Is this that surprising ? - its been the land of nutters long before these times to me.....experiences........
I have travelled around the US over 30times and many not the typical tourista go to's (factory areas) - the land of the free has been a pressure cooker for as long as I've observed.......
Doomsday preppers/rambo types long before the movie, frequented countryside Nashville/New Orleans red neck land supreme.
Jed Clampett types having their rifles mounted on the back screen of their pick ups.
KuKluxKlan region/Pulaski - its another world. I'm sure the company CEO was that typical white boy and involved with the KKK, there was rumours galore.
I was suss being out and about 30yrs ago......especially when your out on the piss for a big night, you don't know what to expect you have that eyes at the back of your head feeling.
I've seen some random unneccesary bad behaviour long before people going on whats doing today.
I've seen piss heads shooting in the carparks - hear gunshots as your driving by and told thats normal prob just knocking off some varment - yer right.
I've come to know many beautiful negros as well - I've walked areas/properties where graves are - you can sense what they have gone through its chilling discussions and can imagine whats locked in their heads what has happenned to their relos way back in those times.
Oklahoma/Chickasha - mad place, tornado's, military influences you got to watch your step - well that was the feeling then.
Fayettville North Carolina, got out there to bars its 50/50 to avoid conflict, Fort Bragg one of the biggest in the US.
Some aussies I was with got OTT as you do, we were lucky walking away in one piece.
Its daunting nothing surprise's me what goes on there.
We used to get taken to the Jack Daniels distillery - booze right, where bootlegging was massive back in those days, yet this joint gets countless visitors and its a DRY county LOL - so the Distillery can sell booze but no where else in Lynchburg.
Hypocritical bible bashers - you should see how many church goers there are - there's that much extra traffic coppers are assigned around the small towns......
Then of all things whorehouse's are right amongst the countless bible bashing places lol.....
Whilst the place has this right to arms on top of the world all over losing the plot they stand out like beacons - always have, the rights and countless many wrongs.
The internet may bring more intel to people world over but out in the boon gates it no matter - so so many US citizens don't travel.
I landed in Phoenix one time, whilst I'm waiting for a cab I'm finishing a call that these people over heard my accent, I'm asked where you from ? I said Australia, oh yer I seen it on the Discovery Channel.
Before the net, newspaper reading was interesting, like the ol SMH having 4 separate sections theirs used to have like 6/7.
You'd scan through it all and you'd hardly see any global news - next to nothing.
We never used to see Lawyer tv commercials or radio advertising back in our days - I was amazed way back then seeing commercials re lawsuits/divorce blah blah......
I'm there many times when its election night - I'm at a business function and the coverage is being shown on the tv's - Obama win, this guy from the south tells me this guy is an anti christ, he'll be shot and I'm actually surprised he wasn't.
TSF, I was going FMD long long ago..........
To this day I've disliked we have followed many of their ways for decades.
Why what for - barring the heydays of post WW2 where they led and prospered they have been fucked up for a long time that has led to today - they are lost.
Like my paragraphs MCG