Pittsburgh's "tough working class" stereotype and its effects (Philadelphia: crime, how much)

[barneyg]

Given the main subject in the linked article, I feel I have to provide some perspective and frame the debate with a quote here. The article is about Obama's strategy for beating Romney, and at some point a Democrat has this to say on the "Romney isn't likable" theme:

“Romney really, actually thinks that if you just take care of the folks at the top, it’ll trickle down to everybody else,” says another Obama operative. “But no one believes that stuff—no one! And once you puncture that, there’s nothing left. He’s not likable. He’s not trustworthy. He’s not on your side. You live in Pittsburgh and you’ve got dirt under your fingernails, who do you want to have a beer with? It ain’t ****ing Mitt Romney. You’re like, ‘****, I’d rather have a beer with the black guy than him!’ ”

Full Article

This is the old Pittsburgh stereotype -- honest, working class, socially conservative. Someone mentioned in the "Pittsburgh vs. NJ" (not exactly the title but I'm sure you can guess which one) that to appreciate Pittsburgh, you have to cherish its history, heritage, understand where it's coming from, etc. I fully agree with that, but doesn't it also imply clinging onto (or at least not being distracted by) those backward-looking depictions of Pittsburgh?

(Please, the article itself gives context to the debate I'm interested in, but I'm not looking forward to discussing politics here. For that, feel free to move over to the political forum where I'm sure you'll feel your IQ going down by the minute.)

[Craziaskowboi]

Whoever said that apparently forgot that Barack Obama didn't win any of the counties surrounding Allegheny County.

Anyway, I get tired of the bue-collar/working-class stereotype being applied to everything Pittsburgh. Hell, if there was gruesome crime that happened in Franklin Park or Mt. Lebanon and made the national news, I'd still be expecting either place to be described as "a working-class suburb of Pittsburgh."

I wonder how long it'll be before Todd Haley's system of offense gets described on a national football broadcast as blue-collar simply because he was hired by the Steelers.

[Aqua Teen Carl]

The article has very little to do with Pittsburgh so I'll address how "working hard" is viewed in the Burgh.

This stereotype is rooted in truth across the board. I've always said that Pittsburgh's religion is hard work, and that still continues today in both white collar and blue collar jobs. My family always put hard work on a pedestal throughout my child hood and idolized the fact that working hard is the most noble thing a person can do. If you weren't working hard you were nothing, period.

I'm 27 and every single place I've worked at has had the same mindset. You show up, work your balls off, and go home knowing in your heart that you did a good deed. Even at Pittsburgh tech companies this has held true. In my office right now you can tell who's a transplant (the guys who have a live a let live approach to work) and who's a native (the guys that work hard and don't complain).

So is this a good thing? Personally I'd say yes and no. In my estimation "working smart" is far more valuable than breaking your back for peanuts and I've learned that long ago. While hard work has it's time and place, it's secondary to living your life (be it a rough and tumble blue collar worker or a suit wearing cube dweller) the way you want to live it.

Sadly, employers seem to be exploiting hard Pittsburgh workers to this day as underpaid drone who are willing to get their hands dirty for not much in return.

[sskink]

It's a tough assignment to respond to this without injecting politics.

I don't see Pittsburgh as being socially conservative at this point. I'd argue that if anything, the average Pittsburgher is more likely to be a fiscal conservative because the region has held its own and prospered (somewhat) while many other metros have declined economically over the past dozen years.

What I also don't see is a common ability to connect the dots. If party X is given the reins at the Federal level, what does that mean to state and local liabilities? I already know who I'm voting for because I think I can project that. I'm hoping those points aren't completely obfuscated by BS over the coming months.

[biggybugaboo]

I grew up on a dairy farm so I understand hard work. But there was no way I was going to bust my ass while working minimum wage jobs in Pittsburgh. I was surprised that people would break their backs for employers who didn't give two poops about them. I found the key was to look like your working hard and a lot of this involved picking your moments to sweat in front of others. That way you get along with your coworkers, management likes you, and you don't hurt or ware yourself out.

I don't know what political views the average Pittsburgher holds. I do know that if the Steelers suck this year it will be Obama's fault.

[UKyank]

Originally Posted by biggybugaboo

I grew up on a dairy farm so I understand hard work. But there was no way I was going to bust my ass while working minimum wage jobs in Pittsburgh. I was surprised that people would break their backs for employers who didn't give two poops about them. I found the key was to look like your working hard and a lot of this involved picking your moments to sweat in front of others. That way you get along with your coworkers, management likes you, and you don't hurt or ware yourself out.

Luckily I don't think most people around here share your ethos of working hard only when someone is watching, even in minimum wage jobs. (nor does it usually turn out well for those that do).

[sskink]

Originally Posted by biggybugaboo

I don't know what political views the average Pittsburgher holds. I do know that if the Steelers suck this year it will be Obama's fault.

But if the Pirates finish over .500, it'll be proof that Hope & Change works

[Clint.]

I am not well informed about the general work ethic of people across the country compared to Pittsburgh. I once worked for a company that had offices here, in San Francisco, and Portland, OR, and did hear that people in Pittsburgh tended to "cling" to the job compared to the revolving door nature of the SF location. It actually annoyed the HQ in SF, because it was supposed to be an entry level job and they wanted people to move on after a few years so they could hire people at lower rates.

But lately I'm not in a good position to even give anecdotes about a Pittsburgh work ethic; I work as a social worker for a local ubiquitous predator monopolizing care, and practically every client I interact with is lazy with a very poor work ethic and has a deeply ingrained I-deserve-something-for-nothing attitude, but it's nice to see that nationally people still regard Pittsburghers as hard working.

[Evergrey]

Originally Posted by Gnutella

Whoever said that apparently forgot that Barack Obama didn't win any of the counties surrounding Allegheny County.

Indeed. In fact, only 6 counties contained within the Top 100 MSAs in the United States that voted for Kerry in 2004... switched over to McCain in 2008. Of those 6... THREE of them were in Metro Pittsburgh (long-time Democratic bastions Beaver, Washington and Fayette). Metro Pittsburgh was the only major metro to vote "More Republican" in 2008 than 2004... the other regions of the country that voted "More Republican" were backwards rural areas of West Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, etc. Honestly, Metro Pittsburgh's unique distinction in 2008 disturbed me. Obviously there was some amount of racism/xenophobia influencing so many Kerry voters to vote for McCain over Obama... being the "whitest" major metro in America... and a true demographic anomoly within the Northeast and Industrial Midwest... Cleveland, Cincinnati, Buffalo, Philadelphia, etc. all have much larger black populations. I've always found it interesting how much time Obama spends in Pittsburgh considering how hostile the region was to him in both the primary and general elections.

Even though Metro Pittsburgh is no longer a "blue collar" area... that mentality still seems to manifest itself in the voting booth. A lot of this is because the elderly have the highest turnout. They are no longer in the workforce... but they may have spent their lives in a steel mill. The remaining uneducated white working class demographic... especially in the outer counties... has embraced a Southern-style redneck-ization... and is easily baited by dog whistles concerning god, guns, gays and Obama's birth certificate. This demographic would much rather vote for a Mormon billionaire corporate raider who acts like an android when attempting to interact with the great unwashed... than the "elitist" mixed-race spawn of a single mom who has one of the most humble economic backgrounds of any US president.

With Metro Pittsburgh growing in population for the first time in forever... driven by in-migration... and the famously gigantic elderly cohort shrinking relative to the US... it will be interesting to see how the voting trends play out this year.


The 2012 battle for the suburbs - The Washington Post




I've probably taken this discussion into a political abyss... on a personal note... I've always interpreted the ubiquitous media portrayals of Pittsburgh as "blue collar, hard-working, tough-nosed" to be condescending and obsolete.

[BrianTH]

Unfortunately, the Pittsburgh Metro is indeed part of Appalachia when it comes to this issue: