Then it may surprise you to learn I still live in the South :-) I understand how it could be read as a bit of a partisan attack, particularly around this time

Then it may surprise you to learn I still live in the South :-) I understand how it could be read as a bit of a partisan attack, particularly around this time of year. In reality though, I think every place has its own dysfunction. It's just that Edmond's particular dysfunction is both important to understanding the story, and very foreign to HN readers, whereas detailing the dysfunctions of other areas might "provide balance" but would not help anyone make sense of this story. But to provide balance anyway, Edmond is very different than most people's idea of "red area". The population is very highly educated. The public school system is universally loved, and there's even a public university that is excellent. So when you hear someone express their hatred for "big government" it is in the context of empowering a local government that provides actual services that are very competently administrated, not, e.g. a desire to burn everything down. It is also one of the only semi-urban areas I can think of where minimum wage is definitely a living wage, jobs are available to anyone who wants to work, "corporation" means your next-door neighbor's 10-employee plumbing company, etc. So I think an argument can be made that "red" policies make much more sense there than otherwise expected. It is really the sort of place that produces a William Buckley [0]. It's a pragmatic, intellectual, moderate branch of conservatism, that is growing concerned about its own extinction. Based on this election, I think it's a pretty justified fear. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_F._Buckley_Jr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_F._Buckley_Jr.