Drachinifel - naval history

I dont know about plurals of Texas, but I have a tangentially naval story about Texans. When I was at USN boot camp, at one point my division was gathered on bleachers awaiting our turn at the firing range. To pass the time the range training Cadre began asking all the recruits to raise their hands when he named their native state. As in "who's from California?" And all the kids from California calmy raise their right hand like civilized, well adjusted human beings living in a polite society. This went on through a half dozen or so states until one petty officer asked "who's from Texas?" From far flung points on the bleachers and thus obviously not planned, 4 recruits jumped to their feet thrusting their arms to the heavens and whooping loudly. The Cadre petty officer hung his head and pinched the bridge of his nose as if in physical pain from this performance before resignedly saying, but with building intensity of frustration, "Every time! Every damn time I ask that question, every other state raises their hand; and without fail some Texas shitkicker jumps up and yells like Yosemite fuckin Sam. Don't mess with Texas? Nobody fucking wants to! sit your dumb ass down!" I'll never forget that, and subsequent travels into that benighted state did nothing to alleviate my impression of texans gleaned from that experience.