This is one of the reasons I left Texas. Texas, on paper, is doing great, but as someone who lived their the bulk of my life, I've seen the strain the border issues have put on it, are continuing to put on it, and are slowly eroding the quality of life across the board in ways that can't be quantified or accounted for on graphs and papers (or, more accurately, no one ones to admit they do). If things continue to heat up along the border - and they will, as you pointed out - I have a bad feeling Texas will be ground zero for a lot of the bloodshed and violence, and it will seep into the heartland of the state and reach places that people previously thought were safe.
Well, to add on to your remark, I can take it a step further: the Texas is (I believe) the only state with it's own air force division of the national guard and, due to quirks in the state constitution, function slightly differently than those of other states, which could allow them certain military hardware, weaponry, and leadership that other states might not have, if they were mobilized in full. But, more importantly, Fort Hood is the biggest, or at least one of the biggest, army installations in the entire country, and San Antonio has several military bases for all armed forces branches around it, so, combined with a large population of civilian gun owners, Texas is basically armed to the teeth. What concerns me is that, even now, Fort Hood is rife with criminal activity that may or may not be cartel related (if you research mysterious deaths at Fort Hood, you will find I believe over 50 "inexplicable" or "unsolved" deaths of servicemen on the base over the past several years, which are rumored to be connected to drug and weapon trafficking operations), and the nearby city of Killeen... well, let's just say I've never heard a single person say anything nice about it, especially the people I know who've actually been stationed at Fort Hood. These are people who told me that they thought untoward, criminal activity was already present on the base, but, to that point, Texas has a very large latino population. If a small fraction of them are sympathetic to the cause of the cartels, or worse, uncooperative with state or military authorities, that could create a non-neglible amount of citizens that may flip sides or cause or enable trouble. Even those who live in hispanic communities that don't support the cartel could be strong-armed or threatened by them into aiding their cause by virtue of being close to them or their connections. This also brings up my biggest concern, which is that the cartel may not be able to get to soldiers in Fort Bliss or Fort Hood, but they could certainly target the families of soldiers who live in the surrounding communities, or even further afield across the country. The example I come back to would be a drone operator - they may be protected on base, but their family may not have that luxury. Their extended family certainly wouldn't. Would that drone operator be willing to fly a combat mission if they recieved a letter telling them that they either resign or their parents in Austin will suffer the consequences? Maybe that's a bit extreme, but similarly, what if the military was given a warning that a public school in San Antonio will be targeted if they drop a bomb on another Mexican town? Though very different in nature, I fear that the conflict could resemble that of the British in North Ireland against the IRA or an Italian "Years of Lead", and even places like Dallas or Houston, away from the border, could see daily car bombings or similar terroristic violence against soft targets if a legitimate "drug war" started in earnest. Obviously, I hope this would never come to pass, but it's a very real possibility.
FYI - every state has an Air National Guard component. Not all of them are assigned combat aircraft, though.
It's pretty sobering to think military installations could turn into battlefields themselves. Military bases are often thought of as safe havens, because for the most part, they are. It doesn't sound like Forts Bliss and Hood are any kind of safe haven, though.
I am honestly surprised Macgregor was not dishonorably discharged for telling the truth like that.
This is one of the reasons I left Texas. Texas, on paper, is doing great, but as someone who lived their the bulk of my life, I've seen the strain the border issues have put on it, are continuing to put on it, and are slowly eroding the quality of life across the board in ways that can't be quantified or accounted for on graphs and papers (or, more accurately, no one ones to admit they do). If things continue to heat up along the border - and they will, as you pointed out - I have a bad feeling Texas will be ground zero for a lot of the bloodshed and violence, and it will seep into the heartland of the state and reach places that people previously thought were safe.
Post updated with your remarks and my reaction.
Well, to add on to your remark, I can take it a step further: the Texas is (I believe) the only state with it's own air force division of the national guard and, due to quirks in the state constitution, function slightly differently than those of other states, which could allow them certain military hardware, weaponry, and leadership that other states might not have, if they were mobilized in full. But, more importantly, Fort Hood is the biggest, or at least one of the biggest, army installations in the entire country, and San Antonio has several military bases for all armed forces branches around it, so, combined with a large population of civilian gun owners, Texas is basically armed to the teeth. What concerns me is that, even now, Fort Hood is rife with criminal activity that may or may not be cartel related (if you research mysterious deaths at Fort Hood, you will find I believe over 50 "inexplicable" or "unsolved" deaths of servicemen on the base over the past several years, which are rumored to be connected to drug and weapon trafficking operations), and the nearby city of Killeen... well, let's just say I've never heard a single person say anything nice about it, especially the people I know who've actually been stationed at Fort Hood. These are people who told me that they thought untoward, criminal activity was already present on the base, but, to that point, Texas has a very large latino population. If a small fraction of them are sympathetic to the cause of the cartels, or worse, uncooperative with state or military authorities, that could create a non-neglible amount of citizens that may flip sides or cause or enable trouble. Even those who live in hispanic communities that don't support the cartel could be strong-armed or threatened by them into aiding their cause by virtue of being close to them or their connections. This also brings up my biggest concern, which is that the cartel may not be able to get to soldiers in Fort Bliss or Fort Hood, but they could certainly target the families of soldiers who live in the surrounding communities, or even further afield across the country. The example I come back to would be a drone operator - they may be protected on base, but their family may not have that luxury. Their extended family certainly wouldn't. Would that drone operator be willing to fly a combat mission if they recieved a letter telling them that they either resign or their parents in Austin will suffer the consequences? Maybe that's a bit extreme, but similarly, what if the military was given a warning that a public school in San Antonio will be targeted if they drop a bomb on another Mexican town? Though very different in nature, I fear that the conflict could resemble that of the British in North Ireland against the IRA or an Italian "Years of Lead", and even places like Dallas or Houston, away from the border, could see daily car bombings or similar terroristic violence against soft targets if a legitimate "drug war" started in earnest. Obviously, I hope this would never come to pass, but it's a very real possibility.
FYI - every state has an Air National Guard component. Not all of them are assigned combat aircraft, though.
It's pretty sobering to think military installations could turn into battlefields themselves. Military bases are often thought of as safe havens, because for the most part, they are. It doesn't sound like Forts Bliss and Hood are any kind of safe haven, though.