Will people move to states where their views are the norm?
 

If state's rights make each state very different from one another, will it cause people to move to a state that match their views more? Or will people consider it too much work and too risky to find a new job, new friends and a new house?

There are state's trying to ban smoking in public places for instance. Would a smoker move to Nevada from California? I don't see people moving states because of the abortion legality, but it might be a possibility. What happens if the taxes get too high and favor the majority when you are the minority? Or if Wal-Mart and the other big box stores come in and make shopping simpler, but make you feel like an ant to the owners of the store. Would you move to a different place where there is more local businesses? What happens if a state attempts to and is successful at banning guns, because there is no need for a militia in Maine for instance? If you really believed in the second amendment would you move to a gun friendly state that matched your views on the issues?

Or is it better to stay and protest to the local and state government to try and get the majority of voters to change their minds?

The last time you moved to a new state, did you look at how liberal or conservative the area was? And would there be some states you wouldn't live in because you are too different from the mainstream views held in the state?

I think that as a nation we are all too alike in most respects that moving would be a waste. Many of the laws states have are due to federal leverage as it is anyway (seatbelt laws for example). I would however be willing to move for a better way of life such as climate, job opportunities and whatnot.

my dad and some of his friends moved to utah over motorcycle helmet laws.
but the process you're describing seems to me to be what ought to happen anyway...live in a place that reflects your values. at least, you comprise part of the value pool, if there is one consensus among local peoples anyway.

I live in a place that reflects my values, and I would never choose to do otherwise.

Eventually I do want to move back to Washington, and I totally support their restrictive smoking laws. I wish Oregon would pass more restrictive legislation (beyond no smoking in the workplace). However, the town I live in has exceptionally strict legislation regarding smoking in public places, and I don't think I could live anywhere that didn't.

Abortion-law wise--Washington legalized abortion two years prior to Roe v. Wade, and both Washington and Oregon do not require parental permission for abortions.

We vote overwhelmingly liberal in both states--though Oregon has a Republican senator and a Republican congressman. Personally, I prefer Washington's two female Democrat senators and female Democrat governor. Did I mention they're female?

Anyways--the point is, I already live here, and I ain't leavin'.

The most likely scenerio would be businesses in a high-tax state relocating to a low-tax state and their employees following.

My state has banned smoking in ALL indoor places now for about a year or two, bars included. When it first happen everyone was worried about people going to all states that are near us to eat/drink. It never happened.

I have New Jersey, Penn, and Maryland all with in a 15 minute drive from me. I cant think of anything that my state could do that would want people to move 10 miles away, when they could take a short drive to a state next to us to get the service they want.

New Hampshire: No Helmet Laws, No Adult Seatbelt Laws, No State Income Tax, No State Sales Tax, 3rd in the nation for tech jobs, 2nd in nation for being business friendly, pro small government, the only state to reject a smoking ban. It basically lives up to it's motto - Live Free or Die... (the major downside is they are red sux fans... and obnoxious about it)

and in the past few years, the location of the Free State Projecta Kind of exactly the type of society i would like to live in .... but that's not why i live here - I live here because my employer told me to move here, and i'll be moving again in the near future to where my next employer tells me to move...

I don't think enough people have the luxury of looking at things like political outlook when they change locations. People are usually moving to be closer to a job, an affordable house, or family\friends.

Likely this is the truth....personally, Only one issue would force me to switch states, and only to protect the rights of my daughters when they grow up.

I moved from living in Bergen County, NJ.

Why?

Blue Laws, some things could not be sold on Sundays, from some alcohol and clothing to electronics. Some stores had signs over cloths on sundays saying they could not be sold.

At the time I worked 7am-7pm Monday-Saturday with only Sundays off. I never got home in time to do any shopping save some grocery shopping but if I needed to buy clothes, I had to go to the next county over. Bergen County is where 1% of all retail exists in small area in Paramus. They use the area to gauge sales for Christmas expectations, except on Sundays.

I also just didn't like the NJ legal system and some of their laws. I think the same thing about Nassau County in Long Island.

I currently live in Manhattan because it reflects all my needs, political and convenience.

having lived and worked retail in bergen county - blue laws were the only reason why i had one day a week off during the holiday season.. plus the traffic on route 4 and 17 needed a break :)

If my wife could handle cold temperatures, NH would be in my top 2 states to move to, second only to vermont. :thumbsup:

As it looks now, once the kids graduate, we'll probably move to arizona for health reasons.

I think it is only natural for people to migrate to places where their morals, beliefs and lifestyles are accepted more openly.

The problem facing the states today is that the Federal government is trying to homogenize the nation and it is impossible. Thus, I truly see within the next 50 years either a break in our nation, (whether it is the formation of differing states/nations or more of a confederacy where the federal government backs down and the states become more open) or the other way a more centralized federal government with few rights for anyone and we become more totalitarianistic, whether fascistic, socialistic or communistic.

In the end it all runs in cycles, and I feel we are reaching a peak in federal power and then we'll see that states and people rebel and the power will be shifted back to the states and peopl.

This actually makes me giggle a little - because last time i checked - Maine has some of the most lenient gun laws on the books -even more lenient than NH... (where gun ownership is pretty much mandatory :) start changing gun laws up north - and you might just have a mass defection to the south :)

Illinois and california are practically there now, I don't see a whole lot of people leaving yet.

I'm not sure why I suggested Maine. There are a lot of hunters up there.

Maybe I should have said Maryland or Delaware.

My Grandparents never moved, but there are a few of my parents friends that have. And I'm wondering if once more people get to retirement age, they would move to places where the laws and society have the same values.

The federal government can try to make every state the same, but I'm starting to think that people will be happier if they can move to a different state to be around people they agree with.

I think given the opportunity, people will move to places where it's affordable to live - and that's pretty much going to rule out most of the northeast and california for the high cost of living...

In which state is it the norm to eat pepperoni on toast every morning?

judging by the breath of some people on the subway i used to encounter -i'd go with new york city :)

Differing beliefs is one of the main reasons hubby and I want to move away from Utah...but since his entire family and my dad live here, the fact that he may be entering a career field where relocation is very difficult, and my sons attachment to his relatives is strong, we're probably here for a little while. It sucks living somewhere that you live in the minority of the belief system.

That...coupled with the fact that you have yet to send me the employment section from the Union Leader is all that's keeping me from migrating to New Hampshire. ;)

Don't forget, we usually have higher incomes in those locations. I make 30-40% more than my counterpart would make in the midwest or south for doing the same work. Of course my house costs something like 250-500% more than it would anywhere else in the US.

Retirees have different motivators. One of the reasons retirees move to Florida is because there is no state income tax and the property taxes are low. Benefits for seniors are also better. Nevada also has lots of retirees for the same reasons.

I don't think a state's laws or politics are the primary reasons why many people choose to leave or locate there. My wife and I moved to Seattle back in the early 80's because of the natural beauty and proximity to the ocean and mountains.

Unfortunately by the end of the 90's my 10 mile 15 minute commute turned into a 1 hour plus traffic jam. Seattle just became very popular and way overcrowded. With all the influx of people there we just didn't enjoy it as much as before.

When we retired we decided to cash in on the large rise in our house value and locate out in the country where we could now pay cash for a house with some land in Southern Ohio and be somewhat closer to family. The taxes did not factor in our decision since we no longer worked and we usually don't support either major political party so politics did not matter.

Given the number of people that are from elsewhere in Portland I'd say this happens all the time. If one is gay, I'd say moving is pretty common. I wonder if there is any single issue that generates more movement in the US, although maybe not state to state as much as to the big city...

I think to a degree, yes. For instance, I would never willingly move to a state that would disarm me.