That's Right. You're Not from Texas. But Texas Wants You Anyway

Tougher "sledding" in George W. Bush's home town than he idyllically let on:

The Midland I knew growing up is different from the one George W. Bush talks about. He recalls small-town values of neighborliness, a safe place where kids could ride their bicycles all over town, and families gathered for impromptu picnics and barbecues. The Midland I recall was richer and edgier, and not nearly as wholesome, fueled by alcohol and boredom and empty horizons—more Larry McMurtry than Reader’s Digest.