So: sincere apologies to Houston. My implication of its backwardness was way out of line. Especially as they chose the day before Valentine's Day as the day to overturn their legal ban on sex-toy sellers:
"This is a happy day for us," said Gino Barone, who owns Carmens Boutique and Videos, which has four Houston locations. "We found our customers want these items. Ladies, couples come to buy. The demand is so great. This law was so ridiculous. ... It's time we got the government out of their lives." [...]
Barone said he sold the sex novelties despite the legal ban. "Our stores are loaded with them," he said. "They tried to act like this was some monster. This was only a toy." [...] Barone said the days before Valentine's Day are among the busiest of the year.
'Cause they've got high hopes.