Gas prices hitting South hard

As if things weren't bad enough already in the South (poor education, high rates of poverty and hunger, high unemployment, etc).

Now comes the news that the high gas prices (which are tough anyway) are hurting people in poor rural parts of America -- which means a lot of the South -- harder than other areas. (Makes sense -- people with lower incomes pay the same amount for gas as rich folks and when the price goes up, poor people's incomes can't stretch as much so they're paying a higher percentage of disposable income for gas).

Anyway, today's issue of The New York Times highlights the problem and offers some interesting detail. On the map above (click image), the tan areas are where people are most affected by $4 per gallon gas.