Time to clear out?

Adapted from Robert Whitcomb’s “Digital Diary,’’ in GoLocal24.com

Does New England have more in common with Ontario, Quebec and the Maritime Provinces than with, in particular, the Deep South? I’d say yes.

Which gets me to Colin Woodard’s new book, Nations Apart: How Clashing Regional Cultures Shattered America.

The book’s most interesting themes are how old and entrenched these cultural, political and economic differences are, and that they’re unlikely to be bridged.  Knowing the backgrounds of those who took over these regions from the Native Americans is crucial in understanding these “nations.’’  Think of New England’s Puritans, New York’s Dutch and Appalachia’s Scotch-Irish. Mr. Woodard eloquently discusses why the richest, and what you might call the most “civilized’’ and humane, parts of the U.S. do so well and Appalachia and the Deep South so poorly.

Maybe it’s time to get it over with and split up the country.