the bay area is a perfect example, with the berkely-san Francisco nexus in particular...it's beautiful here, and there are lots of "liberal" people,and the atmosphere is probably more open - in some neighborhoods - than in most other spots in the nation...but...
the holier than thou, elitist, hipper and more lettered than thou attitudes - even when heartfelt and not meant to be negative - are as offputting as more familiar kinds of class bigotry...
just returned from a week in arizona - goldwater country? -, and brief reading of papers in flagstaff, sedona, phoenix and tucscon found very similar letters to editors , if maybe a teeny bit less presumptious in tone and attitude, than are available here at home...many think bush an idiot, it seems, despite not having newyorkers or bayareans to explain why, and they will also vote for anyone but bush, even kerry...and of course, many think bush an absolute jewel, which happens here, too...and arizona has a public financing law in place, which is beyond wnat either coast has been able to come up with, yet, and i know it's easier in a smaller environment, but it still means they are way ahead of our more urban, diverse, coastal states in an obvious, democratically leaning direction...
the only way this dumb schmuck murderer bush can win is for the dumber democrats to screw up again, and they can...both with their candidate and their strategy...especially with an attitude, taken up by many who should know better, that they know better than "them", the great unwashed middle america of coastal belief systems...
i'm privileged to live on the coast, and to come from new york, but the assholes i've encountered, by percentage, here, there, and in between, are about the same...
fs