Do you miss massachusetts? (Boston, Brockton: travel, zoning, job)

[MovingForward]

I grew up in Austin, Texas, have lived in Portland (Oregon); Madison, Wisconsin; Chicago; Burlington (Vermont), and the last 25 years in MA. I'll probably spend the rest of my life in MA. The politics are knee-jerk liberal, just as the politics in NH are knee-jerk conservative, and that bothers me. The cost of living also bothers me. But it's beautiful, the people are savvy, and it feels like home--I'll probably never leave.

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by MovingForward

... just as the politics in NH are knee-jerk conservative ...

Umm...not any more. Look at the voting record of NH over the last few years. The entire state gov't is Dem and they went for Kerry in 2004. It used to be true that NH was quite Libertarian/Republican, but that has changed quite a bit recently.

[GLPman]

I miss Massachusetts summers- they're the best. I hate cold weather and I'm really glad I freed myself from the MA winters.

I miss Boston, too

[FrozenAngel]

Originally Posted by GLPman

I miss Massachusetts summers- they're the best. I hate cold weather and I'm really glad I freed myself from the MA winters.

I miss Boston, too

Hey GLPman ... where did you escape to?

[lynniepoo87]

So all these people that claim the second the left Mass their illnesses went away, they lost weight, they became a happy person. Did you ever stop to think you could have stayed and accomplished the same things here?
I mean or is the grass just always greener somewhere else? Are you overlooking the flaws of other places? Like pollution in Texas, racism that is still everywhere in the South, intolerance, poor labor law... etc etc etc.

The South is built like a deck of cards, heavily dependant on Federal money- which in this Congress is about to shift direction from the southeast to the northeast, and growth- which thanks to India and China is about to slow down. People only move to where the jobs are. And when youre a corporation in Boston, NY or Philly I think the next stop is Calcutta and Beijing... not Atlanta, Dallas, Raleigh-Durham. And then in the case of Atlanta you get high foreclosure and depressed real estate(3rd worst in the US) smog, HORRIBLE traffic not just urban traffic, a 3 billion dollar sewer upgrade that state is dragging its feet on, a water problem waiting to happen, 50th in the country SAT scores, and corruption in a very needed road project(Northern Arc) so bad that they just decide to scuttle the whole thing. And the property taxes as a percent of market value arent all that great either people!

I'll take cold, old, ugly Yankee New ENgland anyday! Besides... this place actually is changing for the better, too many choose not to see it. Zoning law changes are putting more supply in the market here- smaller houses, townhouses, and many many more apartments being built. Not to mention so many New Englanders are adding on and renovating their houses at an amazing rate! This place is actually cleaning up. Come back- drive around, open your eyes and mind a bit. We're also about to legalize gambling which will likely give us the second or third largest casino in the WORLD. New businesses and commercial renovations are skyrocketing.

Not to mention first in the nation universal healthcare well on its way. Equality for ALL of its residents. I'm straight and am proud of our decision on gay marriage!

Y'all left. And you took the old Massachusetts attitudes with you.
44th in size, 13th in population, 6th in wealth.
We're the 5'2" guy that will kick your ass!

So there... there's my rant!


Starz:

Don't think gay marriage and universal health care are things to be proud of. I saw on another post that a retired guy was quoted a premium of some exhoribant amount of money to have health insurance. Look at universal health care in Canada, the UK, and Australia, and, IMHO, calling it a massive failure is an understatement.

Who will enforce the health care requirement? Employers? Or will the Comm. of MA use this as an opportunity to add yet another layer of government pork - "the enforcement branch" of the health care police? Please know that what you are applauding is MA taking yet another huge step towards becoming the people's Republic of Massachusetts.

No hard feelings, just my honest opinion.

[lynniepoo87]

Sally:

People who live in MA but commute to NH or RI to work STILL pay income tax to Massachusetts.

[MovingForward]

I'm not AT ALL happy about the casino thing. It's a cheap and low-rent way to bring revenue to the state, along with a whole lot of social problems. If I wanted to live in a state with legalized gambling, I'd move to Nevada.

[Denton_County93]

Massachusets was the greatest state I've ever lived in. I spend the first 12 years o my life there and would give almost anything to move back.

[neil0311]

Originally Posted by Denton_County93

Massachusets was the greatest state I've ever lived in. I spend the first 12 years o my life there and would give almost anything to move back.

With no disrespect intended, how long ago was that? I feel the same way about growing up in NYC. I wouldn't trade my childhood in Queens in the '70s for all the tea in China. New England is absolutely beautiful, and I can see how you loved it as a child.

Having said that, as an middle aged adult paying taxes, raising and educating 3 kids, and concerned about politics and the future, I wouldn't want to live in NYC today and we recently made the choice to leave MA. You don't realize what you've missed (or what you had that you don't want) until you make a change.

[GLPman]

Originally Posted by FrozenAngel

Hey GLPman ... where did you escape to?

Well after graduating my Massachusetts high school, I attended college in California and lived in Los Angeles. After that, I got an internship with a company run out of Las Vegas, but I only stayed there for a year because I got a job offer in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, which is where I currently reside.

It works for me because I really love the warm weather and I hate the cold. Massachusetts' summers are the best, though. It's funny because while everybody comes down here for winter, most of us try and go up there for summer.