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There’s a quiet debate that we’ve been having in rural America. It will never make the national news, and it won't affect most of the population, but it's leaving small towns looking for answers.
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Immigration.
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But not the kind you’re thinking about…
... stick with me.
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— Hillbilly (@JamesHu27192912) November 23, 2025

There’s a quiet debate that we’ve been having in rural America. It will never make the national news, and it won't affect most of the population, but it's leaving small towns looking for answers.
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Immigration.
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But not the kind you’re thinking about…
... stick with me.
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See, we’re quick to talk about immigrants from other countries.
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And truth be told, even when I don’t agree with the tone some folks take, I usually agree with the premise:

If you’re going to come to America,
learn the culture,
understand the language,
honor the heritage,
respect the values,
revere the flag,
and become an American.
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Its confusing to see people run from a broken nation just to demand America become the nation they ran from.
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It hurts to see people wave a foreign flag that was worth leaving while taking advantage of the blessings found under this new one.
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For generations, immigrants came here understanding the unspoken sacred rule:

Becoming American meant letting something old die away so something greater could be born.
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But here’s the undercurrent nobody wants to talk about…
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Americans are doing the exact same thing to each other as you read this post.
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Follow me.
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Over the past number of years, there has been a mass migration, not from overseas, but from the big cities into the country.
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People wanted space.
Quiet.
Kind neighbors.
A place where the air felt cleaner,
where the world felt slower.
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And rural communities, generous as they always are, opened their arms wide.
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These new immigrants moved into rural communities and talked about how much they loved the sound of driving on gravel roads,
looking up into the sky and seeing stars,
and how they enjoyed the feeling of soft soil under their feet.
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But now? The murmurs are happening…
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Now some of these same newcomers are annoyed ….
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“The grocery store is too far.”
“There’s nothing for the kids to do.”
“We need more amenities, more activities, more, more, more.”
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They left one world… then came here and started demanding the old world be rebuilt around them.
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Tell me how that’s any different from an immigrant protesting America while waving the flag of the country he fled?
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You moved here because it was different.
You loved the charm.
You loved the peace.
You loved the simplicity.
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But now that you live here, you have forgotten why you left "there".
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You want a small town to behave like a big city while still pretending to be a small town?
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Impossible.
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So if you’re a transplant to a rural community, here’s the truth, spoken with love, and maybe a little annoyance:

Learn the language of the land.
Honor the history.
Respect the sacrifices of the people who built it long before you arrived.
And assimilate.
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Growth is good when it’s wholesome.
Everyone should be "pro wholesome growth".
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But forced growth?
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That’s how you kill the very spirit you came looking for.
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Forced growth is how roots snaps instead of growing deeper.
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So I encourage you,
Breathe the country air.
Embrace the slower pace.
Appreciate the trade-offs.
And let the community grow at the pace it was meant to.
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Because if you liked the city life so much…
… you should’ve stayed in the city.