>The gun thing in 'red states' is about -lifestyle-.
It's about manliness too. John Lacny is right to emphasize race, but god and sex matter a lot too.
I don't know my populist history well enough, but I suspect that Tom Frank is idealizing a bit. Lots of American populists have resented the "parasites" below as well as the parasites above - both the rich and poor threaten the virtuous producer. There's more continuity between classic populism and today's right-wing kind than a lot of people would like to admit.
Doug