Why I like being a redneck

To some, it is a condescending term but one that the PC police don't touch because it involves mostly white people. I was born into a redneck family, I was raised in a redneck way, and to this day I am a proud redneck and I do not and will not apologize for that.

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That above image will rattle some cages I am sure. Believe it or not, redneckism isn't exclusively a white person thing. I know rednecks of all varieties including the child if immigrants from India that lives in our area. The one ethnicity that I have never seen in the redneck community but I am sure exists, is the other variety of Asians. I have never met a redneck of Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Malaysian, Thai, or Vietnamese heritage. I'm sure they are out there somewhere because of comedian Henry Cho.

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There's nothing particularly rednecky about his family photo other than maybe the form fitting Oakleys but if you ever get a chance to watch some of his stand up you should do so. Dude has a southern accent thicker than mine.

Now on to why I like being a redneck and am not at all ashamed of it.

For starters, rednecks generally have a strong family unit. This doesn't mean that they don't have problems in the home because I think all demographics of American society do. There are plenty of divorces and single parents but in the redneck community that I live in, there is a almost societal pressure for couples and families to stay together rather than head to that lawyer and split the family up at the first sign of duress. My immediate and extended family which includes a ton of uncles and aunties, all of which have their own adult children, there is only one divorce and this one was amicable. The mother and father have two children and there was no drawn out custody battle where only the lawyers win. Both their daughters are successful and the two parents get together at family events with their new partners and there is no sense of animosity.

I don't think this can be said for a lot of other divorces but in my family it is basically enforced. I'll never forget my Grandmother (this uncle's mother) telling him that "there will be no funny business at my Thanksgiving or I'll kick both of ya'll out and watch the kids myself, understood?"

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The next thing I love about a redneck upbringing is the fact that being independent and knowing how to work with nature is encouraged. In my childhood it was basically enforced. You learn how to fish, hunt, set up a tent, survive in the wild, and grow your own food starting at an early age. We were also taught about how to fix things like cars and basic electrical work and how to build things using basic carpentry. It was considered a bit shameful to have to hire a contractor in my family and it still is to this day.

A few years back when my nephew was refurbing his basement he knew that he didn't have to get any contractors involved - even though that is kind of what I do for a living - instead, the male family members and some of the women got in on the action and we did it all ourselves because we know how to do this. The children of these same folks all came along and much to their chagrin, were made to help out and learn a thing or two as well.

This knowledge is more useful than 90% of what is taught in school as far as life skills are concerned and while other people may seek this information out it is basically a part of redneck life. We know how to do stuff and can fix almost anything. The one exception to this has become modern electronics and even modern cars but I feel as though this was by design on the part of the manufacturers. They don't want you to be able to fix these things yourselves.

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The next and last thing I am going to talk about in my love of redneckism is that we all appreciate a simple life and don't really aspire to own fancy things. This doesn't mean that we are poor, every member of my extended family except for that one dumbshit cousin who became a heroin addict (he recovered) has done very well for themselves and all of us have financial security.

The difference is that we do not feel pressured to have the nicest clothes, fancy cars (most of us drive trucks anyway), or to go out to dinner at snarky overpriced restaurants. We vacation as a large unit normally just a few hours from our homes, and we enjoy the simple things in life like a cookout with cheap beer. I'm not going to say that I would turn down a Ferrari if someone were to give me one, but even if I did have enough money to get one of these things on my own, I wouldn't do it because it just isn't in my wheelhouse to have things like that.

We get joy out of simple, obtainable things that other parts of society consider to make us simpletons. I buy clothes from Target and Wal Mart, for example. I only own a few suits for special occasions. I have a Timex watch that I have had for nearly 20 years and it was $50 back then. Nobody in my family feels the need to show off with purchases and I like it that way.

A lot of people get the wrong impression about country-folk like us. We are not a bunch of moonshine-makin meth heads that beat our wives although I will admit that this portion of the redneck community does in fact exist.

In my mind, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a simple life that is family-oriented and focuses on the great outdoors. I can't really imagine why anyone would ever try to make fun of that. I am a proud redneck!