[rblatz]

Uh, if you were so smart you'd understand that this is in response to a school in Texas badly handling a smart kid doing smart kid things. Has any high level official in Texas apologized, or said anything decrying this student's treatment? If not, then it seems like Texas is standing behind this.

[arcseco]

The comment was a sarcastic joke and did not further the discussion. I like that HN is a community that tries to promote insightful comments and not jokes to the top of the comment page.

[amyjess]

Nah, it's just Irving that's a shithole. Most of the cities around it are fine, including Dallas proper.

Last year, an article about the least LGBT-friendly places in the US was published [0]. Irving landed at #2. That same article mentioned that Dallas proper was one of the most LGBT-friendly places in the US. It's not much of a stretch to say that this applies not just to LGBT people but to all kinds of people that the crazy right-wing fundamentalists dislike, including smart people and Muslims. From my personal observation having lived in Dallas and Richardson all my life, I can vouch for this. It's widely acknowledged here that Dallas is a very progressive city and that Irving is a shithole.

Besides, most of our tech industry is concentrated in Richardson [1]. Between UTD, TI, and the Telecom Corridor, Richardson is a pretty damn good place to be if you're smart.

[0] http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2014/11/22/247-...

[1] Richardson is a suburb to the northeast of Dallas in the same way that Irving is a suburb to the northwest of Dallas, so it's a pretty apt comparison. Actually, Dallas is kind of shaped like Godzilla: on a map of city limits, Richardson and Irving look like they sit on Dallas's shoulders (though Irving is kinds leaning off the edge).

[ashwinaj]

> It's not much of a stretch to say that this applies not just to LGBT people but to all kinds of people that the crazy right-wing fundamentalists dislike, including smart people and Muslims. From my personal observation having lived in Dallas and Richardson all my life, I can vouch for this

My general observation as an outsider in Texas (Dallas 3 years and Austin 4 years) is way off from yours. It's not a question about right wing hatred, that's just hyperbole. There is an attitude in Texas where if "you aren't one of us", you don't belong here (in a subtle way). That in my opinion is undeniable. I bet if this incident was at Highland park, the result would be the same.

[rblatz]

I live in Arizona, so I understand living in an area that is nationally famous for being a bit backwards. Parts of Texas are absolutely amazing, just like here in Arizona. But we both are paying the price for our states' having a poor reputation.

[MrZongle2]

I don't recall any Texan politicians decrying cannibalism today, either. I guess we know what that means, right?

Or we could assume for a moment that not every event requires a politician's commentary.

I didn't need to see Obama or Zuck's responses before I had determined (for myself! Imagine!) that the school's actions were absurd, overblown, and counter-productive.

Perhaps you should do some research as to the response of some Texans to this travesty (e.g. http://motherboard.vice.com/read/dallas-hackers-are-already-... ) before you resort to the tired "Texas means backward and stupid" meme.

[niccaluim]

Nor have they decried ten-foot-tall lizard men, but then there aren't any national stories about ten-foot-tall lizard men in Texas right now, are there? The President commented on this, fer chrissakes. I think a few remarks from Texas politicians are warranted.

[MrZongle2]

No, action from Texas educators is warranted: specifically, actions that acknowledge that what happened to this 14-year-old is incompatible with a positive learning environment and a commitment to education and actions to ensure it doesn't happen again.

A pox on the politicians. They'll spin this eight ways to Sunday and nothing will be accomplished.

[braythwayt]

> not every event requires a politician's commentary.

No, not every event. Just the ones that give the impression that there is an ongoing systemic abuse of the very rights and principles that America is founded on.

The fact that you brush this off as unimportant is exactly the problem here.

[MrZongle2]

"The fact that you brush this off as unimportant is exactly the problem here."

And how does "absurd, overblown, and counter-productive" (my words) translate into "unimportant"?

The words of politicians are generally unimportant, as they are easy to come by and seldom backed by action. That was my point. Must I too engage in today's Two Minutes' Hate to pacify the Outrage Patrol?