Young in Amador: Guest Post by Nolan Davis

By Nolan Davis

They say everyone is entitled to their opinion.

About me:
19 years old, raised in Amador County, liberal...
almost socialist. My beliefs came from watching
the economy crumble and seeing
the rich get all the tax breaks.

However, when the opinion is against what is considered the norm the group, does the opinion really matter?

As a youth growing up in Amador County, I couldn’t help but notice that things were done a little differently here than everywhere else. Everyone seems to know everyone, and everyone seems to think similarly. However, this is not entirely a good thing. The overwhelming majority of people that live there seem to have a much more conservative approach to life, as opposed to the majority of California. Small town size, small town mentality.

As a younger child, this wouldn’t have made much of a difference on my everyday life. However, as I grew older, I tended to clash with viewpoints. Commonly, I would clash with what would be considered “redneck” culture. For example, I often found it unnecessary to talk about what firearm I owned (none, because I truly felt that it was not necessary to own a firearm in a small county). I bring this up because among the people that the current government was going to outlaw firearms. To me, this is laughable considering the Second Amendment is firmly in place. But still, the conservative culture would clash with me, saying “If that nigger president takes away my guns, I’m gonna hide mine.”
Those kinds of comments were common place my senior year of high school. I had a job where I worked a small concessions stand at a local park for a recreational softball league. The locals were of the same mold as the high school students I went to school with, so I knew the element I was in. One particular incident sticks out in my head. One of the locals ordered two hot dogs from me. He noticed I had my history book with me. Then, he turns to me, and says “You want a history tip? Listen to what Rush Limbaugh has to say about that Obamanation in the White House.” I laugh and say thanks, and then he walks away.

I know these are small examples of how Amador County thinks politically, but it really tells a strong tale. The majority of residents know little of what is going on in the news, unless it pertains to their daily life. The rare exception is when someone of importance is killed (Oh, they celebrated huge when bin Laden was killed, but they still refuse to admit that Obama played a role in it.) I moved out the second I could for a reason: you can’t think differently there. As long as the same mentality is kept in that county, the youth with any potential will exodus from there en masse.