I live in Texas and COMPLETELY AGREE WITH THIS ARTICLE

Having spent a decade there and only having one instance that I could call a beautiful day, I agree that the weather in the Houston area is sub-optimal.
I have lived in high humidity warm climate most of my life by choice and I would not choose Houston based on climate.

TN is another no income tax alternative, but TN is land locked, so not a likely secession candidate. Does have some hills to run for though and generally friendly residents, in my experience.
I'd be very tempted to move to any state that seceeded and established a constitution similar to the Articles of Confederation with a Bill of Rights and sovereignty to the individual. I'd fight to defend it if necessary. Life, fortune, and sacred honor.

I was born in Wisconsin, raised in Colorado, served in the US Military for 21 years and currently live in New Mexico on the Texas border. If Texas ever decides to leave, which I know they cannot but that doesn't mean they won't try, I will move 8 miles east and become a Texan. I am an American, but like Reagan said about the democratic party, I feel like that, I did not leave the country, they left me, specifically, the government. The government is not the one I served under. It went crazy and the current administration has just acerbated the problem. The current administration did not start it but they advanced it and accelerated the downfall. The divider-in-chief has caused all sorts of problems by shooting off his mouth before all the facts were known and that seems to be a problem with society in general. The sensation circus called the mainstream media has helped by sensationalizing things and giving credence to a group that based itself on a falsehood. The "Hands up, don't shoot" was proven false and the whole movement is based on that. I feel for my country but that doesn't mean that it is in the right at this time. I will protect the country but that doesn't mean I support the government.

Shane sounds a lot like his namesake.
Let's hope he's right and the political blandness of recent history is put aside as the true spirit of what it is to be an American and a Texan comes to the fore. Personally, I'm fed-up with the crap and would like nothing better than to see a tough, no excuses attitude put forth, no matter what stupid restrictions are put on them from Washington. It is about time that someone stood up to the Obama Milktoasts and said that they won't obey that crap.
Go, Mr. Cory, go.

One government!
'One ring to rule them all'
One people, one God, one religion, one prophet,
but 100 blooming flowers and 100 genders.
(Like the above, this comment may not be serious).

Like the MSM, the author took it upon himself to rant, before he knew all of the facts (or even some of the facts). Unless I'm mistaken, it was proven that there was only ONE shooter.

People should take the time to get their facts straight, before they start making historical connections to incidents they hear about (yes, I know, I'm guilty of this, as well).

As a former Texan, I don't like this bogus "Black Lives Matter" Obama concoction. He thought he would get away with it, then had to retract his attempt at blaming cops. Good for Texas! Blacks have to stop letting politicians lead them around by the nose by selling false victimhood, or giving them welfare in place of freedom a job gives them. Black parents have to stop letting government schools teach their kids they are victims and distancing them from grandma's values. They have to stop undereducating them. The smartest girl in my Latin IV class in the 60s, was a black girl with excellent grammar. She was really nice, never sorry for herself, and fun. Today, they hide under hoodies even in hot restaurants, to what, go back to the follow the leader of tribal life? Thank you Obama for destroying a race you pretend to care about. The FBI gave us Ebonics, not the Blacks. They are a manipulated race for sure, but so too is the white race becoming. Feel hate, see your elected politicians, who did more to create your situation than some white cop. Want your black lives to matter, think for yourselves instead of following the leader into a hell created by politicians or hate groups fronted by rich white guys like Soros trying to destroy the country which is the best in the world...

By your own comment, Mike is a big government statist supporter who would rather have a concentrated powerful dictatorship by the self-crowned elite than trust the people to control their own lives. Mike supports a statist government that ignores the constitutional limits placed upon government and uses force to take away the rights guaranteed to the people.
It appears that you will get what you want for a while. Then there will be a war because the elite and their fearful, naive, looting supporters can not suppress individual liberty.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhIzB...

You forgot to mention that the rest of Texas considers people who live in Austin as raving liberals.

Texas embodies the spirit and thoughts of freedom. They (the state government) have shown that they are willing to speak out against, if not outright defy, the hacks in Washington D.C. and their "one size fits all" way of regulating us out of existence.

Remember, Texas is considered to be part of the "fly-over" by the pseudo-intellectuals of the East and West coasts.

Just my .02 cents.

FreedomForAll wrote: "...if Texans had the love for liberty of Sam Houston's soldiers (and possibly the author) then Texas would have seceeded again..." Sam Houston is proof that if you seceded, you do not get liberty, just a smaller thug to loot the public.

"The South" was not an entity. Some people seized the governments of some southern states and declared themselves the rulers. Again, here in Texas, they arrested the great Sam Houston because he was opposed to secession, as very many people were. The secessionists just made more noise.

Ideally, all of Earth will have one government. I recommend that you read Ayn Rand's essay on "Balkanization." We have seen this time and again: when the central government fails, the little secessors go to war against each other.

Sometimes the little tyrants co-operate when they can share in the shearing of the sheep.

"The State of Louisiana does not allow an exemption from the Louisiana Motor Fuel tax on automotive gasoline or undyed diesel fuel exported from Louisiana to another state unless the position holder (seller) at the Louisiana terminal collected the destination state’s motor fuel tax. Also, Louisiana requires terminal position holders to collect Mississippi’s tax on aviation gasoline, dyed diesel and jet fuel. This means that Mississippi tax should be collected on gasoline, aviation gasoline, undyed diesel fuel, dyed diesel fuel and jet fuel imported into Mississippi from Louisiana." -- https://www.dor.ms.gov/Business/Docum...

... 50 little governments...

I do live in Florida. The lack of an income tax is definitely a major benefit. Because of the lack of an income tax and the reasonable housing prices in my part of Florida, it would take an extra $30-40 K per year in salary for me to have an equivalent lifestyle up north. This week the highs are around 95 degrees. That is about as high as it ever gets here. Usually the highs are around 90-92 for about four months, but it gets over 96 only one year out of ten.

I think Texas has terrible weather, and that extreme heat and humidity detract from proper judgment.

As a native Texan who left there in 1976, I have long thought that, if things got bad enough in America, Texas would likely secede, and I would join them. Each year, however, Texas gets a little lower on my list of places to escape to.

I have no interest in Sam Houston's acts for or against Texas or Texans. Nor did I make any statement in support of them. So make your comments to the author, not to me.

I could not disagree with you more on secession.
Secession is only prevented by force of a central government that has greatly exceeded the limited powers allowed in the constitution. Lincoln and the GOP enslaved the nation and pretended to free the black slaves. There was no compact between the people and the union. The people were superior to the servant government and without indiividual consent to the contrary, every person still is superior to the federal government. The south was conquered by force, all their rights were taken by force, and they have never been regained.
Dictatorial extra-constitutional acts by central power are unacceptable regardless of the level of government that imposes them. Free markets solve problems. Government makes problems worse.

I am not sure what you think the author's point of view is. Your own suggestions are wide of the mark from my point of view.

Secession is not an option for any American state, nor should it be. What started as a War Between the States, ended as a compact between all the people of the Union and the federal government. The federal union is not a compact among states. States are simply prefectures or provinces: they have nice local cultures and histories, but all are subsumed by the federal union. That radical shift of 1865 still took almost 100 years to play out. Along the way, Freedom of Religion was forced on the state governments. Before 1935, states allowed police the power to torture people for confessions. Then, the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments were forced on the states. When you read about political news and court cases over local gun control laws, like New York City and Washington DC, realize that the issue is whether the Federal Second Amendment is incorporated to the states.

While I am indeed proud to be a "Texan serving Texans" in the state guard, as a member of the Maritime Regiment, I am fully cognizant of Sam Houston's complex personality. I cannot say whether he was bipolar, or suffered an obsessive disorder, or was attention deficit, or a small man caught in great events, or something more or something else. I do know that Sam Houston cheated the soldiers of Texas and reneged on his promises to the sailors of Texas. Houston said that maritime people are shiftless and untrustworthy. He was angry when the Texas Navy forced his hand in the continuing war with Mexico. Houston wanted Texas to appear weak and in need of annexation to the USA, while the Texas Navy continued to win battles. So don't talk to a member of the Texas State Guard Maritime Regiment about Sam Houston's love of Texas. Jesus said to love yourself first, and Sam Houston was apparently a good Christian.

Soldiers and sailors aside, Sam Houston demonetized an entire series of state paper money, thereby cheating the people of Texas. The guy is not someone you want to endorse without reservation.

I like Texas. I really love living in Austin. But first and foremost, I am an American.

You were just reacting emotionally to the first reports. The police claimed two shooters, then three. Now we have one. The context of the crime scene being the demonstration underscored your points. That part was easy to understand, but not easy to agree with.

That was the reason why I caution that you step back and let things unfold. There's a lot to come out of this. Just being able to identify it as a "tragedy" versus a "horror" is hard enough.

The wider problem - those other tragedies and horrors - wrap all the chatter here. As I understand the news, in one case, the victim was wrestling with police. In another, he was sitting in his car, reaching for his wallet. Simple labels are not going to serve here.

I meant no harm; divisiveness seems to lead to war. -- j
.

I think the author of the article is out of touch with the current attitudes of Texans. He is a minority in texas in a way that he apparently doesn't recognize.
Are "Texans" less politically correct than "NYers" ? Yes, but if Texans had the love for liberty of Sam Houston's soldiers (and possibly the author) then Texas would have seceeded again, and this time would have made it stick.

The comments posted by johnpe were hasty; and many claims were groundless.

The shooter was from Texas. He was a veteran.