Masshole

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Masshole is a portmanteau of the words Massachusetts and asshole, used to express a derogatory view of residents of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, USA. The term is primarily used by residents of other Northeastern states, in reference to what they perceive as an obnoxious, elitist attitude and aggressive, dangerous driving habits of the state's leaders and residents.

A symptom of friction often found when rural and urban cultures meet, the term's use has increased with the migration of upper-middle-class families from eastern Massachusetts to districts with less crowding, lower home prices, and lower taxes, either as a primary residence or a vacation home (examples are New Hampshire, Vermont, most of southern Maine, especially the tourist areas of Kennebunk and Kennebunkport, and the rural areas of Rhode Island). The term is a direct reference to the perceived rudeness, snobbishness, and high-pressure lifestyle of the migrants and current residents of Massachusetts. It indirectly refers to upward pressures on real estate prices, due to their higher average income and net worth.

In the state of Connecticut, between Massachusetts and New York, the term is used derogatively by non Red Sox fans to describe either Red Sox fans themselves or people from Massachusetts. In central Connecticut, midway between New York City and Boston, an intense rivalry exists between NY sports fans and Boston sports fans. Many New York City sports fans, as well as fans of other teams not in the region, view Red Sox fans as boisterous, cocky, arrogant, and very poorly mannered. Due to central Connecticut's somewhat close proximity to western Massachusetts and the Springfield area, many residents of Massachusetts travel to into the region to shop and dine. Like people to the north in New England who are annoyed by people from eastern Massachusetts, natives of central Connecticut often perceive residents of western Massachusetts who flood their malls and shopping centers as being pushy, obnoxious, and having bad driving habits. In Connecticut, one may be labeled a Masshole for being a Boston "Superfan" (e.g. having Red Sox/Patriots shirt, jacket, backpack, sandals, hat, luggage, bumper sticker, anti-New York attire/bumper sticker). Some anti-Massachusetts terms coined by disenchanted residents of Connecticut include: Trash-achuetts, Low-class-achusetts, Ass-achusetts, and No-class-achusetts. Much of this anti-Massachusetts culture has arisen due to Connecticut residents being tired of getting "cut-off" in traffic by Bay State residents, having commericial areas "taken over," and being called various offensive, ill-conceived slurs due to their preference of New York City area sports teams.

The word is also often used by non-native, upwardly-mobile residents of Massachusetts to stigmatize life-long residents having a lower perceived social status. This usage is rather like use of the term "townies," and is tied to gentrification and yuppieness.

"Masshole" is sometimes used as a boastful local symbol, especially when talking about the drinking and/or driving habits of Massachusetts residents. Massachusetts residents who congregate outside of Massachusetts will often refer to themselves as Massholes in jest. This is especially prevalent among college students in neighboring states of Massachusetts.

In the United States Merchant Marine, "Masshole" is frequently used to refer to graduates of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, regardless of whether or not they are from Massachusetts.

"Masshole" is a trademark registered with the US Patent & Trademark Office by Mass Industries, Inc. ^[1] ^[2]

1 Driving habits
2 See also
3 External links
4 References

[edit] Driving habits

Massachusetts residents, used to the congested and confusing road network in the Boston area, are said to be bad at obeying traffic laws. A 2006 auto insurance study found Massachusetts tied at #48 with New Jersey in correctly answering a quiz about the rules of the road, with only Washington, D.C. and Rhode Island having worse scores.^[3] However, Massachusetts has the lowest fatal accident rate in the nation.^[4]