heart!

I live in a shack in a very isolated area.And some things I do are not of the norm.But I'm no bother to anyone.

Hillman

[c3bunny]

Garth, that's one sweet ride.

Hillman, you've got it right, it doesn't matter what others think of you as long as you are happy and minding your own business.

[kimilykaye]

Sure, it may be a point of view but the term 'redneck' actually comes from the coal fields of Kentucky/West Virginia during the coal strikes of the 1930s. The unions were trying to come into the coal fields to give more rights to the miners and strikes against the coal companies were rampant. The way they could tell who was on whose side was simple - the people who wore red bandanas around their necks were for the union and they were proud to be part of it. That's when the coal owners started calling these people 'rednecks' and it was both a complimentary term and a derogatory term. Eventually the miners got their unions and more rights, safety, pay, etc - but at a price. So, to be a 'redneck' is to stick up for your human rights and your family. Even if you're uneducated, obese, or have an accent, you can still be a great person - and free from tyranny.

It was a source of pride among union miners, including miners of color, who fought for justice against mine owners and government troops during what is known as "The Redneck War of 1921". Just do a Google search for the West Virginia miner's strike of 1921 or "The Redneck War of 1921" and you will find many links of historical interest. Miners who chose to take up arms in the struggle identified one another by the wearing of red bandanas around their necks; hence the term "rednecks". Of course, those who looked down upon the miners used this term in a derogatory fashion to describe anyone who was poor, perhaps lacked education or polish. Ironically, too many today who supposedly take pride in being called rednecks play right into the hands of those who used that term as a slur rather than as a source of pride, for the history of the "Redneck Miners" is one that has been lost to American History books. You have to look to the history of labor battles in this country to realize just what the redneck miners contributed to the labor movement and to justice in this country.

For just a glimpse into the "Redneck War of 1921" here are a couple of links.

Photo which includes African-American "rednecks" of the 1922 coal miners strike in West Virginia: http://cgi.ebay.com/WEST-VIRGINIA-UNION-COAL-MINERS-192...

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/coal-mine.ht (broken link)...

http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:LnJ1FUZMAH4J:www.r... For more info, check it out online.

[campground]

The definition of Redneck that I feel is propably the original is a person who works outdoors thus has a red neck from the sun. Farmers primarily and construction workers. It is a shame that this honorable title has been degraded to be a negative title.

[junkman18]

Originally Posted by Ozarks21

I consider myself a proud redneck, though I am well-educated and prefer expensive wine to cheap beer.

I like guns, power tools, fishing, hunting, driving 4-wheel off road, wearing camouflage, pitching horse shoes and having parties that involve a bon-fire and wild game on a grill. When I'm among other rednecks my speech slips into a rural, folksy dialect that is almost indistinguishable to the non-redneck. We say 'tater, skeeter, and cain't. But these indications of redneckedness are not the source of pride. That comes from the mentality of humility (even the wealthy aren't showy), neighborliness and warm spirit. We're just good people. Even when we cuss, fight, get drunk and chew tobacco, it's understood that we're all pretty good folks at heart, even if we ain't the perdiest bunch.

Sounds like fun, can I come to your party? OOOO Yeah I am a proud redneck !!!