BOB BESTLER - ON THE LOOSE

Seriously, was anyone surprised to hear another well-placed Charlestonian put down our fair Grand Strand?

You shouldn't have been.

People from South Carolina's Holy City have been putting us down since the Creation.

The latest slur came from state Sen. John Kuhn of Charleston.

Speaking here last week to the Council on Coastal Futures, Kuhn stuck his tongue in his cheek - and his foot in his mouth - as he thanked the Grand Strand for "taking the tourists we don't want. ... You know what I mean."

Well, of course we know what he means. He's not talking about our 60 miles of exotic beachfront, our 123 lush golf courses or our stunningly beautiful Brookgreen Gardens. Here's what he's saying:

- Charleston has horses, Myrtle Beach has Harleys.

- Charleston has cruise ships, Myrtle Beach has a casino boat.

- Charleston has a historic slave market, Myrtle Beach has outlet stores.

- Charleston has culture, Myrtle Beach has, you know, crap.

So it goes.

We've heard it all before, of course, and not just from a no-name politician such as Kuhn.

Remember state Rep. Arthur Ravenel, a former U.S. congressman from the Charleston area?

A few years ago, redistricting forced him to run in a part of Horry County, and as he campaigned for votes, Ravenel described the differences between his hometown and ours.

Tourists, he said, come to Charleston to bask in its wonderful history; they come to Myrtle Beach for T-shirts.

Then, of course, there's Richard Cote, an author from Mount Pleasant.

Cote wrote a novel about Myrtle Beach called "The Redneck Riviera," in which he stereotyped the residents of Horry County as trailer trash.

Well, it's a free country, and even folks from the nation's most mannerly city are entitled to their cheap shots.

I happen to like Charleston and spend a lot of time there, but it is not exactly the center of the universe, as others have learned. Two examples:

- After about a decade in Charleston, celebrated restaurateur Louis Osteen, whose Louis's At Pawleys has been featured in national magazines, returned to the Grand Strand.

- After two years trying to make a go of it in Charleston, the Hootie & the Blowfish After the Masters Celebrity Pro-Am has moved to Barefoot Resort and the House of Blues.

Note to Sen. Kuhn: You know what I mean?