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Now that the specter of godless international Communism does not haunt mankind, it might be possible to discuss class warfare without getting on some list of subversives.
The fate of the American West may depend on the outcome of a struggle between two social classes, Marfies and Yupscales.
Marfie is an acronym for Middle-Aged Rural
Failure.
They live in the boondocks. Marfies are not
especially educated, but they are reasonably skilled at
blue-collar occupations like carpentry and welding. Their
politics are unpredictable, although you can count on them
to vote for friends or relatives seeking local office, in
hope of getting a cushy government job.
Yupscales don't need much explanation. They are educated, make good money and live in Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas. As for politics, they're very concerned about the environment. Think of a Josie Heath supporter, and you've got a Yupscale.
Most current controversies in the West may look like environmental issues on the surface, but they're really class warfare between the Yupscales and the Marfies.
The great spotted owl debate in the Pacific Northwest is one example. Marfies are lumberjacks and sawyers who won't be able to find other work in their hometowns if logging is stopped. Yupscales want to stop the logging, supposedly because they're concerned about the environment.
But how many Yupscales refuse to produce or consume paper, which comes from wood, which comes from logging? Did you ever see a Yupscale manor without cedar shake shingles and a redwood deck? Yupscales commute 80 miles a day at a horrendous environmental cost. They like to ski, and ski resorts displace a great deal of wildlife.
So it can't be the environment that Yupscales really care about. The only other explanation is that they despise Marfies and want to impoverish them.
This makes sense in other controversies. Most opposition to mining comes from Yupscales -- they're not going to be the ones who have to live on Food Stamps if the mine doesn't go in. The anti-fur movement is led by Yupscales, who have ample pity for animals, but none for the Marfies who used to make their living by trapping.
Why would Yupscales want to make Marfies even worse off?
For one, Yupscales are the major consumers of expensive recreation, which would be even more costly without cheap labor to make beds and saute mushrooms. If Marfies can't get $15 an hour for mining or logging, they'll have to commute to the world-class destination resort and smile at Yupscales while drawing Third World wages.
For another, if Marfies get poor enough, they'll be so desperate for income that they'll eagerly accept things that the Marfies don't want, such as toxic waste dumps. Witness Lind, Wash., and Edgemont, S.D., both depressed rural towns where prosperous America -- the land of Yupscales -- wants to deposit its toxic trash.
In essence, Yupscales are saying In the name of the
environment (which we don't really care about), give up the
only job you know how to do. In return, we'll poison you or
you can work for rotten wages.
If that's not class
warfare, it will do until the real thing comes along.
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