[Bass&Catfish2008]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

Kansas is far from being the center of Midwest culture as it is located at the periphery of the region. Also, southeast Kansas is only marginally Midwest at best and has significant southern and even ozarkian influences.

Exactly.

It appears to be more of a coastal phenomenon in misappropriating a lot of the states in the center (North-Central and South-Central like OK/TX) of the country.

The funniest and most ridiculous regional designation error I've heard to date is a young reporter from California commenting on Mississippi and referring to it as part of the Midwest! Mississippi, as any sane person realizes, is 100% Southern. Perhaps it is the lack of basic regional history/geography taught in West Coast and East Coast schools? Maybe the Coasters just kinda view all the Midwest and Southern states as "those states over there"....."just those fly-over states." It's a real head-scratcher for sure.

And, as you allude to GraniteStater, no one from the true Midwest (MN, WI, MI, OH, IL, IN, IA, the Dakotas, NE, KS, MO = being the most "border Midwest state") would ever list Oklahoma as a part of the true Midwest.

[Howest2008]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

Kansas is far from being the center of Midwest culture as it is located at the periphery of the region.


I was talking about vibe and not location ,Kansas never was and never will be "Southern"

Also, southeast Kansas is only marginally Midwest at best and has significant southern and even ozarkian influences.

Kansas was a " Anti-Southern " state , and a "anti - slavery state" always
a Mid - Western State ( Unlike Missouri and Ar(kansas).

[Howest2008]

Originally Posted by Bass&Catfish2008

Exactly.

It appears to be more of a coastal phenomenon in misappropriating a lot of the states in the center (North-Central and South-Central like OK/TX) of the country.

The funniest and most ridiculous regional designation error I've heard to date is a young reporter from California commenting on Mississippi and referring to it as part of the Midwest! Mississippi, as any sane person realizes, is 100% Southern. Perhaps it is the lack of basic regional history/geography taught in West Coast and East Coast schools? Maybe the Coasters just kinda view all the Midwest and Southern states as "those states over there"....."just those fly-over states." It's a real head-scratcher for sure.

And, as you allude to GraniteStater, no one from the true Midwest (MN, WI, MI, OH, IL, IN, IA, the Dakotas, NE, KS, MO = being the most "border Midwest state") would ever list Oklahoma as a part of the true Midwest.

True Oklahoma is Southwestern (And) Southern , but it has a Mid - Western Vibe promoted by "those in state population " That Preferred the mid - west over the Southwest and Southern sections of the country.

[thepastorsson]

Originally Posted by Bass&Catfish2008

And, as you allude to GraniteStater, no one from the true Midwest (MN, WI, MI, OH, IL, IN, IA, the Dakotas, NE, KS, MO = being the most "border Midwest state") would ever list Oklahoma as a part of the true Midwest.

I'm from CA, have lived in OK, mom is from OK, and I now live in west MI.

I can say that it is true--most east and west coasters are snobs, and view the rest of America as fly over country. Their loss, I say.

Regarding Michigan being midwestern, yes, it is considered that--but much like Oklahoma, it is something of a crossroads state. I lived in the Detroit metro for 4 years before moving across the state to a small town 40 minutes NE of Grand Rapids.

Western Michigan definitely feels very midwestern. The Detroit area, however, has more of an east coast feel.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by Howest2008

[/b]

Kansas was a " Anti-Southern " state , and a "anti - slavery state" always
a Mid - Western State ( Unlike Missouri and Ar(kansas).

Historically, yes. However, different people's and cultures migrate into and out of areas over time. Southeast KS is an example of such an area that is transitioning to a more southern cultural area overall as the influences tend to be quite significant.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by thepastorsson

I'm from CA, have lived in OK, mom is from OK, and I now live in west MI.

I can say that it is true--most east and west coasters are snobs, and view the rest of America as fly over country. Their loss, I say.

Regarding Michigan being midwestern, yes, it is considered that--but much like Oklahoma, it is something of a crossroads state. I lived in the Detroit metro for 4 years before moving across the state to a small town 40 minutes NE of Grand Rapids.

Western Michigan definitely feels very midwestern. The Detroit area, however, has more of an east coast feel.

How does rural Oklahoma have ANYTHING in common with rural Michigan? Oklahoma is just not the Midwest as the it is much too far south in latitude. (35-36N is definitely southern).

[thepastorsson]

Also, as I mentioned, my mom was born and raised in SE Oklahoma. It feels very southern in that part of the state.

[thepastorsson]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

How does rural Oklahoma have ANYTHING in common with rural Michigan? Oklahoma is just not the Midwest as the it is much too far south in latitude. (35-36N is definitely southern).

I don't recall saying that they did have anything in common--but now that you mention it, aside from the accents, they are both quite a bit alike actually.

However, I personally consider OK to be southern, for sure.

[5thgenokie]

I will try to weigh in here.
My family has been here for a long time, since before it was a state. Before that, we lived in Kentucky.
The Oklahoma accent is most closely related to the southern accent, I would say it is a southern accent.
I now live in KANSAS, for 2 years now. I can tell you that there is a large difference in culture between Kansas and Oklahoma. To elaborate a little bit, it is almost like there are less words spoken in the south, or Oklahoma. Words have more meaning, hidden meaning. In kansas/ midwest the people are more direct. I have a difficult time with this. If someone asks me to do something, I always say yes. It is my way of being polite, it feels rude to just directly say NO. However, I may go on to say things like, are you sure? Why are you going to do that?
Also, the geography is different than the midwest. It is hotter in Oklahoma, and there are different types of greenery, grass, plants etc. Totally different world.
Although Tulsa is only an hour from Kansas, it is also only an hour away from ARKANSAS.
You could argue that OK is part of the south all day. Rebel flags, names of schools, names of counties, accent, geography, liquor stores closed on Sunday by law, bible belt, etc
The thing is though, if Texas is not part of the south, which is also arguable either way, then Oklahoma is not part of the south.
In the end, who cares?
It can be argued all day long, but in the end, its just Oklahoma, and it doesn't matter what region its part of, everyone will classify it differently.
I think it is closest to the south, but i am not nationalistic or regionalistic like that, that's just what it most closely resembles.
Unless you say its part of the midwest, its not. That's just funny. NOT the midwest.

[thepastorsson]

Originally Posted by Bass&Catfish2008

100% correct, ThePastorsSon.

When we gonna get you and yours back to the Great STATE of Oklahoma?

We welcome Okies back with open arms! But please steer clear of RedBird and GoodPasture on these boards; they're both pretty ornery.

Thanks! I'm working on it. Thing is, my wife is an only child, and if we move, her parents move. I'm fine with this, but my mother in law is something of a snob, bless her heart, and is having visions of teepees and trailer parks.

This morning I was feeling pretty ornery myself and decided to poke the bear a little bit.

I downloaded a beautiful pic of Tulsa in the fall. It's taken from high up in the Citiplex towers. It's looking north on a clear day with Southern Hills country club in the foreground and downtown in the background. I added a caption at the bottom: "Look at all those teepees!"

I actually got a laugh out of her.