OK, I just jumped into this thread... I have not read the entire thread at all... it was just this comment I am addressing. I just returned from Fort Worth where I was raised... I still have family there and go back from time to time to visit.

One big item of talk was regarding home break-ins and why you should have a gun. I thought this was quite interesting. There was an article in the local paper about a home invasion and how the home owner wrestled the shotgun from the intruder and managed to shoot him. There were other articles in the paper about other home invasions. Apparently this sort of thing happens often enough so that Texans are paranoid... and many carry guns.

Now not to turn this into a gun discussion, but I couldn't help but wonder if that gun toting mentality was perhaps the reason so many guns are involved in crimes there.

I also speculated that air conditioning played a part. The climate is such that everyone keeps their houses closed up, with blinds drawn and the AC on high... that means you are not likely to hear or see traffic on the streets or someone breaking into the neighbor's house. I couldn't help but wonder if that "isolation" contributed to the potential for home invasions.

The last aspect is isolation... distances between homes, or between towns can be quite great in Texas... it is a big state. The corner store may be a mile away. That real isolation can lead to a situation where a stranger sees an advantage in being able to "do no good" without witnesses.

So there could be several reasons for "Texas Paranoia..." and indeed there was a certain sense of "I'm gonna protect mine" that seemed common place. Whether this is justified or not, I really don't know.