Posted on 03/14/2009 8:13:15 AM PDT by Just A Nobody
This paper presents the first-ever comprehensive ranking of the American states on their public policies affecting individual freedoms in the economic, social, and personal spheres.
[snip]
This study improves on prior attempts to score economic freedom for American states in three primary ways:
(1) it includes measures of social and personal freedoms such as peaceable citizens’ rights to educate their own children, own and carry firearms, and be free from unreasonable search and seizure;
(2) it includes far more variables, even on economic policies alone, than prior studies, and there are no missing data on any variable; and
(3) it uses new, more accurate measurements of key variables, particularly state fiscal policies.
[snip]
We find that the freest states in the country are New Hampshire, Colorado, and South Dakota, which together achieve a virtual tie for first place.
All three states feature low taxes and government spending and middling levels of regulation and paternalism.
New York is the least free by a considerable margin, followed by New Jersey, Rhode Island, California, and Maryland.
On personal freedom alone, Alaska is the clear winner, while Maryland brings up the rear.
The data used to create the rankings are publicly available online at www.statepolicyindex.com, and we invite others to adopt their own weights to see how the overall state freedom rankings change.
[Note: By clicking on the "statepolicyindex" link you have the ability to download the PDF File of the study and see graphs and a great map color coding the levels of freedom for each state.]
(Excerpt) Read more at mercatus.org ...
Hawaii, Washington, Illinois, Connecticut and Massachusetts complete the bottom ten.
I found this study while investigating the Buckeye Institute, where they announced:
Ohio Ranks 38th in Freedom Index
Congratulations, Ohio! We were just ranked a distressing 38th in a nationwide index of personal and economic freedom.
*sigh*
look at the data.
abortion is a “personal freedom”....for whom?
this index is garbage
Wonder what the numbers would have been 50 years ago? I know there are a lot more government paychecks at all levels in my county compared to my teen years.Definitely more people whose job it is to watch,inspect,and issue various permits.Even an overdue library book can now result in letter regarding possible felony theft of taking from public institution!
It is also evil.
The difficulty is differentiating between freedom with personal responsibility and uncaring freedom of anarchy.
Per capita income
Connecticut – $28,766
District of Columbia – $28,659
New Jersey – $27,006
Massachusetts – $25,952
Maryland – $25,614
Colorado – $24,049
Virginia – $23,975
New Hampshire – $23,844
New York – $23,389
Delaware – $23,305
Minnesota – $23,198
Illinois – $23,104
Washington – $22,973
California – $22,711
Alaska – $22,660
Michigan – $22,168
Nevada – $21,989
Rhode Island – $21,688
United States of America – $21,587
Florida – $21,557
Hawaii – $21,525
Wisconsin – $21,271
Georgia – $21,154
Ohio – $21,003
Oregon – $20,940
Pennsylvania – $20,880
Vermont – $20,625
Kansas – $20,506
Indiana – $20,397
North Carolina – $20,307
Arizona – $20,275
Missouri – $19,936
Iowa – $19,674
Texas – $19,617
Nebraska – $19,613
Maine – $19,367
Tennessee – $19,393
Wyoming – $19,134
South Carolina – $18,795
Alabama – $18,189
Utah – $18,185
Kentucky – $18,093
Idaho – $17,841
North Dakota – $17,769
Oklahoma – $17,646
South Dakota – $17,562
New Mexico – $17,261
Montana – $17,151
Louisiana – $16,912
Arkansas – $16,904
West Virginia – $16,477
Mississippi – $15,853
Great question! I often ask the same question referring to 20 or 30 years ago.
>>”...Congratulations, Ohio! We were just ranked a distressing 38th...”<<
Be happy you don’t live in New York! Not sure if I’m allowed to say that, but will check with authorities before they show up on my doorstep.
Perhaps...I just found it interesting.
Polls *spit* are garbage as well, but they are posted several times a day.
Under Obama, states rights are disappearing fast. In fact the federal government is usurping so much of states rights that at the rate we are going our country will be a complete communist country by the end of Obamas first term.
Everyone needs to read the definitions of "freedom" in the study. NOT what most Conservatives would consider freedoms.
Beforw eveyone get excited about this you may want to drill down to much of what is actually wrtten. Example: this survey does not take kindly to states like mine (Georgia) thaty are “Right To Work” states.
Now I have not read all the way through this, but being very familiar with what comes out of GMU, I bet when I’m finished with this I will call BS on it.
In the top 10 in freedom AND income:
New Hampshire, $23,844
Colorado, $24,049
Virginia, $23,975
In the BOTTOM 10 in freedom and TOP 10 in income:
New York $23,389
New Jersey, $27,006
Maryland $25,614
Connecticut $28,766
Massachusetts $25,952
TRUST ME I am. However, my daughter lives there. ;*(
I see you are an optimist. I placed my bet on the 2010 midterms...if they are permitted.
Less federal government meddling in Alaska's sovereign affairs as a state and they would rate on the or close to the top in ALL aspects.
Oooops, my bad! It does fall within the 4 hour catagory since it was posted 2 weeks and 2 days ago.
The mods can pull the thread if they so choose.
Maryland is 47th, but as Der Leader would say: 47 out of 57 is not all that bad... < /sarcasm>
I see a political likeness with these "bottom ten" states...
At the very least this study should get people to discussing the idea of freedom; what it is, how much we have lost, can we regain what we've lost.
This reminds of the so called best cities to live in.
There must be a Starbucks, a liberal university/college, have mass transit that probably doesn’t work and other criteria many of us could care less about or don’t want.
Colorado has been under left assualt for decades with the likes Faux Professor Churchill and the current governor and left week legislature, legislating everything they can.
I don’t know about NH with the exception of so many well off gays moving there from California the past 4-6 years to make California look moderate after they get through with NH.
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