Mercatus Center of George Mason University recently released a ranking of the states on their policies affecting both personal and economic freedoms.
The study defines individual freedom as “the ability to dispose of one’s own life, liberty, and justly acquire property however one sees fit, so long as one does not coercively infringe on other individual’s ability to do the same.”
The freest state is New Hampshire, followed by Colorado, Texas, South Dakota, and Idaho. New York is the least free, followed by New Jersey, Rhode Island, Maryland, and California.
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Here is the Texas analysis:
Texas (#7 Economic, #5 Personal, #5 Overall) has one of the smallest state governments in the country. Nevertheless, as one of us who lives in Texas can testify, there are plenty of areas where improvement is needed.
As a percentage of corrected GSP, Texas has the second lowest tax burden in the country and the third lowest grants-adjusted government spending. However, government employment is a standard deviation higher than the national average.
Gun control is better than average, but the state falls short on open-carry laws, stricter-than-federal minimum age for purchase rules, and dealer licensing.
Alcohol is less regulated than in most other states, and taxes are low. Low-level marijuana cultivation is a misdemeanor, but otherwise marijuana laws are very harsh. Texas does not authorize sobriety checkpoints.
Private and home schools are almost completely unregulated. Labor laws are generally good, except for a prevailing wage law . Texas is the only state not to require employers to contribute to worker's compensation coverage.
While Texas has only light community rating, it has imposed coverages on health insurance increasing the cost of premiums by more than 63%.
Texas is one of the leaders in telecom and cable "deregulation". Unfortunately, eminent domain has not been extensively reformed. The state's liability system is much worse than average, ending the election of judges may help here.
There are no smoking bans on private property.
July 4, 2009
States Freedom Index
July 3, 2009
July 2, 2009
vagary
vagary\VAY-guh-ree; vuh-GER-ee\ , noun:
1.An extravagant, erratic, or unpredictable notion, action, or occurrence.
I used the plural of vagary in a recent post, but had to go look it up to make sure I was spelling it correctly. I've heard it used before, but the pronunciation was "vagarity", which isn't even a word...unless it's a cross between vagary and vulgarity.
"That *&%$#&* sure is unpredictable!"
Dress for Success
This article about a cross-dresser which was referenced in a blog I subscribe to reminded me of a guy here in town who also likes to dress in women's clothes. I know the guy, having roughnecked with him on a couple of drilling rigs.
It was several years ago in late fall when I walked into a nearby convenience store and saw the guy at the counter, all "dolled up" and buying a six-pack of beer. The clerk didn't even bother to hide her shock, and as she waited on the guy her jaw stayed dropped nearly to the floor. There was another clerk and a few other people in the store, but they were on the other side of the two-register store and all were staring at him.
I stepped to the side of the guy and greeted him, asked him what he was doing and who he was working for these days. We chatted for a minute, then he took his beer and left, walking out of the store in his white high heels and matching skirt with white, patterned stockings.
The clerk turned to me, her mouth still gaped open and asked "You know that guy?" I told her I did, told her his name and mentioned we used to roughneck together.
She shook her head and said "But you were so matter-of-fact, just talking to him when he was dressed so weird! I was freakin' out! Weren't you shocked by how he looked?"
I replied "Yep, I was shocked too....."
"I couldn't believe he was wearing white after Labor Day!"
