In a Jersey Shore State of Mind

My Ocean County brothers and sisters, you know my pain. I recently met a friend of a friend from Pennsylvania. Upon introduction, she asked where I was from. I naturally responded, "The Jersey Shore". Her response, "yeah Snooki!!"

Ugh.

Granted, I grew up with, "you're from Jersey? Do you glow in the dark?" so it's more of a lateral move than a downgrade, but still. We at the Shore should be known for more than just our nuclear inlets (thanks to the country's oldest operating nuclear power plant) and Snooki & The Situation. We have some of the best beaches in the country, some of the best restaurants in the state, and fantastic entertainment venues. But of course people outside of the Garden State only focus on the thieves (notice that the link there doesn't go to a specific story, it goes to a whole section on corruption in NJ) and the "tans".

Possibly the most maddening part is the fact that most of the cast members aren't even from here! In fact Deena (New Egypt, hardly the shore) and Sammi (Hazlet) are the only true Jersey girls.

But here's the question, for all the shots, hookups, and fights, is MTV and "Jersey Shore" actually helping us in the long run? How many times in the past two years have you been to Seaside and seen people flocking to the house from the show just to take a picture? Most of those people are "Bennys" (if you're a local, you know what I mean when I say that. We can let everyone else wonder) and are spending their money at our hotels, restaurants, and entertainment venues.

So what do you think?