# Misguided outrage? Texas Dems decry bill outlawing foreign land ownership as racist **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 26, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834 "2023-01-26T16:14:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/21 "2023-01-26T18:34:36Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > foreign nationals from three specific countries. Four, actually. Iran as well. It’s also clear not much of the Republican caucus read the bill. A lot of them assumed there was a minimum amount of ownership (~10000 acres) that would trigger it and didn’t even know it would affect individual homeowners. As written, it targets a lot of just average people trying to go about their lives, who are, again, primarily Chinese. Then again, most of the Republican caucus also didn’t seem all that opposed to it, either, as written. It’s not even all that subtle. All the scary examples Texas Republicans have brought up have involved the growing power of China and ‘how’d you like the Chinese military spying on you next door?’ type stuff. It’s pretty obvious the other countries were tossed in to provide a fig leaf. But it will likely be amended in any event if it even comes up for a vote. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/22 "2023-01-26T18:35:01Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > The term _racism_ has long included the idea of discrimination based on national origin . ⁢ > > Well, if we separate race from racism, then we can all agree this is racist. I simply pointed out how the word is actually used in practice, and thus likely how it is being used here. You can’t say that someone is wrong if they’re using a word in a way it is commonly used. Also note that your quote does not use the word _racism_ at all. Racism as a whole is not forbidden by federal law. ---
**Author:** ![PhillyGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@PhillyGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PhillyGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/23 "2023-01-26T18:40:01Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Well, if we separate race from racism, then we can all agree this is racist. Part of this is anti-Russian discrimination. And that national origin discrimination is not generally called racism: > **[Following Ukraine Invasion, Russian-American Workers Are Being Harassed](https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/employment-law/pages/russian-american-workers-harassed.aspx)** > > Some Russian-American employees in the U.S. are being discriminated against and harassed based on their national origin following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. I don’t have a strong objection to calling some, or all, of it racism on Straight Dope. But it is a bit of an own-goal for Democratic politicians to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/24 "2023-01-26T18:48:56Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > My first impression is that it’s a bad idea, but I suppose I could be persuaded otherwise. Yeah, me too. To me it seems like Texas has forgotten it is a state and is acting like the Texas Republic re: foreign relations. One question I have is does it ban ownership by those foreign nationals even if they are a legal resident of Texas or even a dual-citizen? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/25 "2023-01-26T18:49:00Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Well, if we separate race from racism, then we can all agree this is racist. “We’re drawing a line on a map. If you’re on this side of the line, you’re Chinese, if you’re on the other, Korean,” is not functionally any different from, “We’re drawing a line on the map. If you’re on this side of the line, you’re European, if you’re on the other, you’re Asian.” Racial categories are arbitrary, and change according to the political needs of the moment. In the 19th century, it was not at all uncommon to hear talk of “the English race,” or “the French race.” ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/26 "2023-01-26T18:51:43Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > One question I have is does it ban ownership by those foreign nationals even if they are a legal resident of Texas or even a dual-citizen? As written, yes it does, which is why it has caused as much of a stir as it has. The effect (and many suspect a good part of the intent) will fall on several tens or hundreds of thousands of primarily Chinese homeowners who are present legally in the state, many of whom are actively in the years-long process of attaining US citizenship. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/27 "2023-01-26T18:53:11Z")
You’re not persuading me that this is not a bad idea. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/28 "2023-01-26T18:55:08Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > The effect (and many suspect a good part of the intent) will fall on several tens or hundreds of thousands of primarily Chinese homeowners who are present legally in the state, many of whom are actively in the years-long process of attaining US citizenship. Time to do a spring clean on the ol’ internment camps so they have a place to stay. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/29 "2023-01-26T19:00:19Z")
I understand tongue may be firmly in cheek, but it really does affect some of us. In my county, they generally have good paying jobs and support local schools with property tax revenue. And are generally well behaved and law abiding sorts. If you want to limit ownership by large corporations from those countries (noting that China accounts for 90+% of that ownership as well), write the laws that way. They don’t own a lot of farm land or large plots of land out here, anyway. But the majority of those affected will have an outsized effect on school funding and local tax base, and that I personally care a great deal about. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/30 "2023-01-26T19:09:11Z")
In my neighborhood, lots and lots of houses are being purchased by Chinese nationals. Some smaller number of houses are being purchased by Russian nationals (far fewer lately), and zero by North Korean nationals (don’t know about Iranians). The law is racist because it’s really targeting the influx of Chinese nationals buying homes in the US. The other countries are added for window dressing. “Hey, RS, cite where this is true!” I can’t provide a cite, but it’s obviously true because, for example, there’s no influx of wealthy North Koreans, or even NK government purchases of US property. That’s probably already banned by various US federal laws against doing business with the NK government. So, the NK part is obviously window dressing. There were a lot of Iranians that came over in the 70s, after the Revolution, but there’s no such wave these days. The Iranian government is having a hard enough time surviving, without speculating in Texas real estate. So, the Iran part is obviously window dressing. This is targeted at Chinese individuals coming into neighborhoods and buying houses, going to school, the horror. It’s obviously racist, and the Texas Democratic party can see through the obvious window dressing and is calling it out. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/31 "2023-01-26T19:23:55Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > I understand tongue may be firmly in cheek, but it really does affect some of us. I wasn’t joking although I was (trying to be) humorous. I was alluding back to my agreement with @Procrustus’ statement > My first impression is that it’s a bad idea, but I suppose I could be persuaded otherwise. And with your answer to my question pretty much solidified that it is a bad idea. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/32 "2023-01-26T22:02:37Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > large Chinese industrial farms are draining the aquafilter and then shipping the products back to China. Now there’s a hoary dog whistle masquerading as economic protectionism. The Chinese are draining the aquifer and taking the water back to China? Really? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/33 "2023-01-26T22:06:05Z")
Well why _else_ would the aquifer be getting lower? Climate change isn’t real, after all. Surely [ethnic other] is to blame? It certainly couldn’t be a complex issue and / or our own fault. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/34 "2023-01-26T22:15:38Z")
I think it’s more stuff like this that they’re talking about: [China Is Buying the Farm - WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-chinese-are-buying-the-farm-north-dakota-hong-kong-land-food-shortage-supply-chain-usda-11662666515) And, FWIW, Texas isn’t the only state considering something like the bill in question: [Without Mentioning China, California Close to Blocking Foreign Buyers From Its Farmland (voanews.com)](https://www.voanews.com/a/without-mentioning-china-california-close-to-blocking-foreign-buyers-from-its-farmland/6751387.html) ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/35 "2023-01-26T22:20:22Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I think it’s more stuff like this that they’re talking about: This is true. _… as I fall foul of that that pesky merkins/irony meme yet again_ It’s still a hoary dog whistle masquerading as economic protectionism ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/36 "2023-01-26T22:52:55Z")
I think it’s misguided xenophobia. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2023, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/37 "2023-01-26T23:25:53Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > I don’t like the bill. But since it applies to citizens of three countries we consider adversaries, I won’t rush to label it “racist.” Except that the only reason Republicans consider China to be an adversary is because of racism. > [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > It’s also clear not much of the Republican caucus read the bill. It’s been the pattern for at least 20 years that Democratic legislators read the bills that they vote on, while Republicans don’t. Even for bills that Republicans themselves propose. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2023, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/38 "2023-01-27T00:11:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Except that the only reason Republicans consider China to be an adversary is because of racism. Racism, right. Why are we close allies with South Korea and Japan, then? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2023, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/39 "2023-01-27T00:27:06Z")
> [@PhillyGuy](#): > > Yes, white people can become naturalized PRC citizens. Non-white people can also become naturalized citizens of the PRC. Another part of the problem is that a good number of countries in Asia are, essentially, populated by one race: China, the vast majority being the Han, Korea with the overwhelming majority being Korean, Japan with the Japanese, etc. > [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Yeah, me too. To me it seems like Texas has forgotten it is a state and is acting like the Texas Republic re: foreign relations. They’ve been getting away with that for at least a couple of years now with their use of the Texas National Guard on the border with Mexico. I really don’t know if they’re using the state militia for that, too. Regarding dual nationality for PRC citizens: the Chinese government prohibits such after, IIRC, 18 years of age. Upon reaching 18, the individual must either renounce the other citizenship or will lose Chinese citizenship. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2023, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834/40 "2023-01-27T00:40:51Z")
Same reason lots of racists approve of Herschel Walker and Kanye West. What, you expect racists to be logical? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/misguided-outrage-texas-dems-decry-bill-outlawing-foreign-land-ownership-as-racist/978834.md?page=3)