An Answer: The Matter with Kansas Can Be Understood at Woolworth's

This statement is worth considering...:

"Perhaps one day the critics of Middle America will begin to recognize the humanity they share with people they so quickly label as culturally backwards. Perhaps one day they might even begin to listen to them, and to learn from them, the way I did so many years ago, while eavesdropping on the waitresses at Woolworth's."

...but unlikely to be thought on either coast. That's okay, we'll be just fine here in the ol' midwest.