Please rank the top 10 states in which to live.

[Keith and stuff]

And please list your reasons. If there is already a thread on this, please post it or let me know. Thanks.

10 states is a lot to ask. I'll do some.

1. New Hampshire. It has by far the largest liberty community per capita in the world so if you like being around liberty people, it's substantially better than anywhere else. It has most of the unique things that people look for in a state: historic past, access to major cities, access to major transportation, access to major entertainment events, mountains (including the most hiked mountains in the Western World), rivers, large lakes, the ocean, near-by states with different cultures, a foreign border, an excellent job market, very low crime, very low poverty... NH is also the freest or near about state and the 1 state where a plan that might work to actually increase freedom exists.
2/4/5. States that are near NH but more appealing to you. For example, if you cannot imagine yourself living anywhere other than a $2,000 a month luxury apartment near a subway line, you can live in Boston but enjoy much of what NH has to offer, whenever you want. If you believe medical care is a human right, you can live in VT on the border with NH. If you are certain that the world will end soon, you can have a lake cabin in NH but your main house a couple hours away in ME.
6/7. A winter home/trailer/RV/studio in AL/FL on or near the Gulf Coast. The Gulf Coast has white sand, pretty water that is pleasant to swim in, access to major entertainment and something for most people's budget. It is also more protected from ocean storms than the Atlantic Coast in FL/GA/SC. It isn't a nice place to be in the summer unless you spend almost all of your time indoors or in the water, though.

 

[mad cow]

I'm not sure about the mild weather. I guess compared to some places it's mild but it can be very humid at least here in the mountains. Depending on where you buy the acreage might be more vertical than horizontal. We were lucky and found an old fixer-upper with about an acre that's fairly flat and doesn't flood.
It's not too bad for homeschooling though. And the guys can go out and shoot their guns in the yard.

Yeah,mild is relative.Not as hot and humid as points south,not as gosh darn cold as States to the north,but still with four seasons which I would like,especially with all the hardwoods.No earthquakes or hurricanes,very few tornados and fewer blizzards.

It is hurricane season here in southeast Virginia and I sweat through every one.I have 2 acres of swampland that sits about 5 feet above mean low water and I can hit standing saltwater with a rock at low tide from my back porch.
Underhanded.

 

[James Madison]

Anyways, here are my thoughts.

-----Best States-----

1. Idaho
Pros: Boise is One of the Country's Best Cities (Clean, Low Crime, Increasing High-Tech Presence, Strong Economy), Decent Tax and Gun Laws, Gorgeous Forests in
the Panhandle, Excellent Retreat Sites, Coeur D'Alene, Surprisingly Warm Climate Due to Maritime Influence
Cons: Average Soil, Winters are Bad Near Yellowstone and the Canadian Boarder

2. Wyoming
Pros: No Major Population Centers, Frontier Spirit in Much of State, Good Tax and Firearms Laws
Cons: No Major Population Centers, Harsh Climate, Food Would Be Hard to Come By in a Collapse Scenario, Gave Us Dick Cheney

3. Utah
Pros: Nice People, Beautiful Landscape, Excellent Retreat Sites, Decent Population Centers
Cons: Most Land is Federally Owned, Isolated, Climate Can Be Harsh, Poor Soil, Majority LDS Population (if that isn't your thing)

4. Montana
Pros: Good Tax Laws, Strong Gun Rights, Retreat Sites in Western Part of the State, Libertarian Bent in Local Politics
Cons: Harsh Climate, Increasing West Coast Presence in Goverment, Massive Nuclear Weapon Field near Great Falls, Majority of Land is Federally Owned, Little to No
Available Farmland

5. Tennessee
Pros: Favorable Tax Laws, Warm Climate, Good People, Strong Economy With Many Job Opportunities, Eastern Tennessee is a Great Retreat Site
Cons: Surrounded By Large Population Centers (Memphis, Nashville, Atlanta), Humid, Ice Storms in the Winter

6. Arizona
Pros: Solid Gun Rights, Excellent Retreat Sites in the North, Climate is Warm Year-Round
Cons: Poor Soil, Water Must Be Brought In From Other States, Proximity to U.S.-Mexican Boarder

7. New Hampshire
Pros: Tax Laws are Decent, Libertarian Representation at Local and State Level, Scenic Forests
Cons: Proximity to East Coast Population Centers, High Latitiude Climate, Massholes

8. Colorado
Pros: Beautiful Scenery, Great Retreat Sites, Were it Not For Denver, Colorado Would Be My Top Pick
Cons: Most Residents Are Either West Coast Liberals or Evangelical Christian Conservatives, Worsening Gun Rights, Increasing Tax Rates, Denver is Basically the
Washington D.C. of the West

9. Kentucky
Pros: Great Farmland, Friendly People, Eastern Kentucky is a Great Retreat Site
Cons: Environmental Regulations Have Really Hurt the State's Economy, Inferior in Almost Every Way to Its Neighbor Tennessee

10. Alaska
Pros: No Income Tax, Plenty of Open Space, Gun Laws, Strong Libertarian Bent
Cons: Punishing Climate, Wild Animals Can Be Extremely Dangerous, Isolated, Dependent On Imports For Much of the Year, At Risk of Being Occupied By Asian Powers


-----Worst States-----

10. California
Pros: Excellent Climate Along the Coastline, Near Unlimited Agricultural Potential
Cons: Terrible Gun Laws, High Taxes, Heavy Risk of Natural Disasters, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland

9. New York
Pros: Adirondacks Are Beautiful, Western New York State is Alright, Fun Place to Visit
Cons: New York City, Tax Laws, Non-Existent Gun Rights, Epicenter of the Police State, Massive Risk of Social Unrest

8. Massachusetts
Pros: Northwestern Part of the State is Nice
Cons: Everything Else

7.Delaware
Pros: None
Cons: Horrific Tax Laws, Gun Rights are Non-Existent, Proximity to Urban Centers

6. Maryland
Pros: Western Part of the State Isn't Bad...
Cons: ...Everywhere Else Is, Horrible Tax Laws, No Gun Rights, Densely Populated, Massive Urban Centers, Baltimore, Huge Potential For Social Unrest

5. Florida
Pros: Warm Climate Can Be Nice in Times of Peace
Cons: 'Do Not Inhabit' Region in a Collapse Scenario, Hot, Humid, High Risk of Hurriances, Insects Can Be Overwhelming Without Pesticide, East, West, South Escape
Routes Cut-Off By Ocean, Poor Climate for Growing Most Crops

4. Connecticut
Pros: None
Cons: Highest Cost of Living, Abysmal Gun Laws, High Taxes, Densely Populated and Close to Massive Urban Centers

3. New Jersey
Pros: None
Cons: High Cost of Living, Very High Population Density, Massive Population Centers on All Sides, Terrible Laws, East and South Escape Routes Impeded by Seawater

2. Hawaii
Pros: Tropical Climate
Cons: Completely Isolated From Mainland, Impossible to Evacuate, Terrible Gun Laws, High Risk of Natural Disasters (Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Hurricanes), Likely to be
Occupied in the Future

1. Rhode Island
Pros: None
Cons: Horrible Tax Laws, Gun Rights Are Abysmal, Highest Population Density of Any State, Surrounded On All Sides By Massive Population Centers

 

[MelissaWV]

Some of your lists are startlingly full of incorrect information.

 

[TaftFan]

Funny you should mention ND. A friend of Mark's just told us recently that there are jobs galore there - well paying jobs. I've lived in the SW my whole life though. I don't know if I can handle the frigid cold.

It's largely oil field related, though some also attribute it to the state bank.

 

[ronpaulfollower999]

I'd say the best state is the state of happiness.

Worst states are state of confusion, state of shock, state of fear, state of denial, and state of panic.

 

[WM_in_MO]

Considering that St Charles county welt to Ron Paul last year... I'll stay here in SCC MO!

 

[eduardo89]

I'd say the best state is the state of happiness.

Worst states are state of confusion, state of shock, state of fear, state of denial, and state of panic.

The best state is engorged.

 

[ronpaulfollower999]

The best state is engorged.

Is that pope approved behavior?

 

[Halo]

Also consider north-east Oregon. I recently bought a 20 acre farm (5 acres useable, the rest too rugged) in Wallowa Co. 120 large fruit and nut trees with plenty of great deer-fenced soil for other crops. It's lower (1700 ft.) than nearly all the land around it so it affords a much longer growing season.
7,000 people in the county and zero stop lights. Open carry is common. My place is even isolated for this area, next to a river full of fish and surrounded by great hunting.
The downside in comparison to Idaho is that it's attached politically to the Californicated cities west of the Cascades.

I've lived in SoCal my whole life but this is not the place to be in a fast collapse. 20 million people with ocean on one side and desert on the other? No thanks.

 

[klamath]

Central panhandle of Idaho. Places in Idaho CO- Orofino, Kamiah. Voted for RP. No building code. Masses of wild cherry, plum raspberry black berry, fairly good to excellent soil, especially on the Palouse plateau, good fish and game populations, timber and grassland. Winters not too bad along the Clearwater river.
Drawback, my FNL will kill me when more GD libertarians move there now.

 

[James Madison]

Central panhandle of Idaho. Places in Idaho CO- Orofino, Kamiah. Voted for RP. No building code. Masses of wild cherry, plum raspberry black berry, fairly good to excellent soil, especially on the Palouse plateau, good fish and game populations, timber and grassland. Winters not too bad along the Clearwater river.
Drawback, my FNL will kill me when more GD libertarians move there now.

This would be my choice as well. And more libertarians can only be a good thing.

Here's a listing of available property. It will give you an idea of what to expect.

http://www.landwatch.com/Idaho_land_for_sale/Idaho

 

[fisharmor]

What are you looking for? Virginia is the best place in the world for me, but it's not universally the best place for everyone.

It's the best for me, too.
Mountains. Rivers. Ocean. A huge bay. Forests.
Fishing. Hunting. Trapping.
HISTORY.

Seasons. Today it was the hottest day of the year - and the hottest day I remember in a long time - 97. In a lot of other states, that would simply be called "Thursday".
It might drop below freezing for 15-20 days of the year. Enough to get occasional snow, but not walls of the stuff.

Multiculturalism without socialism. I don't know of another state where you get that. I can get Pho or Tapas or Brazilian Barbecue and I can do it strapped.

VCDL. No state-based gun rights organization compares.

Plus, Daniel Harmon-Wright is in prison here.

 

[James Madison]

Also consider north-east Oregon. I recently bought a 20 acre farm (5 acres useable, the rest too rugged) in Wallowa Co. 120 large fruit and nut trees with plenty of great deer-fenced soil for other crops. It's lower (1700 ft.) than nearly all the land around it so it affords a much longer growing season.
7,000 people in the county and zero stop lights. Open carry is common. My place is even isolated for this area, next to a river full of fish and surrounded by great hunting.
The downside in comparison to Idaho is that it's attached politically to the Californicated cities west of the Cascades.

I've lived in SoCal my whole life but this is not the place to be in a fast collapse. 20 million people with ocean on one side and desert on the other? No thanks.

Oregon would be Top 5 easily were it not for Portland. Pretty much the Illinois of the West Coast, in that regard.

 

[Ender]

Like the high mountains of Utah.

People are nice and considerate of their neighbors. Communities are very prepared and organized to help each other. Snow season isn't bad and is also not desert hot in the summer. Lots of cattle ranches and farms, but still close to cultural cities. Gun laws are the least restrictive. Also, running streams and rivers.

 

[cjm]

It's the best for me, too.
Mountains. Rivers. Ocean. A huge bay. Forests.
Fishing. Hunting. Trapping.
HISTORY.

Seasons. Today it was the hottest day of the year - and the hottest day I remember in a long time - 97. In a lot of other states, that would simply be called "Thursday".
It might drop below freezing for 15-20 days of the year. Enough to get occasional snow, but not walls of the stuff.

Multiculturalism without socialism. I don't know of another state where you get that. I can get Pho or Tapas or Brazilian Barbecue and I can do it strapped.

VCDL. No state-based gun rights organization compares.

Plus, Daniel Harmon-Wright is in prison here.

Great summary. I like the phrase "multiculturalism without socialism." I'm more of a Gyro fan myself, but there's something for everyone here. There are even hippies in Floyd County (9th CD). Here's a writeup from Garden and Gun magazine (basically the Sunset magazine for the South):

Floyd, Virginia
Music is only one of this town’s high notes
Population: 432

Why You Should Move Here To oversimplify Floyd, Virginia’s charms, think of a modern-day Mayberry—with a good Mexican cantina. But, really, Floyd is more interesting than that. Tucked just beneath the Blue Ridge Parkway, atop a mountain plateau at roughly 2,500 feet, Floyd has redbrick storefronts and an easygoing, eco-minded style. While a sign hanging outside the Floyd Country store reads Loitering Allowed, and just down the street sits the Mayberry-esque Floyd Barber Shop (no kidding), the town and its outlying farmland are as likely populated by people who abandoned urban careers when their woodworking or weaving hobbies took off as they are by farmers whose families have been here for centuries.

more at: http://gardenandgun.com/article/southern-dream-towns-0/page/0/1

As for the VCDL, is there a national gun rights organization that compares???

See you on lobby day, brother!

 

[oyarde]

Some of the worst commie states have been listed here . At the same time , much is geographical within a state, taxes , anti liberty laws etc for the most are not .That eliminates the west coast . There are many choices,but you may not like the climates, you have the UP in Michigan, too cold for me in my old age, Northern Idaho, the Dakotas, Southern Indiana, Kentucky, pretty much down hill fom there....

 

[BuddyRey]

Does anyone know how the various U.S. Outlying Islands and Territories rank alongside the states? For example, I'm really interested in the Virgin Islands since they went for Ron Paul last year.

More importantly, do you need a passport to travel to these locations?

 

[James Madison]

Does anyone know how the various U.S. Outlying Islands and Territories rank alongside the states? For example, I'm really interested in the Virgin Islands since they went for Ron Paul last year.

More importantly, do you need a passport to travel to these locations?

I would not recommend an Island. They are often dependent on imports, prone to occupation, and are at high risk of natural disasters. Most importantly, a boat or plane is your only method of transportation should you have to flee.

 

[James Madison]

Does anyone know how the various U.S. Outlying Islands and Territories rank alongside the states? For example, I'm really interested in the Virgin Islands since they went for Ron Paul last year.

More importantly, do you need a passport to travel to these locations?

I would not recommend an Island. They are often dependent on imports, prone to occupation, and are at high risk of natural disasters. Most importantly, a boat or plane is your only method of transportation should you have to flee.