> Any explanations for why they locate where they do?
>
> Why are St. Louis and Springfield home to more than KC?
Because St. Louis and Springfield are more "southern" than Kansas City. Remember that Missouri was a border state with strong confederate leanings. Kansas has had it's hate groups too, such as the historical Klan around Tonganoxie and other places.
Springfield is also closer to the "remote" hills of southern Missouri and northern Arkansas. Keep in mind that lots of meth is brewed in Missouri because many parts of the state are "remote" while also being close to major interstate highways. It's hard to explain.
> Why the high number of Neo-Nazi groups in middle and upper
> Michigan?
More rural and economically depressed?
> Why more in Cincinnati than Indianapolis which has a Klan monument in
> the center of town?
Cincinnati has long been a hotbed of the Klan?
> Why are Kentucky and Indiana lower than the states that surround
> them? Same for New Mexico.
All that New Age stuff in New Mexico has an effect of mellowing everybody out. :-)
> Obviously population has something to do with it but there are obviously
> other factors are at work. Is there a common thread that has been
> identified? This might go some way towards helping communities avoid
> the formation of influx of such groups? I didn't see any information like
> this on the SPLC site.
There's one obvious thing about the geography of that map: the confederate south continues to have an influence. It's almost like the maps of where the death penalty is used--the south. Of course, look at California. Where the hate groups exist could be tied to population size and historical politics in the area.
Chuck