Bob Moser’s new book, Blue Dixie, offers a compelling case for Democrats not to give up just yet on the South. Before turning to the many merits and potential pitfalls of Bob’s book, let me say a few preliminary things to clarify the situation as it relates to him and his argument—and me and mine.

(Please welcome Mark Penn, author of Microtrends: The Small Forces Behind Tomorrow’s Big Changes, and Tom Schaller, author of Whistling Past Dixie in the comments — JH)

I must confess that I’m a sucker for books like Mark Penn’s and E. Kinney Zalesne’s Microtrends. Why? Because I love numbers, specifically demographic numbers.