More specifically, Scots-Irish...whenever you hear about some
type shyt going down in the South, chances are they're involved
The Scots-Irish Vote - The Atlantic
"
The Scots-Irish were a herding people, while people from the north [of the U.S.] were English, German and Dutch farmers.
Herding people are tough guys all over the world, and they are that because they have to establish that you can't trifle with them, and if you don't do that then you feel like you're at risk for losing your entire wealth, which is your herd. This creates a culture of honor, and the Scots-Irish are very much a culture of honor, and they carried that with them from the Deep South to the Mountain South, and then out through the western plains."
According to Nisbett, the
Scots-Irish were a warlike people distrustful of a powerful central government, a result of the herder mentality as well as centuries of fighting, first against the English and Irish, then against Native Americans, then against the Yankees. As he points out, "The Scots-Irish are very much overrepresented in the military ... and you find them there because they're a fighting people."