Posted on 01/23/2014 2:29:49 PM PST by Kaslin
What’s the best state in America?
I’m not sure I can answer that broad question, but I can address the more narrow issue of which state has the most economic freedom. 
Last month, for instance, I shared some data from the Canada-based Fraser Institute which showed that South Dakota was America’s most laissez-faire state, followed by Tennessee, Delaware, Texas, and Virginia (though all of them trailed the Canadian province of Alberta).
And one year ago, I posted about a fascinating Mercatus study that ranked states based on total freedom (including, interestingly, a “bachelor party” variable). 
That research put North Dakota at the top, followed by South Dakota, Tennessee, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma.
Now we have another measure of overall economic liberty at the state level. The Texas Public Policy Foundation has put together a “soft tyranny” index that measures total economic oppression, both for the United States and for the 50 states.
As you would suspect, the ranking was constructed with various measures of spending, taxes, and regulation.
Since we’re focusing today on state competitiveness, let’s first look at that data. As you can see, Texas is in the top spot with the lowest burden of government, followed by South Dakota, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Tennessee.
Since South Dakota and Tennessee appear in the top 5 of all measures, I’m guessing that means they are the best states (and it’s presumably no coincidence that they don’t have broad-based income taxes).
Now let’s review the data for the United States.
Probably the most relevant thing to notice is that economic freedom improved during the Reagan and Clinton years, whereas it worsened under Carter, both Bush Administrations, and Obama.
And since America’s last two presidents have imposed a larger burden of government, it’s no surprise that the United States has fallen in both major global measures of economic freedom.
P.S. On a totally separate issue, I’m not surprised to learn that Republicans who are philosophically corrupt sometimes are personally corrupt as well.
TN should be ahead of NH since so many Boston refugees have invaded that state.
Love Arizona! We spend all of February and March in Cochise County in our fifth wheeler. In fact, we leave SoDak this weekend for Benson, AZ. We’ve made many wonderful, conservative friends there. We try to avoid Phoenix and Tucson. (Hate the big cities) Like to shop in Sierra Vista. Doubt if I would like the summers. Yep, we’re “snowbirds”.
Most of us who came to New Hampshire from Massachusetts are refugees, not invaders. The proof of that statement is in the fact that the two counties with the highest percentage of former Mass. residents (Hillsborough and Rockingham) are also the most reliably Republican.
NO! Texas is not the place to migrate to, if you are wanting to bring along some liberalism.
Texas is too cold. Texas gets too hot. Texas gets too wet. Texas is too dry. Texas has too many that cling to their guns, many many guns. Texas has and uses the death penalty.
Drunken state is the best cause it’s all good when your there and it sucks when you wake up and realize you’ve left
Tennessee has Graceland, Opryland, the Nashville Parthenon, and Dollywood.
So both have some good tourist attractions.
Winter weather? Right now it's 17 degrees in Nashville and 29 in Rapid City, so I guess I'd have to go with South Dakota for winter weather.
The countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea have some of the most beautiful weather on earth, but most of them are socio-political basket cases, as well.
Kinda like California...
South Carolina all the way.
You are 100% correct. The Mediterranean areas, Greece, southern Italy, Sicily, French Riviera...all WONDERFUL places to visit.
However, I don't think California is a socio-political basket case. I disagree with you ONLY because I made mine (thanks to wonderful, supportive husband, family and friends.)
I'm retired and have a FABULOUS life with family and friends.
I have all the wonderful football and baseball teams to root for,
the best food in the world,
Weight Watchers,
a beautiful, paid-for home and
a parish that I love.
I even go to daily Mass, thanks to my stint in Saudi Arabia, where I first began to go to daily Mass, encouraged by my Saudi boss. But that's another story.
For me, life is GOOD. Thank you, Lord!
I understand. I was referring to the libs that leave the hell they create to recreate it in a “red” state. Happens to us here in TN all the time with NY and CA libs coming down here and then whining about our culture or “lack thereof”!
I’m moving from CA to Rockingham Cty. next summer!
:D
All true.
The illegals do the work that Americans WILL NOT do. They are the gardeners, nannies, house cleaners, baby sitters, cooks and general factotums.
They might flood the warm states for the three months of summer for work but THEN they will return home to south of the border to be with their families.
They can work HERE for three months and live off of that money for the other nine months south of the border.
Most can't afford the San Francisco Bay Area: the East Bay, Marin County, the Peninsula or San Francisco. Way, way too expensive to own/live here. They were priced out eons ago.
I guess that means they'll move to the warm and beautiful South: Waaaay down upon the Swaneeeeee River!!!
“”Texas is too cold. Texas gets too hot. Texas gets too wet. Texas is too dry. Texas has too many that cling to their guns, many many guns. Texas has and uses the death penalty.””
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You’r right, in fact, Texas is awful. Too hot in the summer, day after day of 100+ and you will freeze during the winter cold fronts. It is so cold it knocks out the power plants that provide the heating.
In the early part of dang near ever summer we get these huge thunderstorms that have so much lightening it is like artillery barrages and dump hailstone the size of tennis balls. My truck just got busted up by the latest one here in Dallas back last June. The damage was so widespread it took two and a half weeks just to get to an estimator. I didn’t get into a body shop till October. They were all full.
We got killer bees, anthrax in everything from the vegetable gardens to the deer, tornadoes, floods and gigantic wildfires that burn down entire groups of counties.
Fire ants are everywhere. We have been trying to kill them off for a generation, no luck.
There are so many rattlesnakes that Texas doesn’t require a hunting license to just kill`em and I think it is only ten bucks for the massive rattlesnake hunts they have every year. It is still ok to stomp them to death when they come up in your front yard.
The ones going to those snake hunts are something else. Here in Texas it is classified as “recreation.” No joke. No traps allowed, gotta use your hands and a stick.
Also there are coral snakes and 10 kinds of pit vipers, including the copperhead, cottonmouth plus eight rattlesnake species. Piranha in some lakes too. There are World record alligators in the rivers as well. It makes for some interesting fishing trips.
Then there are the feral hogs all over the place. No season. No limit. Standard hunting license and you are good to go after the 300 pounders. Just watch out for the packs of coyotes that run wild day and night.
Mountain lions are pretty much everywhere, including the outer suburbs in far north DFW. They had to shoot one in downtown El Paso last year. About five years ago one was spotted in a downtown Dallas parking garage! Damn things will hop your backyard fence and chow down on your dogs in a blink of an eye.
Then there are the Texans themselves. Wow! The only folks I know that call their AR-15’s “pellet guns.” Dallas county has so many people doing concealed carry I don’t even have to anymore. Darned if they are not just everywhere. And some are toting iron that makes a .45 look like a 22.
Texans take their rifles up in helicopters and kill hogs from the air, Air Assault style! Air Assault... Air Mobile. No joke, they lock the doors open, strap in, fire up the `chopper and swoop down on those big `ol hogs!
Then they come back five hours later and hunt for coyotes over the dead hogs using night-vision rifle scopes and infra-red laser illumination.
Pirates! Down on the southern border you have actual pirates. No joke. Mexican “lake pirates” on the Texas border at Falcon Reservoir and other locations on the Rio Grande!
Texas DPS hunts them with 36 foot gunboats.
The armaments on board include:
+ 5 - static mounted [2 dual & 1 single] FN M240B 7.62×51 mm NATO Light machine guns,
+ 2 - Barrett .50 BMG Sniper Rifles,
+ other assorted 5.56 rifles, 9mm sub machine guns, and grenade launchers.
Everywhere you go the people are almost all Republicans or conservatives OR TEA Party! They actually believe that smaller and smaller government is a good thing. It is difficult to find any correctly CSCOPE educated and enlightened people to talk about global warming, renewable green energy or diversity/inclusiveness!
Any if you want to relax for a year or two and write a book or whatever, forget it! You can’t stay on unemployment for as long as you like because jobs are everywhere. Those drilling and pipeline companies working the shale (dirty) oil boom going on in central Texas are hiring everybody in sight.
Not only all that, they actually allow the operation of huge refineries all over the State and offshore drilling and oil production too! Because the refineries are right there you can’t find gasoline properly priced above $3.20 a gallon ANYWHERE.
They are SO BACKWARDS they have not even passed a State income tax and do not require union labor!
Yea, CSCOPE and common core educated and enlightened people would not like it here. They should not even think about showing up in Texas, it’s just awful.
:-)
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Hot Springs ping
Simmering rage is where I hang my hat.
I like all 57 of them.
Yep. I guess you’re right.
You forgot the fireants
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