Country people do NOT like “druggies,” “drug dealers,” “deadbeats,” or “crack heads.” They also do NOT like the riffraff that accompanies the presence of methamphetamine labs. However, because country people often find themselves unable to relate to “big city problems” they welcome the opportunity to commiserate with their urban colleagues and acquaintances about how drugs can destroy communities.
When discussing the idyllic character of rural communities with a country person be prepared to be informed about meth. Country people enjoy saying “well we have our own share of problems” when a city person tells them “it must be nice to live somewhere so peaceful.” Likewise, if you happen to meet a country person visiting the city and say “wow, this must be a lot different than where you are from” they will inevitably invoke a story of drug use in their community in hopes of finding common ground.
Of course, country people in no way feel that their community is similar to an urban area nor do they see any sign of “big city problems” around them. Nonetheless, the anomaly of meth use in their community is the optimal response by self-conscious country people to urbanites’ assumptions of ignorance and naivete among rural people.
