(July 24, 2011 at 7:13 pm)padraic Wrote: I've never been to the Southern US,even though I have an open invitation to visit an elderly Aunt who lives in Savannah.
--Aunt Jane is very rich,and lives in one of those faux antebellum mansions which look like Tara. She drives a white ,1959 Cadillac, with white upholstery. Her neighbor, roughly the same age still says 'nigra'. (Aunt Jane is a former New york Liberal and is appalled)
I've actually only ever met three southerners socially. One was an ever-so-nice-lady from Alabama I met at AA.She used to say 'all y'all' a lot. When drinking she favoured bourbon and branch water (whatever that is). The other and her hubby, were from Mississippi,both oozing southern charm. The nice lady had just finished her doctoral thesis at old Miss. She proved slaves in the old south were for the most part very happy being slaves. Apparently there is oodles of evidence.The evidence is in the form of statements from slaves who were asked if they were happy by their owners. The written statements also prove there were far more literate slaves than ever previously suspected..
That particular dinner party did not end well.Things went a bit quiet after I referred to the lady,her school and her hubby as a bunch of mental pygmies.
Branch water=clean cool creek water.
God loves those who believe and those who do not and the same goes for me, you have no choice in this matter. That puts the matter of total free will to rest.