[The Champ]

screamingchief...

Not sure why you make so many points about WI in responding to my post - I live in Southern MN - close to IA - one of the top rated states...

Schools (K-12),yeah they kinda suck down here,but I dont have kids,so that does'nt necesarily directly affect guys like me much,so I dont really keep track of those sorta things,but it seems like schools are pretty much screwed up everywere these days.

You may not have kids, but you have to deal with the kids that are attending schools that "kinds suck" (your words, not mine).

You can easily schedule things every week (weekend) of the year if you wanted to.

How did that Super Bowl in Dallas work out for you...

And medical care here is pretty good too,definitely better than it is back where I lived in Wisconsin (Racine),that city is well known as having seriously substandard medical facillities,most folks wont even use the hospital there,they go to Milwaukee (Froedert) or down into Illinois instead.

First of all - Racine is basically part of Illinois.... Secondly - I live 25 miles from the Mayo Clinic in MN - which is my standard of care. Having had the benefit of getting in on Mayo's 2 for 1 surgery special back in 2006 (first surgery I was brought in in an ambulance and as a result of that one they discovered I had cancer) - I really appreciate quality health care. FWIW - on November 6th I will celebrate my 6th anniversary of being cancer free.

As for the crime statistics,those look that way because states like Texas have more than just one major metropolitan area to factor into those numbers,Texas being a really big state has like 4-5 major metro areas to take into account,so that tends to stack up the numbers somewhat compared to less populous states with only one or two metro areas to account for.

Crime rates are calculated on a per capita basis. Texas has more people to spread the crimes over.

Lets see you go golfing,fishing,or drag racing in January-February up in Wisconsin,LOL.

And let's see you try to go downhill skiing, snowmobiling, sliding or ice fishing down in Texas any time of the year...

Every state has pros and cons. And what is a positive for one person can be a negative for another.

I lived in Texas. IMHO it was merely "OK". I have no desire to live there - but that's me. Obviously many people choose to live there - good for them.

[60man]

Originally Posted by Brian Baker

When I retire, it's going to be in a county, in a state, with no state income tax and very few (if any) minorities. Low taxes, and low crime (or no crime) sounds just fine to me.

Find a deserted island Brian..

[shawn e.]

We own acreage in the mountains next to the North Umpqua River. That is my retirement home!

Shanw

[T A 70]

Never going to retire...my kids get the business but I have to make sure they're getting along...I call it "semi-retirement"...doing what I do now...SF Bay Area in the winter/Lake Tahoe in the summer months until the first significant snow.

[2002Z4CSS]

Michigan is right up there!

[sdbob]

We live in the state of taxes.

[virgil381]

Colorado is the place I call home.
Why leave?

[screamingchief]

Originally Posted by The Champ

Not sure why you make so many points about WI in responding to my post - I live in Southern MN - close to IA - one of the top rated states...

It was because you seemed to suggest that states with higher tax burdens automatically had better services & infrastructure as a result of such,and I just dont see that having lived in a state with an overall lower tax burden (Texas) and one with a much higher overall tax burden (Wisconsin).

Despite not having a state income tax,Texas still pulls in a ton more cash than other "tax hungry" states like Wisconsin or Illinois.

We also pull in more taxes than Minnesota does too,,,sorry...

Texas is no. 3 in total state taxes.
Illinois is no. 6 in total state taxes.
Minnesota is no. 12 in total state taxes.
Wisconsin is no. 17 in total state taxes.

That's because we have a whole bunch more people down here.

But that's OK,we got lots of room too!

Originally Posted by The Champ

You may not have kids, but you have to deal with the kids that are attending schools that "kinds suck" (your words, not mine).

Yeah,but you conveniently left out the fact that I also said the schools everywhere are screwed up nowadays,so that's gonna largely be the case most anywhere in the USA right now,one is just as likely to run into that deal in any state of the USA.

Sad but true.

Originally Posted by The Champ

How did that Super Bowl in Dallas work out for you...

Not my kinda leisure time activity,,,so what's the point here???

Thinking about going to the F1 race here in Nov. though...

Originally Posted by The Champ

First of all - Racine is basically part of Illinois....

Well,you would'nt wanna go to Racine and say that to anyones face! LOL...

Reminds of that scene in the movie Stripes:

John Winger: C'mon, it's Czechoslovakia. We zip in, we pick 'em up, we zip right out again. We're not going to Moscow. It's Czechoslovakia. It's like going into Wisconsin.

Russell Ziskey: Well I got the **** kicked out of me in Wisconsin once. Forget it!

Originally Posted by The Champ

Secondly - I live 25 miles from the Mayo Clinic in MN - which is my standard of care. Having had the benefit of getting in on Mayo's 2 for 1 surgery special back in 2006 (first surgery I was brought in in an ambulance and as a result of that one they discovered I had cancer) - I really appreciate quality health care. FWIW - on November 6th I will celebrate my 6th anniversary of being cancer free.

Lemme first say this,congrats on beating the big C man!

Yep,and we have MD Anderson in Houston (among others),matter of fact I got kinfolk that work there in the research dept.

A bit further to drive no doubt,but as I already said that's one of the few things a person has just gotta get used to down here.

Originally Posted by The Champ

Crime rates are calculated on a per capita basis. Texas has more people to spread the crimes over.

But that just completely ignores all the other dynamics that deal involves as well.

Like I said,more metro areas typically means more areas with large concentrations of people with lower incomes,which often includes a given percentage of folks that are prone to commiting crimes,and that can tilt the numbers against those states.

States like New York,Michigan,and Illinois all get "hit" there simply because they have big metro areas in them (NYC,Detroit,Chicago).

Waving the magic "per capita" wand does'nt fix the grey areas of crime reporting statistics,there will always be some things that the "by the numbers" statistics wont account for.

Again,IME I've experienced far less crime down here than I ever did up in Racine,that city has pretty much turned into a real $#!thole these days as all the Chi-town derelicts are moving north looking for greener pastures.

Originally Posted by The Champ

And let's see you try to go downhill skiing, snowmobiling, sliding or ice fishing down in Texas any time of the year...

Again,you have to be the type of person that enjoys doing those things.

Some do,some dont.

Originally Posted by The Champ

Every state has pros and cons. And what is a positive for one person can be a negative for another.

True,and that was kinda my whole point,so we agree here.

Originally Posted by The Champ

I lived in Texas. IMHO it was merely "OK". I have no desire to live there - but that's me. Obviously many people choose to live there - good for them.

You said San Angelo,right?

And that was when,,,back in the early 70's,,,no???

Well,lemme be the first to say that the state of Texas has come a looonnnggg way since back then.

And that would'nt necessarily be the first place I'd recommend to someone planning on moving down here either,LOL.

Honestly,,,ask me that's kinda not even fair to judge the whole state from living there,,,I mean San Angelo is pretty much in the middle of F'n nowhere man...

And way back then to boot,wow I cant even begin to imagine what it was like.

Anyhow,that would be kinda like me Judging the whole state of Minnesota by my last visit to my relatives in Red Wing,nice town mind you,but it's not like it's the bustling hub of current culture or anything of that sort.

BTW,did I forget to mention we got family in Minnesota too?

Yeah,got some kin in Minneapolis/St. Paul area,St. Peter,Red Wing,BTDT a few times,also been to Grand Marais way up north once/twice as well.

So it's not like I dont know squat about Minnesota either.

I like it,dont get me wrong,it's nice enough,beautiful scenery and such,at least in the summer.

Lots of sights driving thru too,I remember Gooseberry falls as being a very scenic stop.

But I also know what the winters are like too,and that's not necessarily my cup o' tea.

So yeah,we end back at the point where we agree,every state has it's pros and cons.

I just tend to play the devils advocate from time to time,it's a hard habit to break.

Fact is I'm likely going to end up back in Wisc. soon enough,and I'm not necessarily looking forward to it either,but there are forces in play that are largely outta my control right now,so I've gotta do what I gotta do.

To me,winter is mostly the time of year for updating & upgrading race cars,LOL.

That or catching up on my computer gaming habit and such.



Bret P.

[400 4spd.]

Originally Posted by poncho-mike

I've been thinking about buying a cabin in the NC mountains for when I retire. The realtor I was talking with said I should consider Tennessee. It's only 20 miles farther, but has no state income tax and fairly low property tax rates.

NC is working on becoming the Massachusetts of the South. We now have toll roads and some of the highest gasoline taxes in the nation. I'm seriously considering moving to SC or TN.

Mike

Mike, here's a nice little cabin In Tennessee for sale. My family used it for vacation a couple of years ago.

http://jane.janeterrell.com/homes/42...7738/26203404/

[70 bird]

I will stay in Michigan on the work till I die retirement program, at least the crusin is good around here.

[The Champ]

Bret...

Keeping this short and only messing with you on this one item...

You said San Angelo,right?

And that was when,,,back in the early 70's,,,no???

Well,lemme be the first to say that the state of Texas has come a looonnnggg way since back then.

And that would'nt necessarily be the first place I'd recommend to someone planning on moving down here either,LOL.

Honestly,,,ask me that's kinda not even fair to judge the whole state from living there,,,I mean San Angelo is pretty much in the middle of F'n nowhere man...

I've also been to Texas this century...

San Angelo may have been the only part of Texas I've lived in, but my sister lives in Austin and has lived in Spring also.

I've spent time in Dallas/Ft Worth.

San Angelo back in the 1970 census had over 63,000 people. That may be the middle of nowhere to you, but I'm a backwoods MN boy that grew up in the largest town (population 16,000) in MN north of Duluth, MN. FWIW - Duluth was 75 miles south.

To get to another town larger than my hometown besides Duluth - going west it was 225 miles to Fargo and North was about 325 miles to Winnipeg, Manitoba - going east it was 225 miles to Thunder Bay, Ontario.

I know the middle of F'n nowhere very well. And San Angelo (even back in the 70's) ain't there...

And as far as San Angelo is concerned - Sperling's Best Places to Live ranks it quite well:

http://www.bestplaces.net/city/texas/san_angelo

But I still ain't moving back there...

[gtobob67]

If you have a wife and grand kids, who are you kidding. As much as we'd like to, we're not going anywhere. Believe me. Wait and see....

[screamingchief]

I hear ya' Champ.

Racine is like 78K population now,and at times in the past was maybe just a bit higher.

And I still look at Racine as a pretty small town,especially seeing as it's wedged smack dab between two much larger cities (Milwaukee & Chicago) (600K & 2.7 Million respectively).

And Austin is like 820K population.

So yeah,to me these days 63K is a fairly small town.

Dont get me wrong,I'm not dogging on San Angelo here.

But geographically speaking,to some San Angelo is still kinda "out there".

168 miles to Lubbock.
179 miles to Austin.
182 miles to San Antonio.
200+ miles to DFW.

Now by Texas driving standards that's not all that far to be honest,but tell someone from up in my hometown that your gonna drive that far,and they'll freak out,heck they think driving to Milwaukee or Chicago is a really big deal,LOL.

To me that distance (Racine to Milwaukee -or- Chicago) is like driving from our place here on the northside of Austin,to the south side to see my brother & SIL (which is NBD,that is unless you hit rush hour traffic),but yeah down here driving 40-50 miles (one way) for any reason is'nt even given a second thought,and driving 100+ miles is pretty common.

But I totally agree everything is relative to one's given perspective on that sorta thing.

I guess I've just grown used to being kinda close to things,and living close to (or in) bigger cities.

Been an interesting chat,I always appreciate getting a different perspective on things.



Bret P.

[Philo]

I was born in PA, but moved to NY just after I turned 16. I moved around some in the service and vacations, and there are a lot of good places out there. The good part is that when I am out of state and cross back into NY, I feel like I am home again. I am retired (for 12 years), but have taken a part-time job. At this point, I could not imagine moving anywhere. "Western" (far upstate) NY has beautiful hills and forests, lakes etc., something for everyone. In addition, I have a granddaughter who I spend a lot of time with and I could never move away and leave her.

[necdb3]

Anywhere but New Jersey

[Stuckinda60s]

Here are the full rankings for all 50 states: Illinois ranks surprisingly well at #15. PA is at #21, they don't tax Social Security or pensions. I don't understand why they only posted 50 States, I don't know what happened to the other seven.

1. Texas
2. Kentucky
3. Oklahoma
4. Iowa
5. Louisiana
6. Virginia
7. Mississippi
8. South Dakota
9. Tennessee
10. Kansas
11. Nebraska
12. Missouri
13. Hawaii
14. New Mexico
15. Illinois
16. North Dakota
17. Utah
18. Georgia
19. Arkansas
20. Wyoming
21. Pennsylvania
22. Alabama
23. New Hampshire
24. Indiana
25. Arizona
26. Delaware
27. Colorado
28. South Carolina
29. West Virginia
30. Florida
31. Montana
32. California
33. Idaho
34. North Carolina
35. Ohio
36. Vermont
37. Nevada
38. Minnesota
39. Oregon
40. New Jersey
41. Wisconsin
42. New York
43. Washington
44. Rhode Island
45. Maryland
46. Alaska
47. Connecticut
48. Massachusetts
49. Michigan
50. Maine

[Bob Hall]

I don't....will probably kick the bucket of some hereditary disease before I can retire.

[Hammertime Mike]

: I don't know what happened to the other seven.

I think after Nov. 6th those other seven states won't matter anymore.

[Ron]

Hey Shawn e...just got back from a few days of fishing on the North Umpqua. Four nice rainbow trout. Also fished Calapooya Creek down by your area and caught five rainbow trout.

Some friends of our recently purchased 52 acres and Calapooya Creek runs thru it. They live just outside of Sutherlin.

Went to the coast for two days and ate myself full of fresh scalops, clams, oysters, and shrimp.

Thinking of building a summer home in Eugene.

[shawn e.]

Originally Posted by Ron

Hey Shawn e...just got back from a few days of fishing on the North Umpqua. Four nice rainbow trout. Also fished Calapooya Creek down by your area and caught five rainbow trout.

Some friends of our recently purchased 52 acres and Calapooya Creek runs thru it. They live just outside of Sutherlin.

Went to the coast for two days and ate myself full of fresh scalops, clams, oysters, and shrimp.

Thinking of building a summer home in Eugene.

Wow small world. Sutherlin is kind of a funky little town. But the area is a gateway to some great outdoors. Your friends must be out Nonpareil I run out that way quite a bit. Eugene has lots of culture and city feel but you can escape easily if needed. Let me know if you are ever back in my area or Eugene!

Shawn