RAT People of Kentucky

PastorMarko

PastorMarko

Joined
Oct 3, 2009
Messages
514
We are planning a trip to Kentucky, hopefully in November if not, in March for sure. Planning on moving to near Manchester, Kentucky to open a church and bible school there.

Can you local guys please tell me a little more about that area?

Thanks everybody :)
 
You'll be East of the Daniel Boone national forest which is officially Eastern Ky. Famous/Notorious for it's Appalachian heritage. I'm sure the politics in the region are very interesting and I believe the Sheriff and Coroner are the most prestigious positions. The closest decent sized town is London. While I don't know if I would like to live in the area, I LOVE IT. Beautiful landscape and you're very close to the Red River George one of my favorite places on earth. Also check out Cumberland falls, Pine Mountain, Cumberland Gap, Natural Bridge, Rockcastle River, Big South Fork, the list goes on and on. Eastern Ky. can sometimes get a bad rap but it's like no other place on earth IMHO.
Stay away from the Oxycontin!
I forgot to mention, You will be able to experience Kentucky Wildcat Basketball. A religion in itself.
 
LOL, yes in some areas sports is the "local religion" :)

Thanks so much for your post.

Where we live right now is small, only 450 people, nice mountain area as well, but I KNOW that it will nicer to where we are going :).

I am pretty active here, locally. We are helping the local chamber of commerce here. I am pretty good friends with our local small town police chief and the other police officer here and do translator work for them from time to time for free.

Hope to get involved in the area we are moving too as well, and hoping also to meet all the RAT people in the area as well.
 
PastorMarko said:
We are planning a trip to Kentucky, hopefully in November if not, in March for sure. Planning on moving to near Manchester, Kentucky to open a church and bible school there.

Can you local guys please tell me a little more about that area?

Thanks everybody :)
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You aren't far from London (which is an urban type of place), the good thing is, most of Manchester and its surrounding area lies in the hills. So you've got year-round free hiking, camping and general woodsbumming. Not to mention free food if you know wild edibles (and brother, we got some wild edibles you wouldn't believe...nom-nom-nom).

London has a massive indoor flea market and it usually has really good stuff (MILSURP...HOO-RAH!!)

Good hunting, good fishing.

I'm about a couple hrs from there and have made many trips through there.

However, some things you need to know about this part of Kentucky:

It's not like most states. It's not even like other parts of the state. It's backward. Outsiders are looked at with suspicion sometimes and it takes a little bit for people to start talking to you (call it Mountainfolk Mentality..after a few years here...you'll get it too). You being a preacher will help people ease up to you.

We don't have a massive crime rate, and it's relatively safe and you can definitely protect you and yours if you have to. However, we do have a slight prescription pill abuse problem (we like to call them "pillbillies"). And if you do go hiking, be careful and don't walk into somebody's Marijuana patch (I've seen it happen before during hiking and hunting), if you do though, just about-face and go back the way you came quietly. 99.9% of the time you'll never even see one, but sometimes they pop up in the damndest places.

Speak to people if you see them out. ALWAYS. Or else you'll get the monicker of "quare" (our variation of the word "queer"). Especially if they go to your church.

My advice to you: The weekend your church is open have a free dinner open to the community. Nothing says: "we're good people and we're happy to be here in Kentucky" to us like free fried chicken, chicken and dumplings, cornbread, etc...

Ignore the stereotypes that most people use, especially the "purty mouff" one. Most people here severely....SEVERELY frown on that type of stuff.

Sports in certain areas IS a religion, because a lot people here like to live vicariously through their children. And a lot of kids see it as the one thing they're good at, and a possible way out (which ends up being a pipe dream, more often than not).

Lessee...that's about all I can come up with off the top of my head...
 
Thank you so much for your post :)

I really look foward to getting out there, been in prayer a lot about it.
I really feel, when we get there, that for once in my life I am where I should be, where God wants me to be.
I don't plan on leaving the mountains once I get there, just want to buy a small piece of land; a few acres to be able to plant our own food on,
raise chickens, some goats, be near a small river so we can fish and have an additional water source as drilling a well will be expensive.
We don't have tons of cash, but God has provided for us and I know He will provide because I know it is His Will for us to be there.
If we could find a piece of land with a small "hunters cabin" on it already that would be even better.

The plan is to build our own small log cabin, in others words we will be DEBT FREE,
no land or house payment. Planning on paying the taxes ahead for a few years as well.
 
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PastorMarko said:
Thank you so much for your post :)

I really look foward to getting out there, been in prayer a lot about it.
I really feel, when we get there, that for once in my life I am where I should be, where God wants me to be.
I don't plan on leaving the mountains once I get there, just want to buy a small piece of land; a few acres to be able to plant our own food on,
raise chickens, some goats, be near a small river so we can fish and have an additional water source as drilling a well will be expensive.
We don't have tons of cash, but God has provided for us and I know He will provide because I know it is His Will for us to be there.
If we could find a piece of land with a small "hunters cabin" on it already that would be even better.

The plan is to build our own small log cabin, in others words we will be DEBT FREE,
no land or house payment. Planning on paying the taxes ahead for a few years as well.
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Good plan.
Especially these days.
That kind of land isn't hard to find here. A friend of mine hired out a portable saw mill, cut his own pine (it was on his property) and built a 100k house for right around 50k. And we got plenty of pine trees. We don't have a lot of Birch trees (so if you're a bushcrafter who depends on White/Paper Birch for anything...you're screwed).

If you like the woods and wilderness living skills you'll love it here. For a man who knows how to live off the land, SHTF would just be another period of camping for someone here. There's material everywhere for everything you'd ever need...as long as you know how to make it.

Don't move too close to a river here though...big floods aren't very often, but they DO happen.

If you do move around a river, buy yourself a river pole and enjoy the catfish.

I'm not as ratty as some folks--all I own is an Izula and an old RAT7 (which doesn't even count)...but, I am between two knives for a graduation gift to myself: RC5 and Tops Armageddon...I'll probably go with the RC5...just because it would suit me better (and that way I can buy me a Rat ESEE tee shirt, too).

Anyhow...let me be the first to say: Welcome to Kentucky. You'll love it here.
 
PastorMarko said:
Thank you so much for your post :)

I really look foward to getting out there, been in prayer a lot about it.
I really feel, when we get there, that for once in my life I am where I should be, where God wants me to be.
Click to expand...

If you feel that God is calling you to that area, you're going to have to take on the prescription drug problem head on and not deny the destruction it's having in lives around you. Many times God puts us in positions that are uncomfortable for us but will provide the means to overcome.
And yes, from you're description of where you live now and how you want to live, you'll love Kentucky. Just don't tell to many people or the place will catch on.
 
Yes, people have to be careful about that.

We have friends that built a home WAY away from everyone in a National Forrest, so far out they have to go up the road to get their mail.

They are well prepared, they have a BEAUTIFUL view, right on the river, large house, sleeping room for guest, HUGE workshop ,etc. etc.

BUT right across the river is a State Campground. SOooooooo when things get bad, and you know they will; everyone and their cousin is going to think, "hey, I know this place in the middle of no where we can go to that has water, woods and food sources".

The bad part is there will probably 300 people (not exagerating) that will think that and show up there at the camp ground and depending on how desperate they are, they just might cross the river to take supplies, not a good place to be after all :(.
 
I have been in many different areas that had different "strong holds", different principalities in charge of the area.

ANYONE can pray and fast unitl they are blue in the face and NOTHING is going to change. CHANGE will happen when "the people" that are there begin to change and give their lives AND LIVE THEIR LIVES for God! And if you are called to that area GOD has to provide the anointing to get things going there. NOTHING moves without prayer though, so prayer is VERY important, as is fasting, but in the end, if the PEOPLE don't change, there will never be change.

I have had to learn that the hard way, more than once, LOL.

I am sure you guys remember reading about Jesus not being able to do any major miracles in a town because no one believed, He did heal a few but the anointing was hindered by the people.
 
Maybe it truly is your calling to take on the "pillbillies" if the good Lord has put it so strongly upon your heart that this is where you're supposed to go. Everything happens for a reason.

My prayers go out for your protection and guidance and so that you may accomplish whatever God puts before you.

Sounds like a great area that I'd love to live in but not sure of how the wife would feel about it.
 
Thank You, you have no idea how much your prayers mean to me, they are greatly appreciated. And yes, the greatest prayer of all is for God's Will to be done in ANY situation. :)
 
Tops Armageddon is a good sized knife, been to their website a few times.

Congrats on your graduation, I know what that is like, I have been studying for a long, long....... time; finally got my Masters in Practical Ministry this June 2009; and I still have a ton of studying and life application to do, LOL.
 
Just watched a show on KET about Sheriff Mann from Lee county who got busted by the FBI in 1990 along with a few other deputies etc. for growing and trafficking large amounts of Pot. His successor was also busted for the same thing only on an international scale in 1994. Amazing. I guess he thought he was slicker than the previous Sheriff.
 
Is there really a Harlan in Eastern KY?? it's mentioned in a couple songs I like.
I tried looking it up on Mapquest once but it didn't come up.....
 
rayban said:
Is there really a Harlan in Eastern KY?? it's mentioned in a couple songs I like.
I tried looking it up on Mapquest once but it didn't come up.....
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Yes, there is the city of Harlan and it comes up on Mapquest, you just have to zoom in. It's not very big.
 
I want to reiterate something that's already been said - you're going into an area that is very wary - sometimes dangerously so - of strangers. Being a man-of-the-cloth will definitely help, but definitely get out into the community and meet as many folks as possible as quickly as possible. It really is a unique region - those people can be the most loyal friends you'll ever meet or the most intense enemies; the most hard-working, or the laziest live-off-the-government-dole; dirt poor or filthy rich. It's a region of extremes with not much "in-between", if that makes any sense.

Sadly, it's long been an economically-depressed area, so they suffer from the usual "brain-drain" typical of such regions, as the younger population strives to get out in search of opportunity. I wish you the best and say "thank you", because people down there need all the help they can get these days.
 
Stormstaff said:
Maybe it truly is your calling to take on the "pillbillies" if the good Lord has put it so strongly upon your heart that this is where you're supposed to go. Everything happens for a reason.

My prayers go out for your protection and guidance and so that you may accomplish whatever God puts before you.

Sounds like a great area that I'd love to live in but not sure of how the wife would feel about it.
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The label "Pillbillies" and other stereotypes that have been exaggerated over the years are a combination of judgmental stupidity, our countries inevitable drug problem, and (more than likely) the movie Deliverance (which btw was actually filmed in Georgia).

I was born and raised in Eastern Ky, where growing up in a traditionally modest but well-established (not to mention beautiful) town thankfully provided me with a strong culture based on family values and common sense, and I plan to return after law school, so my future children can value the same captivating experience.

The fact that Oxycontin ("Hillbilly Heroin") has poisoned our society can be attributed to Purdue Pharma's obsessive greed, lack of moral values, and their accessive promotion (in NC,SC,KY,TN,VA,WV,+OH) of the drug without warning consumers of its highly addictive properties.
The rest of America had seen the effects of heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, etc, so the new and available drug that had swept Eastern Ky became popular worldwide and further deformated our reputation.

I didn't mean to rant and rave, but I just HATE the "Pillbilly" stigma and didn't want it to affect anyone's decision to visit or inhabit such an extraordinary region.

BTW! The Rambo series of knives will always be some of the most (if not the most) popoular knives in any movies.
The blade in Predator was sweet, but didn't get enough screen time.
The Relentless created / TOPS produced "M4X Punisher" used in the new Punisher movie is a wicked design and a great feeling knife. (even if the movie was just "ok")
And the knife used in The Hunted (W/ Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Torro), which is produced by TOPS (Tracker) and RedScorpion6 (Raven WSK), is by far my favorite movie knife, and I would EDC my Raven WSK for the rest of my days if it didn't scare the hell out of everyone.

Thanks,

-Hunt
 
HuntBomb said:
The label "Pillbillies" and other stereotypes that have been exaggerated over the years are a combination of judgmental stupidity, our countries inevitable drug problem, and (more than likely) the movie Deliverance (which btw was actually filmed in Georgia).

I was born and raised in Eastern Ky, where growing up in a traditionally modest but well-established (not to mention beautiful) town thankfully provided me with a strong culture based on family values and common sense, and I plan to return after law school, so my future children can value the same captivating experience.

The fact that Oxycontin ("Hillbilly Heroin") has poisoned our society can be attributed to Purdue Pharma's obsessive greed, lack of moral values, and their accessive promotion (in NC,SC,KY,TN,VA,WV,+OH) of the drug without warning consumers of its highly addictive properties.
The rest of America had seen the effects of heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, etc, so the new and available drug that had swept Eastern Ky became popular worldwide and further deformated our reputation.

I didn't mean to rant and rave, but I just HATE the "Pillbilly" stigma and didn't want it to affect anyone's decision to visit or inhabit such an extraordinary region.

BTW! The Rambo series of knives will always be some of the most (if not the most) popoular knives in any movies.
The blade in Predator was sweet, but didn't get enough screen time.
The Relentless created / TOPS produced "M4X Punisher" used in the new Punisher movie is a wicked design and a great feeling knife. (even if the movie was just "ok")
And the knife used in The Hunted (W/ Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Torro), which is produced by TOPS (Tracker) and RedScorpion6 (Raven WSK), is by far my favorite movie knife, and I would EDC my Raven WSK for the rest of my days if it didn't scare the hell out of everyone.

Thanks,

-Hunt
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I'm sorry Hunt. I didn't mean to offend you or anyone else from that area. I was just using the term that someone else had used. Please know that I honestly meant no harm to the area by using that term.
 
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