
What Makes Texas Texas - benbreen
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/08/us/what-makes-texas-texas.html
======
hourislate
There is something about this place. Hard to explain. You just fall in love
and never want to leave.

I came as a young man and stayed for a long time. Had to leave for 10 years
but I finally made it back. This place has only been good to me. The people,
the climate, the opportunities.

God Bless this Great State. It is the last Bastion of Truth and Freedom.....

~~~
factotum
Life-long Texan here, and I couldn't disagree more. I grew up in the rural
pandhandle area and lived in Amarillo, Austin and Houston. Now, I'm living on
the road in an RV, driving across the nation, and I've found many places more
beautiful, friendly and accepting than Texas ever was. Texan exceptionalism is
a bizarre and subjective phenomenon that I'll never understand.

~~~
scarecrowbob
I also grew up in the panhandle. The state isn't so bad, but it's also not
great.

I don't understand the exceptionalism, either. There are a lot of really nice
places in the world, and frankly big chunks of Texas (anything north of San
Angelo and west of Abilene) are pretty depressing on social, cultural, and
ecological fronts.

------
pm90
There is a view of Texas collectively as a largely backward state filled with
trigger-happy cowboys and whatnot. That might be true. However, there is much
more to the state than just that.

I don't mean to generalize here; anecdotally, Texans on an individual level
are friendly, conservative in their beliefs yet tolerant of others. The
friendliness is what really surprised me when I first landed here. It really
is charming and makes meeting new people incredibly easy and fun.

I must add that as a young man, its a great state to be in. Love Texan women:
beautiful, charming and very real.

~~~
Cookingboy
I spent my highschool and college years in Texas, and I couldn't agree more.
Austin is a beautiful city with a beautiful culture, and even more "boring"
places such as Dallas and Houston are filled with super friendly and down to
earth people.

I now live in Silicon Valley, and I find that there is much more social
tension around here. I've been hated on as a young techie, as a Chinese
immigrant, as someone who moved in from another state and doesn't "understand"
Bay Area culture. People here are also the opposite of "down to earth".

I've never experienced any of the above when I lived in Texas, yet the first
time I went to a NBA game here a few years ago someone shouted at me "Go home
China boy, Yao Ming isn't playing today".

Weather in Texas is atrocious though.

~~~
krapp
>Weather in Texas is atrocious though.

Crickets. Crickets are their own season. People don't even know.

------
Spooky23
The former sovereignty of Texas is a big factor. The State owned the vacant
land, unlike most western states, where the Federal government did.

You have the whole politics of ranchers and resource barons that creates an
unusual political dynamic, just like other "interesting" states like NY or
California.

------
csours
As a Texan I love this shirt [1] both ironically and unironically.

1\. [http://smbc.myshopify.com/products/texas-
shirt](http://smbc.myshopify.com/products/texas-shirt)

~~~
lowglow
As a former Texan (not sure if that's possible), I can say I'd wear this
around San Francisco.

~~~
csours
I think the term would be non-resident Texan.

------
sithadmin
>But Texas is not under attack. It is merely changing as America changes with
it.

Attack is too strong a term, but he massive spike in non-Texans immigrating to
cities like Austin (for tech/creative jobs) and Houston (for energy and
healthcare jobs) is having a noticeable impact on everything from housing
prices to public culture.

~~~
stcredzero
I found Houston to be quite cosmopolitan. I'd call it "working-person's
cosmopolitan." There is a tolerance there borne of abundance and tradition,
which has become its own common-culture sort of thing. People in Houston
almost never get high and mighty or self-righteous on you for anything. On the
downsides: Get mistaken for a teenager on a prom date, and you can be refused
service in a fancy restaurant. Wait staff will "sir" and "ma'am" you. You can
encounter some testosterone. Sometimes, this will even come from the cops.

At the very least, there is an expectation you will be polite, if you stay
away from the rougher spots. The ethos there is live and let live, for the
most part. Here in the Bay Area? It's definitely not "Live and Let Live." Many
here feel free to splat you in the face with their judgement.

EDIT: Also, to debunk a stereotype, I know from a friend who worked with the
DA and also as a private defense attorney, that Houston juries are not blindly
Pro-Gun. There are certain things you do not do, certain things you do not
have, or a Houston jury will put you away because you are a "gun nut." From
another source, I know of a retired military DOD contractor who lost his job
and his house because a Houston jury looked askance at his shooting a burglar
in the butt as the burglar was climbing through the window of his house. Why?
Because the burglar at the moment of the shooting, was leaving. Even in
Houston, property isn't more important than human life.

~~~
to3m
See, perhaps:
[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/05/11/the-s...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/05/11/the-
secret-to-disagreeing-with-people-from-20-different-countries-in-one-
chart/?postshare=2221463077607576&tid=ss_tw) \- and maybe the US blob should
be more like a large circle.

~~~
stcredzero
Also, Koreans can flip to the extreme opposite corner sometimes.

------
SwellJoe
I moved to Texas when I was 19, from South Carolina (if ever a state was more
aggressively regressive than Texas, it would be South Carolina), and I lived
in Houston and Austin for a lot of the past couple decades. I travel full-
time, currently, but I still call myself a Texan; and not just for tax
purposes. There's a lot to love about the state, or at least the major cities.

I'm regularly embarrassed by the governor and the state legislature,
particularly in recent years as anti-woman/anti-immigrant sentiment has shaped
the political landscape in toxic ways. But, I love so many things about the
place. I love the food trucks (which are unmatched anywhere in the world), the
fantastic Mexican and Asian food in Houston and Dallas and Austin (easily
competitive with the best California and New York have to offer on those
fronts, and you don't have to dress up or spend a fortune to enjoy it), the
visible and unique counter-culture in all of the major cities (weirdos in
Austin or the Montrose are unlike weirdos anywhere else), the music scene that
often seems completely independent of the world outside of Texas, the summer-
year-round weather (even the hot days are fine with me, if it means winter
will be short and mild), and the diversity of its best cities (though Austin
is a bit too white and suburban for comfort, and getting whiter and more
suburban over time, unfortunately).

I like to think I'm above jingoism, but I love Texas. I travel full-time these
days, because there's a lot to love about all sorts of places in the US
(currently in Eugene, OR, as I've never really explored the Pacific Northwest,
and summer is a great time to do so). But, I'm pretty sure I'll circle back to
Texas eventually, as I always do.

But, don't move to Austin, y'all. You'll hate it. It's just one big traffic
jam, and the restaurants and bars are all too crowded now.

~~~
askafriend
I can't tell if you're being sarcastic about that list line about Austin.

~~~
factotum
When I lived in Austin in 2006-2008, the traffic was atrocious, and it's only
gotten worse in most areas. That city has a particularly profound
infrastructure expansion problem, and the high growth has only exacerbated it.

------
CapitalistCartr
Of all the states, I could see Texas leaving the Union. It gets talked about
in any number of states, but the only one I could realistically see doing it
is them. On friendly terms, too.

------
pklausler
They left the eerily influential Texas textbook commission and troll-friendly
patent courts off the list of things that make Texas distinctive.

------
tacos
This article reads like the goofy cliches New Yorkers spout after spending
their first week in Los Angeles.

So here's mine:

Texas is enormous and odd and has no state tax and yet you can't drive 20
miles without seeing another massive multi-billion dollar highway construction
project that seems about 100 feet taller than it needs to be.

Dallas is not Austin is not Houston.

Austin in the context of Texas pretty much makes no sense. Might as well be
its own state within a state. One that needs really, really strict DUI laws --
not dopey politicians picking fights with Uber. Day drunk, no tech to be seen,
and basically a cultural vacuum given what it should be given its massive
population and history.

Dallas makes little sense either. Amazing travel hub. $59 flights to/from
anywhere. Want a $19 rental car? They got 'em. And they'll email you the night
before to see if you want to upgrade to a minivan for $23. Why aren't other
hub cities like this? Dunno. I must underestimate the scale. Easy to do there.

But Texas is on the path to becoming unmanageable just as California did
before it. Whether this comes from growth, or growth compounded by cultural
"diversity" tearing its internals apart remains to be seen. I'm not
optimistic. Too big, too broken, and too growing. People are opinionated and
divisive. And a little bit nasty. And armed. When you hear about "doing what's
right for America" and "compromise" \-- Texas is the exact place that would
benefit the most from it. Yet Texans don't seem interested in starting the
conversation.

But this article barely scratches the surface of what I saw. Texas is a
surprising, complex beast. And I only spent about four days there.

Also, consider investing all your retirement savings in Torchy's Tacos.

~~~
goldmouth
>This article reads like the goofy cliches New Yorkers spout after spending
their first week in Los Angeles.

> I only spent about four days there.

Ok... what would we call your strong opinions?

~~~
tacos
"Strong opinions" works for me. Are those still allowed here?

------
dmh2000
i was born and grew up in Texas, moved away 25 years ago and still have a
couple of Texas quirks. I simply cannot live in a state that has an income
tax, and I still worship the Alamo.

~~~
arbuge
The lack of an income tax is great although one should note that property
taxes in TX are considerably higher than average. Around 2.5%+ or so.

To optimize one's tax situation in Texas, the ideal situation is to live in a
cheap condo/house and make a high income.

~~~
davidw
> To optimize one's tax situation in Texas, the ideal situation is to live in
> a cheap condo/house and make a high income.

That's not entirely a bad thing as it's environmentally friendly. It probably
means that a higher portion of taxes are paid by the relatively less well-off,
but if that suits them, so be it.

~~~
mikeyouse
Yep.. Texas is frequently last or near-last on the progressiveness of their
state tax scheme. The poor pay much more tax in Texas than they would in most
other states due to the reliance on sales and property taxes for revenue.

Having done business there as well, it seems like a sport to aggressively
minimize property taxes by claiming 'ag' exemptions for having some cows graze
your property a few days per week. Obviously used by the rich more than the
poor.

It's clearly their prerogative how to run their state but it left a bad
feeling in my mouth.

------
rootedbox
the stars at night are big and bright....

~~~
Cshelton
If IRC, that song is actually one of the most recognizable songs around the
world....everyone knows about the claps!

~~~
jessaustin
What song is that? I grew up two states away from Texas, and worked in Dallas
for some time, and the only thing I can come up with is Chuck Norris's "Eyes
of a Ranger". I'm pretty sure that's not what you mean.

~~~
Cshelton
See the other comments below. Deep in the Heart of Texas. Once you hear it
though, you'll instantly recognize it. YouTube it.

------
Avshalom
Unrelenting jingoism for the 13 years of mandatory schooling, that's what
makes Texas Texas.

~~~
csours
Well, that's part of it. There's also the unrelenting jingoism for 5 years of
growing up before going to school, and the fact that Texas is fucking awesome.

~~~
Avshalom
I mean it's not terrible if you really like small animals, tiny hills, tiny
rivers, tiny lakes, short mountains and trees that are barely shrubs; even the
weather is pretty half assed.

But then I guess not all of us can grow up in places that have some scale to
them.

~~~
csours
Trolling is a nart.

------
beatpanda
It's easy to see why Texans think their way of life is under attack -- you
literally can't even begin to count how many guns Obama has taken away from
Americans

------
thomasmarriott
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVpx6JN1A4U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVpx6JN1A4U)

~~~
thomasmarriott
[https://vimeo.com/86440068](https://vimeo.com/86440068)

------
MisterBastahrd
Conservatives as a whole are easy people to sell to. They have a fundamental
revulsion to change, regardless of how positive it is, and their ears will
perk up whenever they hear a point of view which matches their own prejudices.
Texas, therefore, is an easy sell to Texans who tend to skew conservative.
Just spend a few days in the state and listen to television and radio ads.
They don't say "Texas." They say "Teckshussssssssssssh."

The culture of the state is by and large indistinguishable from that of
Alabama or Mississippi with the exception of cowboy hats, large belt buckles,
and a predisposition for beef over other superior forms of barbecue.

I've lived there. I'm moving back there. But virtually my entire group of
friends who lived or still live there didn't originate from there... and
people who have come from other areas of the country or world tend to snicker
or roll their eyes when a Texan starts bragging about that particular culture.

~~~
nicobn
Liberals as a whole are easy people to sell to. They have a fundamental
revulsion to status quo, regardless of how positive it is, and their ears will
perk up whenever they hear a point of view which matches their own prejudices.
California, therefore, is an easy sell to Californians who tend to skew
liberal. Just spend a few days in the state and listen to television and radio
ads. They don't say "California." They say "Cali."

~~~
lwhalen
Nah brah, it's "Cali... brah!"

The old joke is, "Conservatives love humans but hate humanity. Liberals love
humanity but hate humans."

