I am a native Texan woman, who has spent all 24 of her years here in the home land. I enjoy the history and novelty of the state I call home, but I'll be the first to admit that some of the fun facts people use to brag about Texas are a good ol' fashion, Texas sized, heap of bullcrap (long horn crap if you want to get technical). Just to name a few:
1. Texas cannot choose to leave the United States.
Really?? Really. Texas can secede, but that doesn't mean what many think it does. Read it people: Texas cannot decide to not be a part of the United States. Nope. Nope. I'll give you a moment to go peel the "secede" sticker off of your bumper.
“But like, what about the Texas Constitution….”. Listen, I get it. I too was once cocky about how Texas is the last frontier, and we could damn well break up with the United States any time America wasn’t being chill. But then I took a Texas history class at a local TEXAS community college and learned that this fun fact is as false as it gets.
If you don't believe me, take it up with The Texas Tribune who has tried to set the record straight on this matter for years:
“Historical and legal precedents make it clear that Texas could not pull off a Texit — at least not legally. The Republic of Texas did not join the United States until 1845, when Congress approved the Joint Resolution for Annexing Texas to the United States. This resolution, which stipulated that Texas could, in the future, choose to divide itself into "New States of convenient size not exceeding four in number, in addition to said State of Texas" is often a cause of confusion about the state’s ability to secede. But the language of the resolution is clear: Texas can split itself into five new states. It says nothing of splitting apart from the United States.”
So there you have it. The Joint Resolution for Annexing Texas to the US gives Texas the right to divide its massive landmass into up to four regions. But when it comes to ditching its American flagship, Texas is legally stuck it it's marriage to the United States.
2)Texas is the most patriotic state.
I’ve heard this a lot from Texans and non-Texans alike, and in a variety of different ways. I admire the spirit of Texas patriots, but it’s time to be honest with ourselves as Texans and Americans: When it comes to a citizen's patriotic duties, voting is the bare minimum and Texans aren't doing well.
The Texas Tribune reported that:
“Follow[ing] a dismal presidential primary season— Texas ranked eighth-to-last in the nation for voter turnout. But while the number of Texans voting in the general election grew this year, it wasn't enough to keep up with a state growing as fast as Texas. This year's turnout rate dropped slightly from 46.1 percent in 2008 to 42.6 percent in 2016.”
Eight-to-last. Yikes. Exemplified, if the US is Nascar and Texas was a driver, Texas wouldn't have even qualified for the Daytona 500 (general election) which only accepts the top 40 drivers (Top 40 states for voter turnout). What's the saying, "if you ain't first...". You can probably finish that quote without my help.
You can make an argument that voter turnout for the general election is too low across the United States (and don’t even get me started on voter turnout for mid-term and local elections). No matter your argument, part of loving your state is being honest about what could make it better. So get out and vote Texans (and not just once every four years).
3)The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Okay guys… The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is NOT a true story. I don’t know when it caught on that this story is based on factual events that happened in Austin,Texas, but I’m here to debunk that myth. The story is based loosely on a person’s life, but this person lived in and committed his crimes in Wisconsin. So rest assured, you're no more likely to get killed by a masked, chainsaw toting, murderer in Texas than you are anywhere else.
4) It's illegal to pick bluebonnets, Texas' State Flower.
Nah. Not true. It seems to be a right of passage that all Texans have at some point had their picture taken standing or squatting in the famous fields of bluebonnets that line Texas highways thanks to former first lady, Lady Bird Johnson. But I’ve always taken it as truth that it’s illegal to pick the flowers. It’s illegal to hunt the state bird, so I can see why people think the flower is protected too. It is illegal to enter private property to pick bluebonnets without permission. But on the side of public highways, you can pick bluebonnets as long as your heart desires to, or until you get bit by a rattlesnake (whichever comes first)
5)The Texas Flag is the only flag that can fly level with the US Flag.
Similar to seceding, I myself have bragged about this. Listen, I think it’s definitely baller status that Texas was basically a live action Clint Eastwood movie during the Mexican-American War. Baller-status aside though, the historical recognition that Texas was once an independent republic is not the reason the Texas Flag can fly level with the United States flag. In fact, all state flags can fly level with the US flag:
“as long as other positional guidelines of the flag code are observed, any single state flag may be flown at the same height as the U.S. national flag (although the state flag may optionally be flown at a lower height as a show of deference to the national flag). Nothing in the federal flag code specifies exceptions for the Texas flag or any other state flag, nor does Texas' own flag code create or acknowledge any such exceptions.”-Snopes
