The Lone Star State is not turning purple. Texas is a red state and that’s the way it’s staying. In fact, I suspect that Texas is turning more conservative, not less. Yes, there is a significant and growing Hispanic population. Yes, that demographic tends to vote Democrat. But there’s another demographic trend that doesn’t get much ink: red state refugees fleeing to Texas. You may say I’m a dreamer; anti-gun liberals will accompany the exodus and, eventually, carry the day. But I’m not the only one . . .
Out at the range today, a bearded OFWG Cowboy Action Shooter was adamant: Texas is drawing more and more “old-fashioned Americans” to its bosom. “Texas is like what America used to be,” he told me, after attributing the shooting genre’s success to its connection to traditional values of independence and resilience. “Blue states are driving right-thinking people out of their home towns. A lot of them are coming to settle in Texas.”
The anecdotal evidence is in. I’m constantly running into freshly minted Austinites who are also right-thinking right-leaning voters.
The guy who upgraded my alarm system left California two months ago to escape red tape and taxes. “Once I get on my feet I’m setting-up my own security company,” he said. “My wife and I saved $10k a year just by moving here.” A school Dad I met at movie night relocated his software company to Austin from the Big Apple (New York not Cupertino). Why? “Are you kidding?” he replied. “This is an incredibly business-friendly place.”
More to the point (of this website) both men are gun owners. Living in a gun-friendly city. Not once have I encountered any negativity towards what I do for a living, in a town with a reputation for hippie love-ins. Quite the opposite. When the woman working at the dry cleaners heard me talking about gun rights she had to chime in. “You’re talking my language,” she said. “I like this guy.”
Equally, the gun business is booming in Austin. Sure, America’s second largest state capital has kept new gun ranges out of the city (save for the ancient and not-at-all venerable Red’s). But Austin gun stores are doing land office business. And there’s plenty of firearms action outside Austin City limits; including plans for an upmarket members-only range.
Small training companies like Hex Tactical Resources (VP Rachea Pendley above) are springing-up to cater to the demand for the newly shortened Texas Concealed Handgun License (CHL) classes. At the same time, they’re finding paying customers for courses in low-light handgun engagement, intro to defensive carbine, combat shotgun and women-only classes.
I get the feeling Austin’s reaching critical mass: there’s a large number of gun-oriented entrepreneurs, plenty of seed capital (i.e. money) and a business-friendly environment. Could Austin could become the Silicon Valley of firearms? That’s probably wishful thinking from a blue state refugee. Then again, TrackingPoint; the fresh and funky firearms manufacturer that tapped into the local high-tech industry and the State’s passion for guns.
The Truth About Guns is here too. Me, specifically. Dan soon. And now that the weather’s turned hot (rather than roasting) and I know where to buy radicchio, I’m beginning to kick out the jams gunwise. I’ve got to say that picking-up a gun and shooting stuff has been a welcome break from writing about defending our right to pick-up a gun and shoot stuff.
There’s no doubt in my mind that our gun rights’ safety is directly proportional to the number of people who shoot guns recreationally. Once you’ve experienced that pleasure, whether you’re in New York or Texas, you don’t want to lose it. That’s a part of the gun rights debate you don’t hear often. Or, at the least, often enough.
When you see a “supermodel with a gun” picture, and you focus more on what kind of gun she has than the model herself.
I am curious, but why doesn’t Austin allow new gun ranges in the city?
Because the noise stunts the growth of the pot plants.
I bought my acreage in Texas, just north of San Antonio. Will start building soon and moving. From Illinois…
People get fed up with hard core blue states. Where gerrymandering and 3 or 4 decades of liberal control basically has everyone in the state thinking “This is the way it is… guns are bad, people who gripe about taxes are evil rich and ungodly greedy”…
I’ve had enough. Texas will leave me alone. That is all I ask.
I think Texas will most likely suffer the same fate as North Carolina, though it may take longer.
Texas has a problem with a growing Hispanic population (left leaning by default) and corporations relocating to escape the crippling taxes that their own left leaning politicians inflict upon them.. and bringing employees WITH them that will vote for politicians to do the exact same thing in their new home state.
The result is not unlike a disease. The healthy parts of the country will gradually be infiltrated and infected by refugees from places like Detroit, NYC, and California.
Not to be all doom and gloom though. There might be a shot at winning if Texans take control of the Public Schools and start using propaganda (much like our opponents already do) to influence people.
Unfortunately I think there are more liberals than there are conservatives. Even relocating gun enthusiasts and conservatives can’t change that.
Why is that man in the cowboy hat wearing pajama bottoms? Can he not afford regular pants?
LMFAO!
Texas sounds like a paradise, with steak and rifle ranges as far as the eye can see. Now if only it wasn’t blisteringly hot and sunny there.
On a different note, can anyone tell me the advantages of that women’s hand guard? I believe its a Troy.
It is a Troy alpha rail, but the part toward the front is a magpul AFG( angled fore grip) it’s an ergonomic middle ground between a standard forend and a vertical grip
I would love to move to Texas, but I want snow for Christmas (although I have been told I could take a trip to the mountains each winter for that). I was considering Colorado, but now they have a magazine size limitation. I love the countryside of upstate New York, but this is a horrible state for business and gun rights. Kentucky’s countryside looks nice. I have heard northern Texas has some nice countryside, but I am afraid of tornados.
Come to Arizona. If you can’t stand the heat in Phoenix, there is always Prescott and Flagstaff.
Ha the panhandle has snow, and like you said, tornadoes 😀
Come to Kentucky for the most part we’re friendly folk who leave each other alone and open carry doesn’t incite a rash of 911 calls and breathless hot and bothered news stories from a pretty girl on the TV
Videos? I don’t have time for videos!!! I’ve got too many guns to shoot, feed, and clean.
And how about that arrest of open carry in Austin a few weeks ago? Or, did you all forget about that.
Or Austin’s anti-gun Police Chief Acevedo. Or the lack of open carry (mentioned above). Or the adherence to Bush the Elder’s Gun Free School Zones Act (though there is an armed school marshall program now).
No question: there are better places for gun rights than Texas. But the culture is strong and supportive of gun rights and the laws aren’t anywhere near as bad as NJ, CA, NY, etc.
What about Vermont? I heard VT has the most liberal gun laws…in fact more liberal than TX according to Wikipedia.
I would have thought that the state with the most liberal gun laws is Alaska…
And having better laws than Texas is not really all that uncommon, even among blue states. Lack of open carry, and fairly expensive concealed carry licenses, drive down the score quite a bit.
Right … because officer safety is more important than citizen’s rights … the very rights that officers are supposed to be upholding.
When citizens have to give up their rights to the people who are supposedly protecting their rights, something stinks.
Robert you are correct sir (Ed McMahon voice). California has lost jobs to Texas. Here in Seattle Boeing is moving jobs to Red states like South Carolina. Love Texas.
Boeing is also moving its defense work to Oklahoma, and San ANtonio, and St. Louis. . . . . . low cost states vs. the jobs closing out of LA and Seattle areas. . . . .
The fun thing here is that, as jobs move, so do people…
So the anti-gun crowd’s tactics are to make fun of arming black folks and the disabled? Seriously???
Jimmy Kimmel did date Sarah “VAGINA” Silverman for several years, so I guess it makes sense that he do something moronic like this.
I’m kind of fond of Jeff Quinn on GunBlast. He’s a southpaw and has a pretty sweet beard.
So what other Rights should we deny the disabled?
I am deaf, should I be denied my right to vote because I can’t hear what the politicians are saying?
RF, you just told my story to the T. The wife and I moved to central TX this summer to escape CA’s cost of living/taxes/gun laws/et al. I get the sense that Texans are leery of people moving here because of those tech companies that brought a lot of liberal employees with them. But once they see the NRA card and realize that many reds are leaving places like CA, IL & NY to avoid silliness, they realize that people are bringing their money, politics and work ethic with them.
“There is a far greater chance of any of us being killed by a bullet in our home or neighborhood than there is being killed in a terrorist attack.” — Dan Gross
That is true if you are NOT armed.
It is about as far from the truth as you can get if you “home carry”.
As usual, the liberal solution is to make someone else do something to fix your problem. People like Gross recognize that they are incredibly vulnerable to armed criminals when they are not armed. So, rather than taking responsibility for their personal security and arming themselves, they expect everyone else to give up their arms in the asinine hope that it will somehow disarm criminals and eliminate their vulnerability.
NC reporting in.
Concealed carry has broad scope here. Permits are shall-issue. Open carry is legal. Ruger, Bushmaster, and others manufacture here.
Glad to hear Texas is on the uptick, but I’m stayin’ put for now.
Welcome again to the Republic. Texas born and bred here. Just up I-35 from you in the D/FW area. Did grad school down on 6th street.
Small business owner; I like the very much the states pro biz attitude.
But I do worry about the future with the blue state people/attitude like Wendy Davis and the Castro brothers from San Antonio trying to buy votes by giving away other peoples money like Comrade Obama. Look at your wonderful police chief as a good example of someone who thinks they know more than the people they serve. Then the next step will be “common sense gun regulations” you know “for the children”.
Please enjoy the hospitality, bar-b-cue, music scene and the pro 2A culture. I will apologize again for the heat July thru Sept.
RT
Your favorite time of day is 3:57, 4:58, 2:23, 5:56, or 5:00
The governors race in Texas will be one to pay attention too. That may be a turning point event.
Where can I get a “Keep Austin Armed” T-shirt?
Not all Democrats are created equal, so there might be another ray of hope for our largest buffer state.
I live in Kansas, and while our Democrats tend (like their less enlightened bretheren elsewhere) toward tax and spend rather than don’t tax but spend anyway, personal liberty, freedom and firearms are not a partisan issue here.
Hell, our house minority leader is from Lawrence and is vehemently pro-2A.
I’d hope that a significant percentage of those Lone Star blue dudes would bear more than a passing resemblance to the Eisenhoweresque variety hereabouts.
I wish you every good fortune, Texas; may you one day be as free as we Free Staters — or even more so.
I wouldn’t give skateboarders credit for any more intellect than it takes to inhale and exhale.
I understand they do inhale often.
I guess I’m confused. Why didn’t she give him a shot of the pepper spray–whether or not she pulled out her pistol? He certainly deserved it!
My Yorkie runs about unleashed anytime I’m outside and literally grew up in a park full of dogs and kids. He’s so well socialized that he actually teaches other dogs better manners just by example. He’s also physically incapable of inflicting anything like a serious injury on anyone much over 4 years old, and constitutionally incapable of hurting anyone in the first place. He’s just a very social, very friendly little dog with no hang ups.
I did once see a woman kick him down the last few of a flight of steps and became pretty heated. Given that he’s under 10 pounds and stands less than 10 inches tall, is well known to be friendly and submissive with all humans great and small, AND he was going down the stairs away from her when she kicked him it was clear that she had a vicious streak and he wasn’t the cause.
Sometimes its the dog, sometimes its the people, either can be at fault when they disagree. In her case she was called out by many onlookers who saw what she did and gave her a piece of their mind ( in my neighborhood and park everyone knows my dog by name and he’s well loved).
All that being said, I generally agree with leash laws, because some people are such poor dog owners, and so stupid, you could never trust their judgment on what they set loose. I have the dubious advantage of being the park warden, I get to enforce the leash law hypocritically if I so choose. However, with the animals I know I don’t do so, it’s not that hard to figure out which ones are socialized properly and which ones don’t belong in public.
Same old story from the NRA, send money, send money, send money…….
“You hope you don’t have to use it…but when you need it” this is pretty much the same justification our sheriff used in their acquisition of an MRAP up here in Jefferson county New York. These guys must be faxing each other talking points. But if it works for them, why doesn’t that same argument work as justification for my ownership of an AR with high capacity magazine. After all, I hope I don’t have to use it, but when you need it..
I can already see this thing sitting on its side in the ditch after the first attempt to plow a snow cover road. I can also see a deputy standing next to looking p!ssed cause his hot chocolate spilled all in his lap.
I grew up in California when it really WAS California; laid back, mind your own business, live and let live. Then, the NYC crowd, along with 10 million other east coasters moved here and voila! We have all of the taxes, nosiness, and top down bs we can stand. A lot of extreme northern and eastern Sierra Nevada is still very conservative. We are overwhelmed with San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, etc……I am beyond fed up with the taxes upon taxes, high cost of everything, and the immense government presence in every part of your life. I am looking for a job in Texas. Hopefully, my conservative mind set will be welcomed!
They should rent it out on weekends as a party bus, they’d make a killing. Prom night alone would pay for a year of upkeep.
1) I don’t care bout badly it shoots, I want one.
2) Guns like this, and the Glock 18/Mauser Broomhandle/HK VP70 were designed to fill a marginal role for tank crews, helicopter pilots, snipers, etc. who would/could not be carrying a select fire rifle into combat as their primary weapon. The machinepistol was made obsolete almost immediately once the 5.56 was adopted and heavily cut down (10.5-12 inch barrel) versions of select fire rifles were developed.
Next time, turn up your mic volume, Nick.
“It is meant for the protection of officers and civilians.”
Hey, Chief, they’re the same thing. You’re not a soldier, you’re a civilian just like the rest of us.
This is the real reason I bought a VP-70. If the USCM thinks it’s good enough for killin’ aliens, it’s good enough for me.
Paul53 , thanks for Shooting Frijoles —I am sure Diane Finestein will seek to ban it . Best laugh I ‘ve had all week . Stock up on ammo beans before homeland security requisitions 1.6 billion of them . Can’t wait for you to publish ballistic tables , one for recoil activated slides and especially one for gas .
Neat how quickly she learned how to be stable in that position in just a few shots. Each shot the movement of the barrel got less and less.