Will Thomas has written an interesting piece on Jim Webb's take on charges that Appalachians are racist. Jim Webb Speaks Out on Racism. Broadly speaking his Scots/Irish roots are the same, and he explains what it is, in his opinion, that "Appalachian" voters resent. As an on average poor section of the population they have gotten the short end of the stick on affirmative action, even though they too are disadvantaged.

My growing sensitivity over disparagements of my Appalachian (Scots-Irish) background may be making me a bit more sensitive to insults to other groups—to an extent I had not realized. And, perhaps, too much so. Perhaps it is due to my anger at the assumption that West Virginians (inbred hillbillies, doncha know) voted overwhelmingly for Clinton because of inherent racism—and not because they (like people in, say, New York or California) actually made thoughtful choices between candidates.