I went to school in Iowa and there was an old joke about Missouri. A small portion of Iowa hooks down into Missouri, like a dingleberry. The old joke is that if Iowa gave that part of the state to Missouri, the average IQ of each state would increase!
Having been to MO on a few occasions one thing that stood out to me that compared to other states, its largest metro areas, St Louis and KC, are not growing as fast and are not as economically dynamic. In fact, both areas have lost businesses over the last 20 plus years, either through mergers, buyouts, bankruptcies, relocations, etc. As a result, the population growth and diversification that we have seen in other states like GA, MN, AZ, even TX and NC is not there.
You can see it from the airports. At both St Louis and KC, the main airline is Southwest Airlines. That was not the case 25 years ago. In fact, prior to 2000, TWA, a major international airline, was HQ'd in St. Louis. This is the same for Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Omaha, Wichita, etc. This all ties in to the issues we are seeing today. Many people in these areas, regardless of education, IQ, and income level, feel left behind or being left behind. Literally, airplanes are even leaving and not coming back!
Not to try and push another news magazine here, but the Washington Monthly has been talking about the issues of industry consolidation and its impact on demographics and job growth for years.
These things all tie in to why you see smart people like the OP said who support Trump. If you have had something, and you are afraid of losing it, your reaction is very different from someone who has never had something but hopes to get it. One POV is about hope, another is based on fear.
I went to school in Iowa and there was an old joke about Missouri. A small portion of Iowa hooks down into Missouri, like a dingleberry. The old joke is that if Iowa gave that part of the state to Missouri, the average IQ of each state would increase!
Having been to MO on a few occasions one thing that stood out to me that compared to other states, its largest metro areas, St Louis and KC, are not growing as fast and are not as economically dynamic. In fact, both areas have lost businesses over the last 20 plus years, either through mergers, buyouts, bankruptcies, relocations, etc. As a result, the population growth and diversification that we have seen in other states like GA, MN, AZ, even TX and NC is not there.
You can see it from the airports. At both St Louis and KC, the main airline is Southwest Airlines. That was not the case 25 years ago. In fact, prior to 2000, TWA, a major international airline, was HQ'd in St. Louis. This is the same for Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Omaha, Wichita, etc. This all ties in to the issues we are seeing today. Many people in these areas, regardless of education, IQ, and income level, feel left behind or being left behind. Literally, airplanes are even leaving and not coming back!
Not to try and push another news magazine here, but the Washington Monthly has been talking about the issues of industry consolidation and its impact on demographics and job growth for years.
These things all tie in to why you see smart people like the OP said who support Trump. If you have had something, and you are afraid of losing it, your reaction is very different from someone who has never had something but hopes to get it. One POV is about hope, another is based on fear.