Alaska

[d_goddard]

All the Statist crap in the legislature got a lot of people peeved lately, and someone said, "Alaska is looking better and better"
Well, it's a good state demographically (libertarian-leaning), but a few minutes of looking convinced me that while on some issues Alaska is "better" than NH, from a fundamental/structural standpoint, it is NOT attractive. Whereas the entire structure of NH government is amenable to divestment, Alaska could go only a short way, and would quickly run up against extremely entrenched interests.
This is not meant to be Alaska-bashing; obviously, Alaska has many tens of thousands of liberty-loving people who are passionate about their freedoms. This is just a rational look at some hard facts.

* The monthly salary for each member of the legislature is $2,001 -- that's not huge, but it's enough to live on, unlike the true volunteer NH legislature ($8.33 per month)

* The state population is about half of that of NH; the number of State Reps is one tenth (40 Reps). Ergo, there is 5 times less direct representation.

* Rampant conflicts of interest, as legislator "volunteers" typically work in the fishing or tourism sector, and have huge incentive to reward friends and punish enemies.

* Exacerbating the above issue, Alaskan legislators are immune from prosecution during the legislative session

* Many rural communities in Alaska have completely outlawed import of alcohol

* Less than 1% of Alaska is privately owned; 65% of Alaska is owned and managed by the U.S. federal government

* While Alaska has no state sales tax, 89 municipalities collect a local sales tax

* the state regularly takes in more federal money than it gives out

[eques]

Irony alert!

[KBCraig]

Thanks, Denis!

[Russell Kanning]

The Shire doesn't have any federally funded bridges to nowhere.

Maybe we should tell politician that they should move to other states including Alaska for the higher pay.

[Rochelle]

Aside from that, Alaska is WAY to damn cold.

The end.

[Dreepa]

Aside from that, Alaska is WAY to damn cold.

The end.

Careful of that comment... many crybabies say that NH is too cold.

[eques]

Ocean currents cause parts of Alaska (especially Juneau and Anchorage) to be on par in the winter with New Hampshire.  As a further example, the latitude of the southern UK is around 550 miles north of New Hampshire's latitude, yet the island's winters are much milder than most of the northeastern US.

It all depends where you put yourself.

And do you really have to call them crybabies?  Some people genuinely do not like cold weather.  I, on the other hand, love it--I can't stand the heat though.  Does that make me a crybaby? 

[d_goddard]

Some people genuinely do not like cold weather ...

... more than they do not like being owned by the State.
So, they stay warm, and owned.
No thanks.

[Dreepa]

And do you really have to call them crybabies?

yes I do.

[eques]

Machismo alert!

[error]

What cold weather?

I've only been surprised because the weather has been much drier than I expected. I mean it's Mojave desert bone dry, albeit not quite as warm. I guess this is not something that happens all the time?

[Rochelle]

Careful of that comment... many crybabies say that NH is too cold.

Actually that's the reason why I said it. If people think NH is too cold, then what the hell will they do in Alaska? And even if the Ocean currents manage to keep Alaska on par with NH as far as the coastal regions go, it still doesn't change the fact that it gets wicked dahk up there in the winter and stays light so long in the summer. That really, really drives me nuts. And there is nothing you can do about it either.

I've only been surprised because the weather has been much drier than I expected. I mean it's Mojave desert bone dry, albeit not quite as warm. I guess this is not something that happens all the time?

It is, winters in the Northeast are apparently really dry. I was surprised because I figured they would be wetter. But they're not. I bought a vaporizor and a humidifier for this reason. I'm using the vaporizor to keep my room nice and humid, but if you want to borrow the humidifier, I believe it's in the downstairs living room.

[Lloyd Danforth]

Ocean currents cause parts of Alaska (especially Juneau and Anchorage) to be on par in the winter with New Hampshire.  As a further example, the latitude of the southern UK is around 550 miles north of New Hampshire's latitude, yet the island's winters are much milder than most of the northeastern US.

It all depends where you put yourself.

And do you really have to call them crybabies?  Some people genuinely do not like cold weather.  I, on the other hand, love it--I can't stand the heat though.  Does that make me a crybaby? 

Probably.....about something

[Tom Sawyer]

The real drag about Alaska is you have to cross an international border to get to and from the mainland US.

In addition things are very expensive there.

People armchair dreaming about the perfect freedom location are searching for something that doesn't exist... we have to make it.

[eques]

Probably.....about something

The real drag about Alaska is you have to cross an international border to get to and from the mainland US.

In addition things are very expensive there.

People armchair dreaming about the perfect freedom location are searching for something that doesn't exist... we have to make it.

It's too bad there are so many people who are invested in protecting the integrity of an imaginary line...

The cost of living would concern me a bit more, however.

It's not about whether Alaska or New Hampshire was a better choice... the fact of the matter is, WE VOTED ON IT.  GET OVER IT.

... right? 

(Well, I didn't vote on it, but that's immaterial--it's already been decided, so nyah!)