Given that this last election showed how different voters are between Rural and Urban, we need to take every opportunity to examine this fact and understand "why". In this blog, I will start to doing just that.
I research a couple of articles and each built on the fact that Urban people are more likely to be college graduates, often with the bias that Rural people are not as smart. I look at it very differently. It is a fact that rural people are different from Urban people, but "why"? In most cases, it is a choice made by each individual and driven by history. Remember that back when the USA was formed in 1790, 85% of people lived on farms or ranches. New people who first immigrated to the USA were mostly farmers because the were attracted by the offer of free land. Much has changed since 1790, now immigrants do not get free land so almost all end up in Urban areas. This points out the significance of trends.
Back in 1790, 85% of the people who formed the USA lived on farms or ranches. Now that is down to less than 5%. That is too big of a shift for it not to result in a significant impact on the USA today. I think that the shift can not ever get to 100% living in Urban communities, but it is getting closer and closer. Think of the shift after WWII where the mother worked out of the house or think of today where most college graduates end up in jobs that are only in Urban areas? Well that trend may have reached its limit because now people can work at home using the internet. You can already see the impact of this as people move out of California too more rural states and rural communities. It has significantly impacted the real estate in both the cities and rural areas. When I graduated from college many of my friends took jobs in NYC with the thought that they had to "start" there, but as soon as they could, they would move back to the smaller towns where they were from. That trend still exists today. Most big cities are "hell holes" when it comes to raising a family. I have spoken to many people who have moved to large cities and who have moved out. Those who claim to like life if the bigger cities are mostly bull shitting themselves or are young and single. Think about this. Why do most people like to vacation "out side" of big cities? No one goes to NYC or Chicago for a vacation.
There is a lot more to explore in "Urban vs Rural" so I will leave it here, but you can look forward to a series.
