Way Out Where?

One of the side affects of listening to country radio is that a line like "Our houses are protected by the good Lord and a gun, and you might meet'em both if you show up here unwelcome, son." may get stuck in your head. I actually think the Josh Thompson song  "Way Out Here" is rather catchy, even if it is yet another version of "A Country Boy Can Survive". In general, I have nothing against guns and think God is great, as long as they aren't being used in combination to kill anybody.  In anycase, that line doesn't need to be the soundtrack of my day.

I do have one small bone to pick with Mr. Thompson. "We won't take a dime if we ain't earned it."  The residents of rural America accept plenty of foodstamps. Farm subsidies aren't going to service workers in suburbia.  I believe that we should feed our hungry, so this is not a criticism of people that take food stamps if they need them.  I don't have a firm position on farm subsidies either way, but this claim that rural Americans are so hardy that, unlike the rest of us, they are able to overcome all hardship without help from taxpayers or charitable organizations, is a bunch of hooey.