"Fatalism, cynicism in once-bustling foothills; To many here, no candidate offers solution" by Scott Helman, Globe Staff | October 16, 2008
SHAWNEE, Ohio - "It ain't gonna change nothing."
Robert Peyton, 62, was perched in a worn purple chair in his garage, on a hill overlooking what's left of Shawnee, a once-bustling coal town in the Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio. He dragged on his cigarette and explained why he saw no point in voting in the presidential election.
I hate to say it about America, but he is right!
That's why I'm voting Nader again.
"The poor man's getting poorer," Peyton said, his old Ford pickup parked behind him with the hood open. "And the rich man's getting richer."
Peyton's already retired; his 22-year-old son, who lives with him, has it worse. He had been doing concrete work, Peyton said, but hasn't had a job in a year, because the construction industry is slow.
"This country is pretty much shot," Peyton said.
A lot of folks in the Shawnee area seem to feel the same way. It's a mixture of fatalism about their station in life and cynicism that a new president will make any meaningful difference in their lives. Things are pretty bad, and they have no hope that Barack Obama or John McCain will do a darn thing about it.
Debbie Manring, 50, used to work as a nursing assistant at a nursing home, but is now on disability: "I don't think I'd vote for either one of them," Manring said of Obama and McCain.
"That's exactly what I would say," added Amy Ellis, who runs the local video store, as her 4-year-old son, Justin, rode a pink bicycle up and down the empty sidewalk.
They are both Democrats, feeling like they have two bad choices, wishing Hillary Clinton were still in the race. When we asked about Obama, they made clear they felt a cultural disconnect. They do not trust him, do not see him as one of their own. Manring worries he is a Muslim (he is not); Ellis said she believes Obama would put other countries before the United States, and was bothered by his decision in the past to not always affix a flag pin to his lapel. (He does now.)
If anything, he may -- and I say may -- threaten Israel's control over America!
C'mon you dumb fuck rednecks!!!!
They say all this even though their views on helping the middle class and on the war in Iraq align more closely with Obama's. Manring said her nephew had served in Iraq, and returned with stories about "kids over there who are doing without."
"And you know what?" Manring said. "We've got that here."
Obama might have put it that way himself, but these are precisely the kinds of white, rural voters he has not won over. He likely won't before Nov. 4. --more--"
So what? They ain't voting, remember?
