Following in our series of moving for politics, TPM Reader TA explains why he’s stayed put in his native South …
This is a subject I’ve been fascinated by for a long time.
I’m a liberal who has chosen to stay in his native South, despite having lived in New York City for a while, and having very close friends in California who frequently encourage me to move out there, where I will fit in better. And once upon a time I did go as far as interviewing for jobs in, you guessed it, Portland. But I stayed.
Staying in the South doesn’t make me any kind of hero, or even a pioneer, like JR. I grew up in this culture, so I know how it works and I know how to function within it and maintain my sanity . . . more or less (there’s a lot of silent swearing and gallows humor involved). And I don’t have kids, so I don’t have some of JM’s concerns; on the other hand, that’s also more and more true of liberals in general.
After days of denial CBS and 60 Minutes seem to be considering coming clean about building a blockbuster segment around an apparent fabricator. The account is that of Dylan Davies, the British security contractor who provided a swashbuckling and heroic account of his role trying to defend the US consulate in Benghazi on the night a year ago when four Americans including the US Ambassador were killed.
Only Davies, who’s also got a book coming out, appears to have made the whole thing up.
As we discuss moving for politics, Portland turns out to be a pretty frequent destination. From TPM Reader GP …
I’m actually kind of surprised by this. (I suspect some of his ardent Jewish supporters are too.) George W. Bush is the keynote speaker at a Texas fundraiser for a group that works to convince Jews to accept Jesus as the Messiah in order to bring about the Second Coming.
Earlier we heard from TPM Reader JM who moved with his wife from Florida to Oregon to find a politics and culture more to their liking. Now we hear from TPM Reader JR with his story, but there’s a twist, which I get to below …