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It sounds like your issues with Keane are specific to Keane. It snows here, it takes time to clear the roads, and I haven't had a problem. Knowing I was moving here, I sold my 2WD drive truck and got a 4x4....planned ahead. The road crews do a fantastic job overall and they are cleared much faster than anything I experienced in Ohio, and I thought they were good. I've never been to Keane so I'm not going to pretend I know how it is, but everywhere else I've been there hasn't been a problem.
You have a poorly insulated apartment, or condo, or house plain and simple......something unrelated to the overall state, the leaves, etc. Sorry for that....but when you move somewhere new it's not at all out of line to ask to see utility bills and information from past years. It was one of the first things I asked about when I saw my place.
You should really visit Detroit or some of the bad parts of Cleveland. I think you're definition of "bad parts" would change pretty quickly. All of NH isn't great, but it absolutely IS Polyanna compared to those areas. Even my old city had big time gang issues, gunshots were the norm in certain areas, we had a pretty high murder rate and violent crime rate and it didn't approach what Detroit is like. Seriously, if you've never actually been to areas ruled by gangs where the cops won't even go then you don't really know what a bad area is.
It sounds like you don't.......but you chose to move there correct?
Sure it has faults, but far less than any other place I've been. You can and will find faults in anything if you look hard enough. Your issues do not apply to the entire state and it's unrealistic to to apply them as such.
we actually do not have a poorly insulated apt. We had a second opinion and inspection and it is infact insulated. Its the cost of heating thats is the problem. I actually have lived in gang infested areas, we were directly connected to miami where you can get some major drug lords running back and forth. Particularly in the 80's we would have frequent gang and cocaine problems. It has since been cleaned up. I also lived in the Bronx. Not the place you want to walk around at night. I still think NH has its places. Its not polyanna at all. It might not have major gangs like blood, crips etc but it has problems. With my husband being a cop I hear daily of the incidents that go on and its not as safe as one might thinK. You only hear what the news chooses to report
Here in AZ, we have all three of the deadly taxes: property tax, income tax, and sales tax. And they all keep going UP!!
And the argument for raising taxes is always an appeal to the emotions of the voters. "Oh, but if we don't raise this tax we will have to cut the budget for the police and fire departments."
Meanwhile, huge chunks of the tax revenues are given out to special interests groups. Here in AZ, it is mostly real estate developers. There is a symbiotic relationship between the government and developers. The state or city raises taxes, and then hands out tax credits to developers. And we are talking HUGE sums of money, like $100 million in one recent case.
Most legislators will not vote to lower taxes, because it takes away their power to hand out these tax credits to special interests. And having that power is very useful to them personally.
So the average citizen keeps paying higher taxes, while the well-connected get tax breaks, and the bureaucrats in the middle line their own pockets for effecting the transfer of wealth via tax law.
Is that what New Hampshirites want for their state? I certainly do not. I see it happening here in Arizona, where it is becoming harder and harder for the average person to be prosperous and to build a happy and comfortable life for themselves and their families.
And that is one of the reasons why I decided to move to NH. Given NH's government structure, it is far more difficult for bureaucrats to cater to developers and other special interests. Voters have a chance to analyze and debate their town budgets, and keep things in check.
But as soon as we implement state-wide taxes, control is taken away from citizens at town meeting and transfered to legislators in Concord. And then that opens to door for special interests to lobby for their slice of the tax pie. And once that door is opened, we will not be able to close it again.
I just do not understand why New Hampshirites would even consider implementing a sales tax or income tax. Just take a look at the neighboring states. Do MA, VT, or ME have an economy that New Hampshirites want to emulate??? Those states are struggling and have many problems, whereas NH has a thriving economy. And the REASON is because of a low tax burden.
We need to keep it that way.
You would think common sense would preclude one from having to even make such a persuasive argument, but apparently not. You are so right. But walk around places like Portsmouth and Exeter and the granolas have taken over. Who is for deployment of troops and who is for pulling out in Iraq, who has an (R) next to their name, who has a (D) is all that matters to too many. New Hampshirites are now beginning to reap what they sow. Too many folks would rather utilize the "drive-by bumper sticker mentality" rather than think critically, not look at the bigger picture, and allow government to again fail at its feeble attempt to adorn capes and orchestrate utopia. Or get in a tizzy over beautiful prose at an Obama pep rally. This income tax proposal is as fraudulent as the idea of seatbelt laws in this state: power and money to the special interests, lobbyists, and government is the goal, nothing more.
I don't think I have unreal expectations however I do have some expectations of clearer roads than I've experienced. Life does not stop because of a snowstorm and the fact that they put one plow out is just unacceptable. Gov't officials cannot do their jobs with roads like that and honestly thats just a matter of safety. People do not stop having heart attacks, or babies or broken bones because of a snow storm and when needed they must get medical attention. They know it snows here and should be ontop of it asap no excuses. I have been out of the roads faster after a cat 3 hurricane than I was able to be in a single snow storm here no joke. The police depts should not have to call out the plows which has happen several times because of accidents. They typically wait until 4 or more accidents have been reported before getting them out. Something wrong with that? I think so. I find a lot of "yeah but" type answers to anything wrong brought up here.Its like " I can't get to the hospital cause they don't plow the roads, yeah but I have beautiful views of mountains when I wake up so its okay. My electic bill criples me every month, yeah but the fall is so beautiful with all the leaves, so its okay".
The NH forum has become very pollyanna about the state and its kind of a running joke between a couple people on private messages. Its a very decieving to people looking for answers. Perfect example someone asked about any bad places in Bedford to avoid. The answer, there aren't any.. EVERY single town has a place that isn't kosher. I don't care where you are.
It seems when something its wrong its only becasue someone has not adapted or not used to it. The plain fact of the matter is they absolutely STINK at keeping the roads clean or their schools up to date, or any technology up to date. Who wants to live somewhere where you can't even get something as simple as cable? Thats ludacris ,we're talking about something thats been around for 30 years or so and they STILL can't implement that? Come on now folks lets be more realistic about this state. It is a nice state, but it has its faults and lets stop trying to make an excuse for every thing that goes wrong.
Tara - NH is not Utopia, and I don't think anyone really believes it is...No place is. A lot of what you mention above is Keene-specific, not NH-specific, though. For example the plowing of the roads. When it has snowed up here, the plows go through regularly - the roads may not be totally devoid of snow, but you can easily drive on the roads.
The electric bill - I imagine that is your apartment specific, because of the lack of insulation or whatever. Our electric/water bill at it's highest was $81 (has happened twice in 2 years). Our heating bill for this winter came to about $900 for oil. Yes, we kept the house relatively cool (compared to some), wore sweaters, etc., and insulated the heck out of the house, which I know you could not do as a renter.
Bad places in Bedford, I wouldn't know about, since I've never been there, but I think "bad places" or "bad neighborhoods" in an area can be defined in various ways - depending on an individual's perspective.
We have cable, we have cable internet and DSL internet service in our area. Our area may not seem "progressive" by a lot of standards, but, again, I believe it's the individual's perspective.
Is NH perfect? Of course not, no state is. Each state/town/city has problems. Whether or not those problems are HUGE depends on the perspective of the individual. If someone is coming here looking for a state/city/town with no problems, of course they won't find it. The same goes for any state, no matter what it is.
All that being said, people have choices to make. Suggesting that people rent in an area before buying a place is what a lot of people on this forum suggest - to see if the area/state is really what they want. Obviously, Keene, and perhaps any part of NH is not for you, and that's fine. Everyone is different - it would be pretty boring if everyone was the same.
We "lucked out." We like the area we are in, we like the state in general. IMO, part of experiencing a new place is to do so with an open mind and to embrace it, learn about it and the people who live there. Change comes slowly in NH, which I prefer over an "overnight change", but again, that's just me. People in our area, at least, like to weigh the benefits/drawbacks before implementing something new - which, especially now with the economy the way it is, to me is a smart thing.
Would it be nice to have higher paying jobs and more high-tech businesses in this area? Sure it would, but at what expense? I would hate to see the area bring in a bunch of high-tech companies that would hire a bunch of people only to lay those people off in a year or two when the business goes belly up because of the economy or whatever.
This winter was worse, snow-wise, than last winter was. I think everyone is ready for spring and warmer temps. However, living in the northeast, most people realize there will be "easy winters" and "hard winters" - they can't do anything about the weather, so they make the best of it. Unfortunately, you happened to be here for a particularly snowy winter.
I'm sorry you had such a miserable experience living in Keene and NH. It wasn't for you. You at least gave it a shot and now you know - you will not have the "what if we had moved to NH, would things have been better?" thoughts. You tried it. It wasn't for you. Try to look at it as a learning experience for the next few weeks you are here - it may make it more tolerable for you.......
Keep self-sufficiency. Don't let unfunded federal mandates put NH in the Federal trap. Tell the federal government no and reject the over-reaching, impractical NCLB funding nightmare.
But Tara, the problem is that your initial suggestion of the problems you saw and instituting a tax to raise the money is viewed as a local thing with a state support. If Keene has problems, and I'm sure it does, the other towns are not going to be willing to raise tax money in order to fix Keene's problems. Keene needs to learn how to manage it's own budget. It's the independent spirit rearing its head: yes, some towns have problems with schools needing repairs - but they don't expect any other town to give them the money for it, nor would they be willing to poney up for someone else. And as many of us in other high tax states have seen: throwing money at a problem seldom fixes it. So that's the crux of the issue.
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we actually do not have a poorly insulated apt. We had a second opinion and inspection and it is infact insulated. Its the cost of heating thats is the problem.
I'm glad you do actually have insulation. I think there was also concern that there might be a leak in your tank? or was that someone else? I do remember that when you posted your usage and costs, everyone found it to be unreasonably high. So.. if you do have insulation and that's not the problem, and your equipment is in good working order... than it goes back to Keene has expensive suppliers and since many others weighed in that their costs weren't so high.. you can't blame that on the entire state. Yes, it DOES get cold, and heat is a major expense to consider. But most people here are not having the same problem you are. Logic says it's either you, your building or equipment, or your supplier. sorry.
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I actually have lived in gang infested areas, we were directly connected to miami where you can get some major drug lords running back and forth. Particularly in the 80's we would have frequent gang and cocaine problems. It has since been cleaned up. I also lived in the Bronx. Not the place you want to walk around at night. I still think NH has its places. Its not polyanna at all. It might not have major gangs like blood, crips etc but it has problems. With my husband being a cop I hear daily of the incidents that go on and its not as safe as one might thinK. You only hear what the news chooses to report
Ok, so it's perception. Yes, you have certainly lived in some bad areas. I've not seen anywhere in NH that seems like that. Keene has a different population than much of NH, not sure how much the college has to do with it. In any case, while there may be more crime that's going on, it's not apparent to most people - not showing up on the crime stats on many websites (Is it not being reported? so who's fault is that?). And sorry to disagree with you, but there are towns that do NOT have a bad area. There is no place in Hollis where I would feel unsafe, or where (if I had kids) I would not want them to be, or where I could counsel someone new to stay away from. There just isn't. Maybe some bigger towns do, but some really are just fine. I'm sorry you found that Keene has bad spots. I'm sure you'll be happier back in FL
Keep self-sufficiency. Don't let unfunded federal mandates put NH in the Federal trap. Tell the federal government no and reject the over-reaching, impractical NCLB funding nightmare.
As you and others have pointed out, adding fuel to the fire does not extinguish it.
Adding a new tax for a town like Keene, where the city "leadership" has time for global warming activities which--let me guess--cost some tax dollars, is rewarding the incompetent city fathers for not doing their job.
The nation as a whole is heading to hell in a handbasket, we are being looted and invaded while drained on the distant battlefield, and the feds do little but encourage their cronies to ever-greater wealth.
New taxes mean one thing only: more new taxes a couple of years down the road to "fix" what the earlier new tax was to fix. But somehow didn't.
There are emotion-based positions and there are logic-based positions. The left and the right have each planted their flags in one of these hills.
There's a reason there are not huge herds of people heading from NH to MA or NJ or CA for poorer services, higher taxes, more intrusive government, and a lower quality of life.
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