I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m already sick of news about North Korea. They definitely rank in Calamity’s Top 3 Most Depressing Countries. It was a nice balance to comb through the 2011 release of the Freedom Index. The PDF of the general conclusions is well worth a read, all 84 pages of it.
http://mercatus.org/sites/all/modules/custom/mercatus_50_states/files/Freedom50States2011.pdf
This study comprehensively ranks the American states on their public policies that affect individual freedoms in the economic, social, and personal spheres. It updates, expands, and improves upon our inaugural 2009 Freedom in the 50 States study. For this new edition, we have added more policy variables (such as bans on trans fats and the audio recording of police, Massachusetts’s individual health-insurance mandate, and mandated family leave), improved existing measures (such as those for fiscal policies, workers’ compensation regulations, and asset-forfeiture rules), and developed specific policy prescriptions for each of the 50 states based on our data and a survey of state policy experts.
Our approach to measuring freedom in the states is unique in three respects: (1) it includes measures of social and personal freedoms such as peaceable citizens’ rights to educate their own children, to own and carry firearms, and to be free from unreasonable search and seizure; (2) it incorporates more than 150 distinct public policies; and (3) it is particularly careful to measure fiscal policies in a way that reflects the true cost of government to the citizen.
We find that the overall freest states in the country are New Hampshire and South Dakota, which together achieve a virtual tie for first place, while New York is the least free by a considerable margin. On personal freedom alone, Oregon now comes first, with Vermont and Nevada not too far behind, and Maryland brings up the rear. On economic freedom alone, South Dakota easily takes first, and New York is a distant last. The most improved states since the last edition of our study are Oregon, Nevada, Maine, and Washington, while Wyoming, California, Arizona, and Massachusetts have fallen the furthest.
So, they focus on individual rights, and as individuals you can use this information to vote with your feet, whether it’s for job relocation, retirement or a SHTF bunker. I’ll do a little bit of break down of some of the key points I took away, but my views on personal freedom might not match with your views, so I highly encourage you to read the pdf, and then if you want personalized weightings, go into the data and weight the freedoms that are most important to you, to see how that changes the ratings. You can do that from this site. http://www.statepolicyindex.com/freedom-in-the-50-states/
I’m pretty happy with the rankings of my current home-state, Iowa. The Fiscal Policy table only has us rated at 17th, but for Regulatory Policy, we’re 2nd. Maine is ranked 39th and 36th for those two, respectively. South Dakota ranks high on the Economic Freedom, they don’t have individual income tax. But, they are down at 36 for Personal Freedom, which matches some of my own conclusions (my company was looking to have engineers relocate to Sioux Falls.) In the end, for me, the economic benefits didn’t outweigh the personal freedoms I would have to give up. Hubby and I did like Missouri, and are thinking about that state for our next relocation. Mostly to be closer to friends and aging family, there’s nothing wrong with Iowa. There are other states closer, but Missouri out-ranks them for Personal and Economic Freedoms.
You Mainers rank at a decent 7 for Personal Freedoms, but get dragged down by a 39 ranking in Economic Freedoms. Iowa has the reverse problem, a high Economic Freedom, and low Personal Freedoms ranking. Likely due to the smoking ban, raw milk ban, firework ban and aggressive policing of the drug war. I thought the same sex marriage and homeschooling support would make up for those a little more than they appeared to. It turns out, the decision on marriage came right after the data was collected for this ranking. I did like the author’s aside about that one.
(One could argue that states should get the government out of marriage licensing altogether and offer streamlined “life-partnership contracts” to all sorts of families and households, not just heterosexual and homosexual two-partner relationships.)
I totally flashed to a couple of the “marriages” that Heinlein liked to write about. lol Very Libertarian, but, I digress.
I noticed that the 4 states that top my list of Places Calamity Won’t Live are at the bottom of the rankings, Hawaii, California, New Jersey, New York getting 47, 48, 49 and 50. Yup, you couldn’t pay me enough to move to any of those states. I didn’t need a ranking to tell me that, but it never hurts to have a stance reenforced.
What do y’all think? Do you check out rankings like these when you’re thinking about relocating or setting up a Bug Out Retreat?
– Calamity Jane
38 comments
freedom schmeedom.
neither the state, nor society have the right to promote mortal sin. (especially where they ban any invocation of the Deity, in public) “keep your laws off my body/ out of my bedroom” sounds great, but now we have a fat, amoral society, with rampant venerial disease, and no respect for innocent (human) life.
sodomy, adultery, fornication and elective abortion will all remain mortal sins regardless of the fact that they are “legalized”. my “state” no longer even requires a blood test for marriage. (and the venerial diseases which were cureable, back in the past are becoming antibiotic resistant)
extending marriage beyond what it was, is part of the larger Cloward & Piven strategy: to bring America down, under the weight of “entitlements”.
To Irishdutchuncle: It never ceases to amaze me how some people think it’s so important to mind other peoples business due to an overly inflated sense of religious piousness on their part, all the while ignoring their own habits. This usually stems from a personal sense of moral guilt. Life is easier when you “tend to your own garden”.
Amen.
Touché
In the personal end, God is only concerned with your relationship with Him, nothing else matters, so casting stones at what one perceives is immoral is petty & pointless. Irish you may want to brush up on Romans 12: 19-21, it’s pretty clear.
the Deity will judge me for my sins, and each, and everybody else, for theirs.
my remorse over my own guilt is not material to this discussion. same sex marriage is a cruel lie.
Wow, Irishdutchuncle just can’t let go. Jesus said not to worry about the mot, or cinder, in someone else’s eye, but rather the beam that is in your own eye. We are all big boys and girls and know what the Bible says and we’ll all have to answer in the end. It’s not for you to go around pointing fingers at others while ignoring your own short comings. Mind your own business and let others do the same.
Irish, simple question:
What would Jesus do?
Whenever I hear such virulent homophobic speech, I just wait. Eventually the speaker is caught with his own hand in the weiner package.
Jason, in answer to your question, WWJD? he would say: let he among you who is without sin cast the first stone. next he would ask, has no one condemned you? niether do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.
(sorry i can’t tell you which chapter or verse, not really a bible scholar)
That’s the exact point Irish & believe Gregory8’s point as well –
Jesus had the biggest issues with the Pharisees & religious leaders because they pointed fault at everybody else from a self righteous, pious position. He hung out with the biggest sinners & found no fault with them, only their lifestyle, but did not look down at them – in fact, he loved them ALL.
Remember, it was a prostitute that washed Jesus’ feet in front of the aghast disciples. It could have very easily been a couple in a same sex marriage or other “despicable” sinner whom washed His feet.
The issue isn’t abortion, same sex marriage, sodomy, fornication, VD or whatever – that’s been around since before Sodom & Gomorra. It’s the choice of the individual, whom Jesus loved irrespective of the sin.
And that’s called saving grace my friend.
Calamity:
i’m sorry i took the discussion down this road.
Jason, thank you for the kindness of your rebuke. to all whom it may concern; i’m a virulent ANGLOPHOBE, although i concede it’s sometimes difficult to see the difference.
OK was right about me. to my shame, i almost bought a TR-6 once. (the Austin-Healy 3000 also draws me toward the dark side) i’m disgusted with myself. (doesn’t really compensate for my shortcomings, anyhow)
Christianity is fairly easy to live by . But unlike islam or christianity , I find it interesting that judaism is the only one out of the big 3 western religions that tells us that you dont have to believe the way they do in order to go to heaven . Their are over 600 mitzvah ( rules ) for a jew , for a non jew only 7 they need to observe in order to go .I also found it interesting and enlightening that they forbid animal cruelty in writing .
Yes & the Jews are still waiting for their chosen one, which they rejected 2,000+ years ago.
Jesus performed over 300 miracles during His 3 year ministry that the Jews & many others chose to ignore. Even the Torah (first 5 books of the Old Testament the Jews revere) describes the coming Messiah & how many would reject Him like they did with Moses & Noah.
Psalm 22 was written by another Jewish great – David, 1,000 years before Christ and describes Him in interesting detail.
Pride & stubbornness has its eternal price …
It isn’t following the rules that gets you to Heaven, it’s the relationship with God through Jesus Christ that is the ticket.
BTW, is slaughtering a lamb for a sacrafice to God considered cruelty to animals? That’s in the Torah as well ….
I personally would yes . But when your talking people and religion , Logic is not anywhere to be found . I wouldn’t follow any god that required me to kill people in his name , but yet it happens every day .
Im a christian , but I also take the positive things I see from from judaism as far as some practices and leave the rest . It brings me closer to god and reminds me of the importance of belief . Conflicting ? not in the least .
I knew living in Oregon would be a good choice.
One thing, though… it does depend on where in a given state you live. For instance, if you lived in Multnomah County (Portland), you would find yourself restricted to the point where you’d think you were living in New York City at times. Outside of PDX and Salem, things tend to get better, to the point of breathing easier. 🙂
Yea, I think Chicago and their gun restrictions were mentioned in the pdf. I think the authors rolled county restrictions like those into the tally for the state as a whole. I think. It is a good point though, and one I like to harp on as well. ALWAYS pay more attention to your county board of supervisors than you do to national elections, the ramifications will hit MUCH closer to home.
That actually makes good sense (I’ll admit I didn’t read the .pdf file), since it’s at the county and city levels where you’ll most often find the little Napoleons, as well as others who would more easily abuse petty authority.
OTOH, I’ve also found that the local levels are where you have an infinitely better chance of getting your voice heard (though obviously not likely in the biggest cities).
I suppose living in Michigan is still ok…right around in the middle. I don’t feel oppressed at, and as far as my prepping has gone, I haven’t been told I can’t do anything yet…
I don’t know how much weight I’d put into a study like this. So much of it comes down to personal perspective.
For example: they rate mandatory leave laws as a bad thing, which if you’re an employer might be correct, but if you’re a worker you might support it- it might make you more free. Or they rate transfat laws as a bad thing, but if you’re someone with health concerns you might look at it as having the freedom to eat anywhere and to do so without worry. If you’re looking at trying to lower the cost of health insurance and medical care you also might be supportive of transfat laws and you might think of the money saved as freeing.
I’d also note that in Washington State, where I’m at, we’re doing better economically than quite a few states that are rated as freer than we are. I’d call a good economic future freeing. We also pay way more taxes into the federal government than we get back, while freer states like Idaho get more money from the federal government than they pay in. How wonderful is a place like Idaho going to be to live if that federal funding dries up?
I’m not convinced that the “freest state” by their measure is really the best place to live.
One of the things I love about this particular rating is that they have their data open to the public, you can grab it, change the weightings of different freedoms to match your views and see how it changes the outcomes. I agree, it is 100% personal perspective.
Another blog posted an overall freedom ranking by state . I was surprised to see NH as number 1 , Texas as 5 , AZ as 8 , etc . with the ” Peoples Republic of California ” and NY fighting it out for dead last ( no surprises there ) . Most of the top ten were western states ( no surprises there either ). Here in AZ , our landscape may suck , but we dont like to be told what to do . I guess Texans like it even less lol.
Just read this version . Not the same one . Ill post the other one for everybody to look at , I guess it depends on the source and how old the information is . Next year , it could be completely turned around again . Would be an interesting article to compare from this one to how things are rearranged the same time next year .
OK folks , here is another one .
http://www.thesurvivalistblog.net/overall-freedom-ranking/
Call me crazy, but I think the ‘landscape’ in your state is terrific. Finding nearby places to waterski is a pain in the #ss, though.
That it is . Just got back from NC and got a chance to get out into the country a bit on some trails . Gotta tell you tho in all honesty , I can understand why my Confederate relatives would fight for land like that . Cant say the same thing about the desert . Nothing like the smell of the creosote plants right after a good rain ………. but after that , there is nothing to be proud of , much less want to fight for it .
@ Michael, I understand your points and unfortunately I think they are popularly held, but all things are not relative. “For example: they rate mandatory leave laws as a bad thing, which if you’re an employer might be correct, but if you’re a worker you might support it- it might make you more free.”
An employee, by definition, is not free! I have been a HIGHLY paid employee for many years, but now I am an underpaid employer and I am definitely more “FREE”. If you want madatory leave, as a worker, to make you “more free”…ok, but guess what? It comes at a price! I’ll take it back in wages and now you are “less free”. The bottom line is the bottom line! Either I can pay for your work based on our productivity, via income, or I cannot. At the end of the day it is pretty much that simple.
A. Home is always where the heart is
B. I live in San Diego & will take its average year round temperature of 70.5 degrees & very low humidity any day over most any place. Plus, it is one of the most beautiful places in America. Like anyplace else, there is a cost & trade offs but I don’t mind it one bit.
I often laugh at the comments from the outsiders looking in, calling it the People’s Republic of California. I’ve been here more than 55 years & it isn’t what most people think. I have been from one end of the state to the other & gotta tell you it is utterly fantastic – deserts, ocean, islands, forests, mountains, friendly people, vast & diverse culture & art – wouldn’t trade it.
California – A great place to visit but not to live. Signed , Ex California Native.
Jason’s Fable –
There once was a man who worked in a gas station on the outskirts of medium sized town just off of the main state highway. One day car pulled in, loaded with all of their worldly possessions & the driver asked – “how is this town to live in, is it a good place to establish a new life”.
The man answered “how is it in the town where you came from?”
The driver went on & on explaining how awful it was – full of thieves, wicked politicians, violence everywhere & the people were never friendly. The man in the gas station shrugged & quietly said with forlornness in his voice “it is exactly the same here …”
Upon hearing that news, the car sped off into the horizon.
Days later another car pulled in, full of all of the things the occupants owned & the driver stepped out, shook the man’s hand & cheerfully asked “how is this town, we are looking for a place to settle down”.
The man asked “what is it like where you are coming from?”
The driver beamed & said – “it is a wonderful place, full of friendly people & lots of opportunity. We want to start a family & establish new roots.”
The gas station man said with a broad smile – “welcome, you will find it exactly the same here”.
Moral – the grass is always greenest where you water it.
Have to disagree , it depends on what your looking for . Here in AZ , the 2 largest cities couldn’t be more different in mentality . Phx is huge , but it does have a very good freeway system , one can get around pretty easy for a place that size . The people are like most big cities , neutral until they see you a few times , then they are friendly . Because there are so many people , I find the people in phoenix to be a lot more genuine in character ( IE..no games or BS ) than in Tucson . Phoenix also is better kept . Tucson on the other hand is a city of 1 million people with a townie mentality . Traffic is horrible because they refuse to build freeways . The crime per capita is twice what it is in phoenix .The city is run down looking and sloppy and the road repair is a joke . The appearance of the people is markedly different as well . Generally speaking , people in Phoenix take more pride in their appearance . All over Tucson you see bums and transients walking around . I could go on but you get the picture . Phoenix has bad parts as well but … uhh … its not the whole city . Tucson does have better landscape . How a place fits is also dependent on your age group . There are some great small towns in AZ to live when you get middle age but would be miserable for a young person .
TR
My moral was about where you come from internally, the rest is just scenery you can view as dim & dismal or bright & colorful, it’s truly your choice. I live in a town where there a lot of illegals, the usual assortment of homeless, crack heads, crabby old people & the wealthy. The infrastructure is pretty goofy as well.
I shop at the 99 cent store for some staples & fun, always make it a point to smile & say hello to whomever I make eye contact with & almost always they return in like. It cost me nothing yet, gives me everything positive.
I moved from an affluent area – house on the hill, view of the ocean, salt water pool I designed & built like you’d see in a fancy hotel & the rest, to a totally opposite neighborhood. I made a point of waving, talking to the neighbors, giving them some veggies that friends gave me from their farms (I could not consume it all), set up a tether ball court for the kids to play with and more. Why not, it gave me pleasure.
It was amazing how friendly everybody became to me and each other in short order.
I was once in a sort of slummy area of Tangier (North Africa) walking around & totally in awe of the ancient architecture, the roads, history & how the people lived – talk about survivalists! It crossed my mind that it was not the safest place in the world but I could not help but to see the richness of life & these people were really cool in a very simple sort of way.
I spent some time eating at the hole in the walls (very mindful of that which can cause Hepatitis & drank only bottled water) and had a great time while my brother-in-law was utterly disgusted. So, who came out ahead?
A friend told me something many years ago that I’ve never forgotten – miracles begin with you.
“A friend told me something many years ago that I’ve never forgotten – miracles begin with you.”
That is the bottom line , very true indeed .
Again , depends on what your looking for . I wont go to any third world nation by choice , because I know there is nothing for me there . My scope of where I would want to travel is very narrow and am that way in other ways and with people I would want to associate with, but I’m happy that way . Sometimes knowing what you dont want is key to finding what you do want and understanding yourself . I have no complaints , Im very comfortable in my own skin . Throwback from a different era , perhaps , but Im happy that way .
What I have found visiting quite a few third world countries is a whole new appreciation for the USA. There was a time when I thought much less of this country, then I travelled a bit – what a wonderful eye opener. Did you know the Chinese government censors a lot of the Internet? A simple little freedom we have here.
I began writing about a thing I called the “immigrant’s mentality” because I would see many come here with less than nothing (not knowing the language or culture, little education & were looked down upon on) & use the same exact opportunities we have and succeed huge. Why? Because this country is like Heaven compared to where they came from.
A close friend of mine came here from Iran to go to university & get a degree in electrical engineering because it was cheaper & better. His goal was to graduate & go back “home” and work for the government. He received a masters, went home & found the pay was a fraction of what he could get here in the states.
He came back, started his own business with almost no money & 25 years later he personally makes 50K per month. The exact same opportunity was available to anybody else. The sad thing is, many Americans have become fat, lazy & feel entitled to whatever.
BTW, my dad was born & raised in a depressed third world country – Globe, Arizona!
As you know , my girl is from the Soviet Union , her stories are pretty grim .
I have met several folks that were from Globe , not ONE had anything good to say about it lol