By Stefanie Feldman

Rural Citizens Go National on YouTube Debate

editor — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 12:08:53 -0700

McGirr grills the Democrats
about No Child Left Behind
Photo: via Youtube

The scene is Ophir Mine, an abandoned mine site located in Searles Valley, California. The rock music starts and the edgy male vocals ask: “the nclb was such a scam/ so now you tell me, sir or mam/ would you scrap the whole thing or just revise?/ tell me the truth, don't tell me no lies.�? After brief applause, Anderson Cooper directs the question to Bill Richardson.

The YouTube video by “blackturtleus�? was selected for CNN’s YouTube debate Monday. Blackturtleus is also known as Randy McGirr, a San Diego native who now lives in Trona, California. Trona is a town of about 2,000 near Death Valley and is, according to Randy, “about as rural as it gets.�?

McGirr is a teacher and serves as the Trona Teachers’ Association union president, so his question about the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law was serious. “I’ve been quite distressed about NCLB and specifically how it does not take into account the unique needs of small schools,�? McGirr wrote in an email to the Yonder on Tuesday. “My intent was for the ruins [of the mine] to represent the state that education is currently in as a direct result of NCLB.�?

Speak Your Piece: On the Road with Candidate Edwards

editor — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 13:33:41 -0700

Democratic Presidential candidate John Edwards greeted supporters in Prestonsburg, KY

Photo: Shawn Poynter

This past week, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards led a three-day, eight-state “Road to One America�? Tour, reminiscent of Robert F. Kennedy’s 1968 visit to Southern Appalachia. As he traveled from urban New Orleans to rural Prestonsburg, KY, Edwards discussed poverty in the context of values, not economics -- as an issue deeply intermingled with the nation's morality.

Just Another July 4th in Iowa

editor — Thu, 5 Jul 2007 13:44:16 -0700

Warm weather, watermelon, parades, and politicians.

John Edwards and Rural America: It’s the hair versus the message

editor — Tue, 3 Jul 2007 14:11:20 -0700

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is featured on the cover of the July 2007 issue of Men’s Vogue. The former Senator, wearing a brown, worn field jacket, sits with his dog Bella on a pickup truck. Quintessential rural Americana is combined with Edwards’s widely discussed good looks (and good hair). Such is the image of the Edwards campaign, the result of Edwards’ rural upbringing and his ubiquitous ‘rural liason’ Mudcat Saunders. (Is there another campaign with a rural liason? Is that like an ambassador?)

John Edwards poses with his dog Bella in North Carolina for the magazine cover
Photo: Annie Leibovitz, Men's Vogue (See Leibovitz's slideshow.)

But does this picture, and for that matter this man, truly speak to rural America? Edwards’s wealth and surprising indulgences seem to receive more media attention than his Rural Recovery Act and highly detailed policy-based campaign. In the Men’s Vogue cover story, Joe Hagan seems to think Edwards is aligned with rural America…although, the Daily Yonder has to wonder, how many rural men — for that matter men in general — really read Men’s Vogue?

In '08 Debates, Democrats Mention 'Rural' More Than Republicans

editor — Mon, 2 Jul 2007 11:18:20 -0700

A recent poll suggests that rural America is in play for Democrats in the 2008 presidential election, and a survey of references to 'rural' in the six presidential debates thus far demonstrates that Democrats are discussing rural issues more often than their Republican counterparts.

The lack of attention rural America receives in politics is instantly recognizable. After three Republican debates, McCain wins the rural advocate award for mentioning how "business, farm, and family in America" would be affected by adjusted taxes. Mitt Romney comes in a close second for almost promoting an agricultural policy with not one but two mentions of "embryo farming."