this post was submitted on 27 Sep 2023
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Not just that, Texans will tell you it’s by far the BEST place in the world. Of course, they e typically not tried seriously to live or understand anywhere else. I have cousin who was looking for an archaeology job and refused to work in another state. “I don’t WANT to work outsiddea Texas!” But then, the other ones he looked at were Oklahoma, Louisiana and Alabama…
It's very easy to get stuck here. Most people here recognize we're burning, freezing, and drowning but there are those who says "but both sides," those who admit to getting abused and then vote for their abusers, and then those of us trying as hard as we can to create change while hoping we can at least build a better future for the next generations.
I've lived outside of Texas, but my family, my friends, and all my best job opportunities are here. Although living in the northeast and seeing/hearing the overt displays of racism opened my eyes to how racism I was overlooking in Texas on a systemic level. We used to get tourists who wanted to see the novelty of Texas, now we're seeing more tourists who just want to be the least racist crazy in a room for a bit. It's really dragging our whole state down and it's self-inflicted. I'm sorry that the examples of Texans you know have such shitty personalities, but we're not ALL running around saying "don't mess with Texas.™️" Many of us see the problems and would prefer help from the Gavin Newsoms of the world who are investigating that little piss-baby Greg Abbott, rather than being derided by the commenters of the internet who blame the victims for being stuck in a hole that's simply too damn hard to claw our way out of without winning the fucking lottery.
We're not stupid. We're scared.
too scared. i very recently spent five years in austin and i learned that the 1) liberal texans are only liberal compared to other texans 2) they readily and easily shrug their shoulders in accepting defeat from institutions that they already know are racist, homophobic, sexist, and classicist and do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING else and 3) will fight and report you to the authorities from those same institutions if you try to do ANYTHING else; my favorite examples are of californians disabling driver-less taxis with traffic cones and new-mexicans pelting short term rentals with eggs and bologna, meanwhile liberal austinites will literally call the cops on you if do either of these (ask me how i know).
Austin is a town founded by conservatives and filled with a bunch of limp-wristed hipsters who have overpopulated the area around 35. The conservatives still own the city from the outskirts and downtown has been sold to big corporations. The only reason Austin calls itself "liberal" is to attract artists so that the city could sell tickets to anyone who fancied themselves as edgy in Texas. I think there truly was a spirit of Austin, but now it's a lot of delusional misguided corporate shills getting high on their own supply of bullshit. Sure, the food is nice and the music is good, but there is nothing that's more ironic than Austin's slogan to "keep Austin weird" since Austin really is now painfully predictable and boring. Austin is a dried out plain-ass donut that once sat near sprinkles and now thinks it's a chocolate-glazed and that it can't get sprinkles because the rest of the state won't let it. Austin is where liberal ideals go to die.
I don't know what the answer is to fix Texas, but it starts with removing some of the worst ghouls to exist from our politics and then kicking the corporations out of Austin. I'm proud of you for being too extreme for Austin and I'm glad you got out before the city convinced you that it was just too underground and counterculture before eating you. If Austin had more people like you, it might be less of a farce and an actual cool place.
But Austin isn't an example of the true fear held by Texans. That's just a bunch of temporary inhabitants who want to cosplay as liberals. I know they vote blue, butt as you'd probably say, "it's only Texas blue."
Sure, there are some good things about Texas, plus it's as large as 4 regular states. Over half of Texans are politically fine. My relatives there (including the aforementioned cousin) agree with me about most social and economic issues. I've met some very cool people in Texas, but of course, some questionable people. Unfortunately even my friends from Austin seem somewhat behind the times socially compared to people I know from Colorado or Washington. For instance, when I visited Austin around 2015 people in their 20s were saying f** and making gay jokes like it was 1985. But anyway, I understand what it's like for people to have social circles, family and familiarity in a region, and not be able or ready to move. Unfortunately the politicians they elect are routinely some of the most objectionable people on the national stage.