Yeah, that's consistent with what I've experienced too. Though I almost wonder if its association with Dukes of Hazzard that really cemented it's place as an "identity" symbol for a certain group of southerners (lower/working class white male).

The run on US flags after 9/11 was something else. I remember when my mom begrudgingly bought a flag magnet 2 weeks after it all. Apparently the neighbors were giving her side-eye for having the only flagless pickup truck on the street.