The thing about Mastriano was that he was NEVER a good candidate. he got like 40% of the primary. Most republicans didn't even want his ass.

That mentality that you talk about is exactly small town PA. I'm from one of those towns, a place that has been dying for 100 years and is about the kick the real bucket in the next couple. 22% of my home county's population is over 65 years old which is a couple of points higher than most places. The kids, the smart ones leave, they go off to college or run off to get a job elsewhere that makes real money. They think the town is dying because of "those city folks just draining money"... but no, there is no real industry there... and the loud crazy folks rule the roost. Why the hell would any person stay in a town like that willingly.

I have an uncle that about 13 years ago was happy to get a job at a factory/warehouse type joint for like 13$/hr. There were plenty of jobs less than an hour away that were paying 20$ at the time. They were advertising hard because they needed people. I was making like 17$/hr doing a state job. He didn't want to leave home, even if it meant bettering him position.

I had a friend in high school that we lost touch after he lost his damned mind babbling on about Obama and the exact thing you said, "all those welfare blah blah blah".... he was a dude that had three kids and trying to support them as a pizza boy. He did eventually find at a warehouse until he "hurt his back", probably doing something dumb because safety rules are for commies or something like that and had been out of work for months to years, trying to get a disability check. His kids and his wife was on welfare because he wasn't able to provide for them... so when he started spouting that out, I told him that HE was a welfare queen and the citizens of the commonwealth are paying for HIS kids and that is was pretty shitty to think that other people don't deserve that.

Fuck that place, I ran and am happier for it.