Big, Hot, Cheap, and Right What America Can Learn from the Strange Genius of Texas, by Erica Grieder, breaks Texas down into its basic components in order to explain to non-Texans what Texas really is. Grieder’s book begins with an explanation of the Texas Miracle, which was a series of “happy coincidences” that brought Texas many jobs and boosted its economy. After that, Grieder describes the Texas Model, which is how we run our state. As Governor Rick Perry put it, the Texas Model is a four-part “recipe,” low taxes, low regulation, tort reform, and “don’t spend all the money.” The next topics she discusses are the Texas revolution and Texas annexation. Texas gained independence from Mexico and soon after joined the
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When it first became a state, land and cattle were a large portion of the economy, but when Pattillo Higgins and Anthony Lucas found oil, oil became what outsiders associate the state with. Texas’s government takes up the next portion of her book. When Texas was established, Texans wanted very little to do with the government. Because of this, the Texas legislature only meets one-hundred and forty days every two years. Texas also went through quite a few constitutions and finally landed on one that greatly limits the government. The political party of Texas has also been changing. Texas’ political party changed from Democrat to Republican, and is now starting to change from Republican to Democrat. Grieder then talks about how Texas is in the twenty-first century. It has kept a lot of things from its past like its love for guns and its limited government, but it also might see some changes by 2040 in school funding and minimum wage. Texas and America are also a lot like DNA. They have so much internal pressure that they warp around each other, but they still have a strong …show more content…
Many of the chapters at least twenty notes and most of the ones that had at least twenty had even more. Even if you do not read the notes or bibliography, she mentions many of the sources along the way so that you can instantly see where she is getting her information. When Grieder is talking about the good Texas does, she obviously uses a positive tone, but even when she is talking about the bad times in Texas history, Grieder remains positive and even gives insights on the future. She also makes sure to give both sides of the situation equal respect, and gives the opposite side’s opinion on issues. Grieder uses a wide range of issues in the book to make her point. For example, when she was talking about how Texans are more likely to trust the private sector than the public sector, she used the explosion of the SS Grandcamp, a French ship carrying ammonium nitrite, as an example. In addition, when she was talking about how few women run for different positions, she listed a few for
When it first became a state, land and cattle were a large portion of the economy, but when Pattillo Higgins and Anthony Lucas found oil, oil became what outsiders associate the state with. Texas’s government takes up the next portion of her book. When Texas was established, Texans wanted very little to do with the government. Because of this, the Texas legislature only meets one-hundred and forty days every two years. Texas also went through quite a few constitutions and finally landed on one that greatly limits the government. The political party of Texas has also been changing. Texas’ political party changed from Democrat to Republican, and is now starting to change from Republican to Democrat. Grieder then talks about how Texas is in the twenty-first century. It has kept a lot of things from its past like its love for guns and its limited government, but it also might see some changes by 2040 in school funding and minimum wage. Texas and America are also a lot like DNA. They have so much internal pressure that they warp around each other, but they still have a strong …show more content…
Many of the chapters at least twenty notes and most of the ones that had at least twenty had even more. Even if you do not read the notes or bibliography, she mentions many of the sources along the way so that you can instantly see where she is getting her information. When Grieder is talking about the good Texas does, she obviously uses a positive tone, but even when she is talking about the bad times in Texas history, Grieder remains positive and even gives insights on the future. She also makes sure to give both sides of the situation equal respect, and gives the opposite side’s opinion on issues. Grieder uses a wide range of issues in the book to make her point. For example, when she was talking about how Texans are more likely to trust the private sector than the public sector, she used the explosion of the SS Grandcamp, a French ship carrying ammonium nitrite, as an example. In addition, when she was talking about how few women run for different positions, she listed a few for