Billy, what is the education level of most of the people where you live? It just seems to me that it would be much easier to fool an illiterate and ignorant population than one that is generally well-educated. Some of the things you've mentioned seem to be unique to your area, though I could be wrong about that.
Again, I am open to correction, but don't the educated get puffed up with pride and won't receive the truth? I know that fools will go with whatever is told to them, but I think this is all just a matter of people who are not wanting to change their hearts rather than educated or uneducated.