The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave—or
the Land of the Restricted and Home of the Timid?
On July 4, 1776, we Americans started on our way to
independence and freedom.
How far have we gotten, 225 years later?
Are we still the land of the free and the
home of the brave?
Or have we become the land of the restricted
and home of the timid?
It depends on where you live.
George Mason University comes out with a
report once every 2 years or so which ranks states
by how free or un-free they are.
It’s a state-by-state analysis of personal,
social, and economic liberties.
It ranks states on the amount of government
intervention on economic freedom, regulatory
freedom, and personal freedom.
Freedom is broadly defined as a person’s
right to dispose of their lives, liberties and
properties as they see fit, as long as they don’t
infringe on the rights of others.
I’m proud to say I live in the 6th most free state,
Nevada.
I love it here.
It’s not just the great weather.
It’s something intangible.
I wasn’t sure what that intangible something
was until a few days ago when I read the George
Mason University report.
That intangible something is the feeling of
freedom!
I lived in the 4 most un-free states at
different times in my life, and I didn’t like living
in any of them.
They are Hawaii (number 47), California (48),
New Jersey (49), and (ugh!) New York (50).
I didn’t stay long in any of these 4 states.
Overall, the most free states in the US are New
Hampshire and South Dakota.
They’re in a virtual tie for first place?
The least free?
New York—by a considerable margin.
On personal freedom alone, Oregon is first,
with Vermont and Nevada not too far behind.
Dead last is Maryland.
On economic freedom alone, South Dakota is
way, way on top, and New York, is way, way at the
bottom.
Why is New York so low?
Because it has by far the highest taxes in
the US, the strictest health insurance regulations,
and some of the most restrictive tobacco and gun
laws.
Maybe this is why New Yorkers have a reputation for
rudeness—they lead miserable lives and so they snarl
at everybody around them.
And New Hampshire people take their state
motto, “Live free or die” seriously!
They value their freedom.
So do South Dakotans.
Their state motto is “Under God, the people
rule.”
I loved living in South Dakota.
But extremely cold winters made me leave that
wonderful state.
How free do
you feel this Fourth of July weekend?
Look at the ranks of the 50 states, from most
free to least free.
If you live in a state toward the bottom,
I’ll bet you don’t feel very free.
If you live in a state toward the top, I’ll
bet you feel pretty good.
The icing on the cake are states with @’s.
They have no state income tax:
1. New Hampshire@
2. South Dakota@
3. Indiana
4. Idaho
5. Missouri
6. Nevada@
7. Colorado
8. Oregon
9. Virginia
10. North Dakota
11. Florida@
12. Oklahoma
13. Iowa
14. Texas@
15. Georgia
16. Tennessee@
17. Kansas
18. North Carolina
19. Alabama
20. Utah
21. Wyoming@
22. Arizona
23. Nebraska
24. Mississippi
25. Wisconsin
26. South Carolina
27. Michigan
28. Arkansas
29. Montana
30. Vermont
31. Pennsylvania
32. Kentucky
33. Maine
34. Minnesota
35. Louisiana
36. West Virginia
37. New Mexico
38. Connecticut
39. Delaware
40. Washington@
41. Illinois
42. Ohio
43. Maryland
44. Alaska@
45. Rhode Island
46. Massachusetts
47. Hawaii
48. California
49. New Jersey
50. New York
@ = no state income tax.
9 states.
(Although New Hampshire and Tennessee don’t
tax earned
income, they do tax
unearned
income—interest, dividends.)
I have lived in 6 of these 9 states—South
Dakota, Nevada, Florida, Texas, Tennessee, and
Wyoming.
All of us value freedom.
Reading this article may encourage you to
move to a different state.
It takes courage, bravery, to move.
It’s a big decision.
If you move, you’re not alone.
The article said that more and more Americans
are voting with their feet and “moving to states
with more economic and personal freedom—those states
with less government intervention.”
It also said you’d make more money by
moving—as the article put it, “economic freedom
correlates with income growth.”
As the Star Spangled Banner says, this is the
land of the free and the home of the brave.
If you’re not free, be brave enough to move.
The link to the full article is
http://mercatus.org/freedom-50-states-2011.
Happy Freedom Day, folks!
Copyright (c) 2011 by Dr. Donald W. Hendon
Noted consultant, speaker, and trainer Donald Hendon
is the author of
365
Powerful Ways to Influence.
Download chapter 1 free of charge at
www.donaldhendon.com.
There are 6 kinds of tactics:
Assertive (121 of them), defensive (92),
submissive (16), cooperative (24), dirty tricks
(81), plus 31 tactics to prepare you for your
negotiations.
Don lives in Mesquite, Nevada, near Las Vegas