When I imagine each state as like a separate country I can begin to imagine.
See, I had to do the reverse with Europe. I used to mentally picture all of the world's countries as being America-sized. When I finally got to Europe and realized that one could drive for 1 day and pass through 3 separate nations, I think I sprained something in my head. So now I just imagine Europe as a bunch of states--okay, states that have different languages, goverments, histories currencies...well, not so much the currencies anymore...
Hayden thanks for info. Will look up Goodwyn. I don't have much specific stuff on the civil rights movement or minority politics.
Also recommended:
The Children - David Halberstam
Carry Me Home - Diane McWhorter
Civilities & Civil Rights - William Chafe
Remembering Jim Crow - William Chafe, Raymond Gavins, and Robert Korstad (or any oral history)
Schoolhouse Door - Culpepper Clark
Personal Politics - Sara Evans
But if there is no town-- who plows the roads? And has the fire department?
very confusing!
That's done by the county, because there is no town.
I find it really irritating, in Virginia, e.g., because the restaurant tax varies from one county to another. So you're in Arlington Cty, and you get coffee from Starbucks, and it's $1.50 + 10% tax; but the same cup of coffee in Alexandria is $1.50 + 5% tax. Of course, all the good restaurants are in Arlington.
Whereas in Massachusetts every town has a budget and a government, although we still do county courthouses (and I think sheriffs? Maybe that's only Connecticut).
(deleted because I was nitpicking something I misread in the first place)
In Fall 2000 elections CT abolished the county sherriff, due to redundancy. I voted to abolish! There are still county courts in CT though.
Gar, no, I'm in SF now, but I lived in Portland for 4 years in the early 90s.
And yes, the counties pick up the slack in the West and South for functions the towns and cities do in the Northeast. I didn't even know what county I lived in when I was growing up, as the only function it serves in Massachusetts has to do with the court system. Bizarre.
I didn't have counties growing up!
Nutty, we still have county sherriffs.
All of the above is why the whole world should fit between Boston and New York. If you can't get to it in 4 hours and/or on an interconnected set of train and public transity systems, why bother??
It doesn't?
We were too poor for counties. We just had rocks.
