A disease common among residents of rural areas, causing the victim to become a hick.(see hick for reference)
The cause is not yet known, but many believe that the symptoms themselves will lead to a development of full hickism.
Symptoms include but are not limited to: living on / owning a farm, listening to
country music, having a strange
attraction to tractors, lawnmowers, old trucks, etc., owning an old dog (such as a basset hound), chewing on hay, wearing 'cowboy' hats, attending / participating in rodeos, and drinking cheaper beer.
As of right now, there is no known cure. Some speculate that playing
classic rock and offering beter beer will help cure some of the symptoms, but this has yet to be proven as a reliable remedy.