What's the Matter With Kansas?

I learned early on that reading the opinion pages of the newspaper was just spitting into the wind. You get so fed up to the point that you have to do something about it, and then you end up making it worse. Much of “What's the Matter with Kansas” was a play-by-play rehashing of the news stories that have helped make Kansas the laughing stock of the nation. While I find Frank's concept of “cultural backlash” interesting, it still doesn't answer the question of “why do rural people continue to elect politicians who don't act in their best interest.” Contrary to popular opinion, Kansans aren't so stupid as to have the wool continuously pulled over our eyes as this book alludes. I believe the answer to that question is much more complicated than “cultural backlash” alone. While I find the rural-urban dichotomy and the rampant fundamentalism in the heartland fascinating, after I finished this book all I felt like I had done was spit into the wind.

*Disclaimer: I'm one of the many college-educated Kansans who left the state in pursuit of a job, and I am not a fundamentalist in any way, shape, or form.