Posted on 05/14/2006 3:53:31 AM PDT by Jim Noble
A majority of people who moved out of Massachusetts last year report they are very satisfied with life in their new state and would not move back, a Boston Globe poll has found.
Seventy-three percent of those surveyed said they live in a home that is bigger than their home in Massachusetts was. Fifty-four percent said their standard of living is higher now.
The top reason people gave for leaving Massachusetts was a better job, followed by the cost of housing, family ties, and the weather. In a separate set of questions, 50 percent of those surveyed said the cost of housing was a ''major factor," and a better job was cited as a ''major factor" by 39 percent...
The survey comes as candidates for governor and policy makers are discussing the state's stagnant population, and identifies some of the aspects where Massachusetts faces a competitive disadvantage with other states.
''It points out that people are not being dragged away from Massachusetts kicking and screaming...I see so many people who move from Massachusetts and say they will never move back."
...The exodus from Massachusetts has been particularly acute in recent years. Between 2000 and 2004, Massachusetts lost residents at a greater rate than any other state except New York, according to Census Bureau estimates that were released last month. The exodus from Massachusetts averaged 42,402 people per year, according to the Census data.
...A majority -- 69 percent -- said they found Bay State residents either ''much less courteous" or ''somewhat less courteous" than people in their new state.
Some allegiances persisted, the results showed. Only 5 percent of those polled said they were now cheering for a different sports team.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
Not true. They keep spawning. Reference: Patches. Lil' Joe the Whiner.
Yeah, but each successive generation is more pathetic.
Exactly.
Say, didn't the Boston Globe just violate the privacy of all these individuals--something they are claiming the CIA did--by asking for change of address records from utility companies?
Went to Boston once on a business trip. Our host was thoughtful enough to send us directions in advance. The first instruction said: "De-plane and start to cry, because everything you've heard about Boston traffic is true!"
Heck, inside of 495 it's like a Roman chariot race. And we've driven in Rome so we oughta know :)
And small towns on the way to becoming ghost towns.
Grew up in Framingham and loved my state -- Boston, Sox, Pats, beaches, mountains, and from Easter to Christmas, the best place to live in the US.
But that was then. Moved to Doylestown, PA in 2000 and realized that there are even better places to live. Great town, great schools, great people (a few Yankee fans, but they ceased to be a problem after 2004).
What bugs me about the Globe Poll is they still don't get the fact that people do leave the state because of politics. Sure, housing is the big issue, but if you look at how the Globe slices the numbers, you can tell they're trying to downplay the disgust we ex-Bay Stater's have with the politics back home.
If you take the combined total of people who cited "liberal policies", "politics", "crime" and "schools" -- all tied to the liberal dictators in the State House -- the number climbs to about 50%. And one question they failed to ask "Did the Mass. Supreme Court's decision to allow gay marriages in the state impact your decision to leave?" would have revealed a blockbuster number in people disgusted with the state.
I grew up in Massachusetts and will also think highly of the 35 years I lived there. But there are other, better places to live.
I'm living in one right now (and with satellite TV, XM radio, and the Internet, I can follow the Sox, Pats, Celts and UMass basketball all I want).
Best of both worlds . . .
"Some 232,945 people moved out of the state between 2000 and 2005...
The results showed New Hampshire was the top destination for people who left Massachusetts. Florida was the second most popular state, followed by Texas...
The exodus from Massachusetts has been particularly acute in recent years. Between 2000 and 2004, Massachusetts lost residents at a greater rate than any other state except New York...
The exodus from Massachusetts averaged 42,402 people per year..."
"Not everyone wants to live in a metro area where a night out means driving 10 miles to an Applebee's in heavy traffic."
That's what I hated about Baton Rouge.
Good question!
It most likely means that the remaining populace have an even higher than ever propensity to elect the Kennedys-Kerrys-Bawney Fwanks!
I don't know about the one-party state being the problem, I think the problem is, it is a far-left leaning party and that is what is driving it into the ground. I actually think my state would be better of if Republicans could exist today as the Democrats were in the 1970s.
I'd say the reason people are leaving Massachusetts is the cold, lack of freedom, and the simple realization that Sunbelt states have better culture.
"As part of any immigration compromise, an adjustment in congressional representation to exclude illegal aliens and mid-decade population shifts of legal residents should be required."
Very good idea.
In MA, property taxes run 1-1.5% of home value and all go to local government, which runs deficits anyway. In NH, 0.83% pays all local and state services.
In MA, there is a state wide 5.3% income tax, with higher brackets still, for some sorts of income. In NH, no income tax at all.
In MA, there is 4% sales tax on everything but food. In NH, no sales tax at all.
In MA, median house prices run $500,000. In NH, houses the same size run $300,000.
In MA, they have beaches if you drive for hours, mostly exclusive private property stuff. In NH, they have gorgeous mountains within an hour or two's drive, in parks open to everyone, at most pay $3 for parking or $20 a year.
In MA, you numchucks are on a list of "deadly weapons" possession of which can be punished with life in prison. In NH, you can straightforwardly walk into a gun store and buy a gun.
The crime rate in NH is a third of the national average. In Boston, it is twice the national average.
In NH, your vote for all offices counts, and has an amplified importance in presidential elections. In MA in my town, governor is the only spot on the ballot for which any Republican is competitive.
Invasion of the Mass-holes.
I can't wait for my opportunity to flee the land of fruits, nuts, and socialists (which are not mutually exclusive categories here in Massghanistan).
I find it interesting that the top three states to which people are fleeing are: (1) New Hampshire, (2) Florida, and (3) Texas. What do all three of those states have in common? The tax on personal income in each of them is 5.30% less than the 5.30% rate in Massachusetts.
I also find it fascinating that the Globe is ranting and raving about the National Security Agency mining the databases of phone companies to find people calling numbers known to be used by terrorist, but the Globe has no problem asking "utilities" to provide change of address information about people who have moved out of state. Seems pretty hypocritical to me! Oh, but I forgot, reporters think they are not bound by the laws, rules, regulation, or mores of any society, least of all, the "evil" American society.
Come on down! Just NOT Chapel Hill; it's a containment area for LIBERALS! The City Council of one of the outlying areas just passed a resolution to impeach Bush!
The rest of this state (well, except for Durham..LOL) is wonderful!
I lived 2 years in Massachusetts and the past 14 years in Austin, Texas. I've lived in quite a few states, and there is something to recommend to any of them
... but I'll take Texas, thank you. It beats 'em all.
Thank you for your service, sincerely appreciated.
It most likely means that the remaining populace have an even higher than ever propensity to elect the Kennedys-Kerrs-Bawney Fwanks.......................
True, but thankfully they only get to vote once.
Oh, wait, they're Democrats!
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