Hillbilly No More

Obviously, many people are reading the aricle which is a good sign. One development which will aid in advancing WV is access to information on the internet. West Virginians are proud people and good people. Similar to most geographic areas of the world where extraction economies exist, the State is in a shambles when compared to progressive parts of the Nation. The emphasis is coal, coal, coal. If travelers go our southern coal filelds where the wealth is extracted for export, they will seee places where people live similar to those in third work countries. Also, go to rural counties in the State's interior and travel up the side roads to see the same conditions. Regarding our eduction system, our small colleges and "universities" are mangaed by local Board of Governors appointed politically. Too often the individuals know little or nothing about higher education and they do not contribute to academic improvements. One opportunity for our Governor would be to disband the Board of Governors system and to replace it with a centeral Board of qualified professionals. That would afford more opportunites for quality control and efficiency. Sadly, many who do attend college in WV are ill prepared because of inadequate academic preparation. It is not uncommon for more than 50% of incoming freshmen classes to require remediation in math and reading. The best legacy Governor Manchin could leave would be to break the hold inferior educations have on citizens by doing what is necessary to make our education system from K through college a national show piece. Entrepreneurs who consider states to locate new businesses are savy. They want to got to value-added places and their selection crieteria include the quality of the education system, amenities for their workers, and business friendly conditions. Unfortunately, WV citizens are pelted with negativism toward big business and that is one reason the State is law- suit happy. Juries are incliined to harbor negative feeling against big business including the insurance industry. Another major factor is that WV's legal profession is self-regulating. How many Americans believe that self-regulation works? Simply consider what has happened in our banking system and our investment houses to require massive bail outs for billing to citizens who did not cause the problems. Yes, West Virginia has more than its share of problems, but nothing is impossible in States with leaders who focus on the people's needs instead of blaming the messengers. If Americans want to get a samples of what West Virginians focus on instead of iexpending energy on promoting change for the better, access the WV Gazette web site and read submissions for Readers Voice. Another aspect for Americans to consider is all the vast amounts of Federal money which has been pumped into the State. Becaue the State is still in bottom place for most important statistics, one must question if most of the money was wasted.

It would be great if West Virginia were able to attract investment into its small towns and cities. I have been all through West Virginia and I find the people there to be very nice and the scenery to be outstanding for a mountainous state. Like other places in the northeast and midwest the cities have all but died. The few shopping malls left are getting by but just barely.

I believe anyone that does genealogy work into there own families history will find a certain amount of incest, especially if you descend from any of the royal families of Europe. You will find incest all over the United States and children produced from it in communities that are not tied to major transportation routes and even in some small towns generally. I don't think it's anything to put anyone down. We all come from somewhere and it is better to be from somewhere than not to be from anywhere.

Reading through these comments helps me to remember all of the good people that I know and love in West Virginia. The writer who said that many of the older people that could not afford dental insurance or a dentist is correct as the reason for there unhealthy teeth and gums, these are the same people that will help you in every way they can if you are facing a problem of any sort while you are in there state if they are able. Some West Virginians may not be very pretty but inside there hearts are beautiful and they are full of love and kindness.

What my question is, what is wrong with being a Hillbilly? I'm not a Hillbilly having grown up and lived on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay all of my life. The Hillbillies that I've known and that have called themselves such have almost always been good, kind, and loving toward me and for that I cannot hold offense.

It would be great if West Virginia were able to attract investment into its small towns and cities. I have been all through West Virginia and I find the people there to be very nice and the scenery to be outstanding for a mountainous state. Like other places in the northeast and midwest the cities have all but died out. The shopping malls are getting by but just barely.

I believe anyone that does genealogy work into there own families history will find a certain amount of incest, especially if you descend from any of the royal families of Europe. You will find incest all over the United States and children produced from it in communities that are not tied to major transportation routes and even in some small towns generally. I don't think it's anything to put anyone down over. We all come from somewhere and it is better to be than not to be.

I cannot begin to fathom why Newsweek allowed such a condescending, biassed piece of crap to be published.

I have nothing else to say other than the fact that I am a proud West Virginian, attending an Ivy League university who, (gasp!) has all her teeth! Oh, and if you're going to be so patronizing, at least check your facts. Even inbred hillybillies like us know how to use Wikipedia to find out the political affiliations of a governor.

We can hold degrees, hunt, fish, live next door to people with an outhouse and still appreciate the simple pleasures while working to improve the plight of our neighbors. It seems that our far away neighbors don't understand that we are all mountaineers. Insults only eliminate our differences.

No championship teams? Somebody should tell Marshall and WVU. No musical heritage? If you check your history, you'll realize the Grand Ol' Opry and Nashville's music capital status were a flip of the coin, with the powers that be trying to decide between there and Huntington. Even Garth Brooks mentions Camden Park when talking about his early days. Do we have hillbillies? You bet. Of course, big cities have ghettos, so I guess there's a downside to everywhere. West Virginia also has some of the most progressive heart and cancer centers in the country, gifted artists and craftspeople, writers, incredible scenery in every direction, and a rich heritage, both historically and culturally. It's a shame that people like the author, despite his ties to West Virginia, resort to emphasizing the stereotypes when they have the power to show the world the parts of the state that are all too often overlooked. Montani semper liberi

I grew up in West Virginia. My grandparents were college educated, wonderful people. There was diversity, for sure. My near neighbors 1/2 mile away had an outhouse. That was 40 years ago. The current Governor would increase the gap between haves and have nots exponentially if unchecked. Please contact our representatives and encourage them to stop House Bill 2330 and any other attempt to privatize our State Government. Contract employees are exploited and all of the profit stays at the top. Our State needs to raise the standard of living, not lower it. Our economy is suffering, as is the entire nation. Most of our employees work without affordable health care. If the statistic about the poor dental health in this state is true, we need to make some changes. It is difficult to blame the poor for lack of health care. The current Governor is moving us backwards. He wants to take from the poor and enhance his campaign contributors and cronies. It was under his watch that corruption became business as usual.

As a political writer, I was amused when you first referred to the popular Democratic Gov. Manchin as a Republican. But it did blow all credibility for the rest of the article.

It's been said there actually are five West Virginias -- with each geographic area having its own characteristics. I'm guessing Mr. Dokoupil hasn't visited the northern areas of the state.

And that he's not a sports fan. While WV hasn't had a national sports championship in basketball or football -- it's come about as close as you can. When the successes of the WVU football and basketball teams over just the past four years are combined, it's probably the most successful athletic program in the nation.

The football team has one each of its bowl appeaances since 2005 -- including the dramatic 2008 Fiesta Bowl win after its cad of a former coach abandoned them.

The basketball team, meanwhile, made the NCAA Tournament's "Elite 8" in 2005, and the "Sweet 16" in 2006 and 2008. In 2007. the team won the NIT Tournament. (Isn't that a national championship?)

And there are other sports at WVU, too. The rifle team there has been a perennial powerhouse, producing national championships and olympians for decades.

As for music heritage, I live in Wheeling. Ever hear of Jamboree U.S.A., the weekly country music concert performance show on the radio each week since 1932? Practically every major country music star has graced the stage here at some point. Brad Paisley was born just down the road in Glen Dale.

And show me any statistics that prove incest rates are any higher in West Virginia than elsewhere. Your lede was incorrect, gross and downright rude to the people of the state

I've lived in West Virginia all my life, and I wouldn't recognize it from this article.

The noted correction about Joe Manchin being a democrat made me smile. He is a democrat in name only. He reminds me more of George Bush and Dick Cheney than any democrat I have ever followed. He is currently working on a plan to cut State Employee hours, eventually privatizing State Governement, not because it is more efficient, but as a means to grow wealth for his friends and cronies. High State Officials have constuction companies and currently are setting policy to promote contracting work to - you guessed it - themselves. He is currently planning to cut hours for lower paid State Employees and eventually take their insurance. If Joe is able to take medical care from State Employees, the private sector will follow suit. There is already a large number of the population living without medical insurance. Joe wants to help Joe and friends of Joe. IIf President Obama wants to do something good for this state he will closely monitor the stimulus package monies. Contracts should not go to State Officials. In the midst of receiving stimulus monies State employee hours should not be cut. Positions should be allowed to be filled at a competative wage. At the moment positions are vacant because Joe wants to privatize and this is part of the strategy. Joe is a democrat in name only. He uses his position not for the benefit of the people of this state, but for the growing of wealth for his friends and family. It is like working for the Mafia. People are afraid to speak out against him and wiht good cause. I can't believe we are represented by this self serving administration. His daughter getting the fake degree was the tip of the corruption. Time will expose more and more of it. Right now he wants a bill passed to allow furlough of higher education employees. Who are we trying to silence now, Joe????? People need to get smart and watch this guy. Follow the money. Stop the corruption. Out of State Companies and friends of Joe are getting more than their share.

I'm fairly certain that Mr. Dokoupil has spent very little time, if any, in West Virginia. It appears that he has spent a few minutes on Wikipedia cobbling together some facts to support a long-standing stereotype and then blended in a few points from the governor's web page regarding his public relations program, which, by the way, all states have. So I'd ask Mr. Dokoupil's editor, if he has one, what's the point here, other than to insult the residents of the State of West Virginia.

West Virginia is a beautiful state. Its fall foliage rivals Vermont and upstate New York. Its rivers offer some of the best small mouth bass and trout fishing on the east coast. The people of the state are kind and hardworking. They support each other during difficult times and they value a strong sense of community. The governor???s campaign is designed to raise awareness about the many opportunities the state is creating for entrepreneurs, recent and upcoming graduates and prospective tourists as well as others.

Lastly, the State???s government is fiscally conservative and is in solid shape financially, which puts it in a position to invest in areas such as clean energy, education and healthcare during a time when many states are cutting programs in these areas. So I???d ask Mr. Dokoupil to take a closer look at the ???hillbilly??? State of West Virginia.

This governor's just blowing smoke. He just putting lipstick on a pig. As long as he continues unabated with mountaintop removal, he will never earn respectability for the state. Coal mining is the ruination of citizen's health as it contaminates our drinking water and air. He's now going to use money from the stimulus bill to pay for mitigation of some of the damage created by coal companies. The whole political machine is geared toward protecting and supporting the extraction industries (coal mining, logging, etc.). But the only people who prosper from the extraction industry are the executives and the politicians. The removal and destruction of the state's natural resources have impoverished its citizens. The land and housing may be cheap but the people who live in this state are "nickle and dimed" to death with fees and taxes on every human endeavor - a very discouraging place for entreprenauers to start a business. As for incestuous relationships, take a look at how many politicians have family members installed in good paying white collar state jobs. Governor Manchin himself has his brother and wife in state jobs. His daughter got a degree from WV University under less than honorable circumstances. He can try all the promoting he wants but it doesn't change the reality of the situation. One strategy is for him to loosen the grip of the extraction industries and move into the manufacturing of solar and wind energy, the production of biofuels, and other innovative ideas. I doubt that will happen.

Let's Gooooooooooooooooooooo, Mountaineers!!!!

I think it's hilarious that some of the comments by West Virginians below actually are reinforcing negative state stereotypes of ignorance and backwardness rather than dispel them... I wonder if Manchin's campaign will have the same effect.

The vaunted "Research Triangle" of North Carolina has more rapes and murders every year than does the entire state of West Virginia. I prefer the Mountain State.