So, if the people around you at work, home, or in the streets seem a little more tense and maybe you're that person you can thank Paxton for that, at least in part.
But one thing the whole debacle has provided a reminder of is just how horny the Lone Star State is. The amount of search traffic related to these sites going incognito and for virtual private network (VPN) services to circumvent the bans has been awe inspiring.
Looking at Google's search traffic after Pornhub's block went into effect provided a chuckle when the notoriously religious and conservative East Texas ranked top in Texas for searches of "how to access Pornhub."
But the topic deserves a deeper dive, so let's look at what parts of Texas are hardest hit by the bans. And to clear the air, there's no judgement here on these searches from my fellow Texans, just some context of how our state has reacted to the enforcement of a law passed by the conservative majority in the state capitol.
For these thirsty search terms, we'll look at Thursday, March 14, through Friday, March 22. That's the time frame from when Pornhub's ban went into effect through the time this story was written. Google's data may get updates over time.
One of the top searches for that time period up 3,500% was "how to watch porn in Texas?" Lubbock scored highest and the East Texas region of Tyler-Longview and Lufkin Nacogdoches searched for the term second most. Corpus Christ came third, followed by the region encompassing Waco, Temple, and Bryan at No. 4. The top five was rounded out by Austin and San Antonio finished No. 7.
The top search term for VPNs in Texas was "free VPN." The search traffic for this is a close race near the top, but Austin ranked No. 1, followed by Waco, Temple, and Bryan at No. 2; Lubbock at No. 3; DFW at No. 4; and Wichita Falls and Lawton, Oklahoma, at No. 5. San Antonio fell to No. 8 for this search.
Another popular search term is "Pornhub alternatives." Abilene and Sweetwater make an appearance as the area searching the most for this, by a healthy margin. Austin landed spot No. 2; Corpus Christi was No. 3; Amarillo was No. 4; and the East Texas region appears again at No. 5. San Antonio followed closely at No. 6.
Other "breakout" search terms, which means they were up 5,000% or more, include: How to access Pornhub in Texas; VPN; Pornhub VPN; Pornhub access; porn websites; and top porn sites. The list goes on and on with untold numbers of Texans scrambling to find ways to stimulate their visual cortex before they stimulate other things.
The law causing all this was passed by Texas' conservative House, Senate, and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and requires sites serving pornography to verify the age of visitors before letting them access the content.
You should try to explain what each area is like to people who aren't as familiar with Texas.
This is what Texas voted for, it's what they wanted.
This is what Texas voted for, it's what they wanted.
-OR- the state's legislation is horribly gerrymandered and if you just put things to a popular vote this wouldnt happenGerrymandering only works when people are on your side.
You can't gerrymander 0% support into 100% support.
-OR- the state's legislation is horribly gerrymandered and if you just put things to a popular vote this wouldnt happen
This is what Texas voted for, it's what they wanted.2 million mail in ballots were thrown out in 2020 by paxton and his minions otherwise trump loses texas they said so themselves voting doesnt work here
Gerrymandering only works when people are on your side.Do you think 100% of Texans support shit like this? Everyone seems to think that Texas is just a field of dirt with cowboys and racists everywhere, and its simply not true.
You can't gerrymander 0% support into 100% support.
Clearly Texans support these people.
Trump beat Hillary in Wisconsin by less than 1% in 2016 and lost to Biden in 2020, yet Republicans hold two-thirds of the state legislature. Gerrymandering very much impacts the makeup of a state house and senate.Yes, but Trump and Republicans still need support.
Republicans, especially the voters, are even more hypocritical than the people they want to represent them factually proven over and over again.They're the reason why stories like this often happen: https://www.reddit.com/r/LeopardsAteMyFace/comments/1blc6k9/probirth_texas_woman_denied_an_abortion_for_her/
They have to wait until it effects them before they think maybe I should not vote for this....
West Texas (El Paso), I know very little about
It's complete overreach which promotes being a nanny state. It's up to the parents to actually parent their children from accessing inappropriate content.
Nah, it's not. It's porn. That's got an age requirement. It's not new, it's just riling up the addicts that need the intervention anyways.When it gets to the point where you need to upload your ID to porn sites to use them, thats too far.
When it gets to the point where you need to upload your ID to porn sites to use them, thats too far.
Now porn sites are just straight up unable to be used because the sites themselves want no part of it. You thinking anyone who watches porn needs an intervention doesnt change that this is overreach.
I didn't say anybody who watches porn is an addict, but you're already on your hyperbole so pop off I guess.Im not comfortable with having my literal ID being held by online companies I know nothing about. Also lmao if you think porn sites are the only thing that will be affected if this is allowed to continue
And no, actually IDing for something 18+ just isn't overreach, and I'm not too concerned about the opinions and wellbeing of companies that profit off of providing pornography to minors.
Not a noble cause.
Im not comfortable with having my literal ID being held by online companies I know nothing about. Also lmao if you think porn sites are the only thing that will be affected if this is allowed to continue
Oh the classic slippery slope nonsense where you don't give one fuckin example, go home with that.Ok. Im glad youre perfectly okay with the government literally stomping on you and finding new ways to invade your privacy.
There were cries of tyranny when some sites moved away from videos that had no verification on young looking amateur videos, so I'm not worried about a little posturing.
I just don't think it's that crazy to have to verify that you are at least 18 to access 18+ material.And I think you are full of shit and posting in bad faith.
Ok. Im glad youre perfectly okay with the government literally stomping on you and finding new ways to invade your privacy.You've never met a Republican before have you?
OR you educate the people so gerrymandering doesn't work. In other places it's getting harder and harder for Republicans to gerrymander districts because people with more schooling move into poorer areas. It's why the new scheme is to cut funding to education and put far-right Republicans in charge of school boards.
Banning pornography is unconstitutional
Lubbock is I believe where that rogue Republican Judge presides to give judgements all Americans have to abide by, like banning abortion pills and so on.
Republicans get away with going there to file their judgements because he's the only federal judge in the area, since nobody lives there.
I still think that PH would be wise to just encourage their users to just vote Republicans out. Porn has a larger control over things than people realize. Porn adopting VHS or DVD or Blu Ray had a bigger effect on media than anything else, same goes for streaming porn, which was around before shit like Netflix. VR is also more of a thing because of porn. Porn is also taking over AI generation and I wouldn't be surprised in the future, sex robots. Where porn goes, the rest of the country does.
Ok. Im glad youre perfectly okay with the government literally stomping on you and finding new ways to invade your privacy.
You've never met a Republican before have you?
A lot of them would shove their own hands into rusty sawblades if they were told it would own the libs.
Jerry is projecting since he's quite a few thirst posts himself.
Lubbock is I believe where that rogue Republican Judge presides to give judgements all Americans have to abide by, like banning abortion pills and so on.They actually just passed a regulation to make that more difficult, if not impossible.
Republicans get away with going there to file their judgements because he's the only federal judge in the area, since nobody lives there.
Found several.the projection from that dude is fucking crazy lmao
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/48fe7073.jpg
I have never heard this and I've lived here for most of my life.It apparently ranked highest porn consumption in America once over 10 years ago