[magellan]

I've been so good and have not made one comment in this thread. I actually don't think it's a parody.

[pjmiami]

ROFL! Thanks for that bit of comic relief, Jeff. I think you poor despairing souls should move to South Florida--you know: the sunshine state! Its paradise!

We have jobs! (Of course, you will have to drive two hours in each direction fending off outrageous acts of road rage aggression to get to those jobs. And, after you do that for a month or two, what's left of your original sunny disposition will be transformed into a similar rise in aggression of your own just to survive).

We have a beautiful warm climate! (Of course we also have the highest rate of skin cancer of any state in the U.S. but why worry about that--it usually doesn't even show up until you're past the age of forty).

We have new schools! (Of course, they are all overcrowded and most students end up in 'portable' classrooms which are essentially trailers sitting in the school parking lot with 30-35 students per class and a very overwhelmed teacher who is getting paid less than teachers in 31 other states in the country--Michigan, to its credit, has the fourth highest average salary for teachers in the country).

We are gaining population! (Of course we are also moving up in crime ratings. Florida now has the 7th highest crime rate of all 50 states, and, yes, Michigan's crime rate is lower--not great at number 12 but still lower).

We don't have state income tax! (Of course, if you actually want to buy a house, you are required to have hurricane insurance and since there is now only ONE insurance company that you can buy from (the state run agency, Citizens), you can also expect to pay an annual insurance premium that will likely EQUAL your mortgage payment each month, and that's without including the extremely high property taxes here, the combination of which makes buying a house virtually unaffordable to all but the most wealthy.

So, to all you downtrodden Michigan folks who are moving to the Sunny South where you think things are better, and away from the state where you think everything is wrong, remember there are two sides to every coin and while you may get a job in a place like S. Florida, you may also be rudely, and I do mean rudely, awakened to the fact that the quality of life here really doesn't always compare well to that of bad ol' Michigan. There are a combination of positives and negatives to any point on the map so wherever you go, you get the bad with the good.

[magellan]

Originally Posted by jeffncandace

Can you guys help me? All of my family has moved to Michigan over the last few years, and we all love it here. Everyone loves the climate, the people, the culture, the schools, better healthcare...

But since you guys are just so adamant about how horrible it is here, I feel inclined to believe anonymous people I will never meet. You are all so emphatically anti-Michigan, I feel compelled to not believe my own eyes and experiences over your posts!

So where should we move? We are goint to leave behind our families and jobs, but I'll bet we are just like that family that moved out of Pompeii just in time the day before the volcano erupted...

Help please, in your infinite wisdom. Where have you flourished since leaving this pit of despair called Michigan?

Apparently not Baghdad!

Iraqis Toil With High Unemployment - TIME

70% unemployment rate....

That post was provided for those folks who compare Michigan to Poland before WWII and other such nunsense.

[scottmi]

Originally Posted by pjmiami

ROFL! Thanks for that bit of comic relief, Jeff. I think you poor despairing souls should move to South Florida--you know: the sunshine state! Its paradise!

We have jobs! (Of course, you will have to drive two hours in each direction fending off outrageous acts of road rage aggression to get to those jobs. And, after you do that for a month or two, what's left of your original sunny disposition will be transformed into a similar rise in aggression of your own just to survive).

We have a beautiful warm climate! (Of course we also have the highest rate of skin cancer of any state in the U.S. but why worry about that--it usually doesn't even show up until you're past the age of forty).

We have new schools! (Of course, they are all overcrowded and most students end up in 'portable' classrooms which are essentially trailers sitting in the school parking lot with 30-35 students per class and a very overwhelmed teacher who is getting paid less than teachers in 31 other states in the country--Michigan, to its credit, has the fourth highest average salary for teachers in the country).

We are gaining population! (Of course we are also moving up in crime ratings. Florida now has the 7th highest crime rate of all 50 states, and, yes, Michigan's crime rate is lower--not great at number 12 but still lower).

We don't have state income tax! (Of course, if you actually want to buy a house, you are required to have hurricane insurance and since there is now only ONE insurance company that you can buy from (the state run agency, Citizens), you can also expect to pay an annual insurance premium that will likely EQUAL your mortgage payment each month, and that's without including the extremely high property taxes here, the combination of which makes buying a house virtually unaffordable to all but the most wealthy.

So, to all you downtrodden Michigan folks who are moving to the Sunny South where you think things are better, and away from the state where you think everything is wrong, remember there are two sides to every coin and while you may get a job in a place like S. Florida, you may also be rudely, and I do mean rudely, awakened to the fact that the quality of life here really doesn't always compare well to that of bad ol' Michigan. There are a combination of positives and negatives to any point on the map so wherever you go, you get the bad with the good.

Wow, I had no idea Florida was like that. Thanks for the advice!

[and the]

I didn't know Baghdad was that bad either!

[jeffncandace]

Originally Posted by pjmiami

ROFL! Thanks for that bit of comic relief, Jeff. I think you poor despairing souls should move to South Florida--you know: the sunshine state! Its paradise!

We have jobs! (Of course, you will have to drive two hours in each direction fending off outrageous acts of road rage aggression to get to those jobs. And, after you do that for a month or two, what's left of your original sunny disposition will be transformed into a similar rise in aggression of your own just to survive).

We have a beautiful warm climate! (Of course we also have the highest rate of skin cancer of any state in the U.S. but why worry about that--it usually doesn't even show up until you're past the age of forty).

We have new schools! (Of course, they are all overcrowded and most students end up in 'portable' classrooms which are essentially trailers sitting in the school parking lot with 30-35 students per class and a very overwhelmed teacher who is getting paid less than teachers in 31 other states in the country--Michigan, to its credit, has the fourth highest average salary for teachers in the country).

We are gaining population! (Of course we are also moving up in crime ratings. Florida now has the 7th highest crime rate of all 50 states, and, yes, Michigan's crime rate is lower--not great at number 12 but still lower).

We don't have state income tax! (Of course, if you actually want to buy a house, you are required to have hurricane insurance and since there is now only ONE insurance company that you can buy from (the state run agency, Citizens), you can also expect to pay an annual insurance premium that will likely EQUAL your mortgage payment each month, and that's without including the extremely high property taxes here, the combination of which makes buying a house virtually unaffordable to all but the most wealthy.

So, to all you downtrodden Michigan folks who are moving to the Sunny South where you think things are better, and away from the state where you think everything is wrong, remember there are two sides to every coin and while you may get a job in a place like S. Florida, you may also be rudely, and I do mean rudely, awakened to the fact that the quality of life here really doesn't always compare well to that of bad ol' Michigan. There are a combination of positives and negatives to any point on the map so wherever you go, you get the bad with the good.

Great post, and very good point. It sounds alot like California, which I happily left.

And I agree Magellan, but I don't think it...I KNOW this poster was totally serious, and as a result, ventured into self-parody.

[jeffncandace]

Originally Posted by and the

I didn't know Baghdad was that bad either!

I suspect there is alot we don't know thanks to our draconian administration, but I digress...

[M TYPE X]

The economy is noticeable in Birmingham/Bloomfield, except to the truly sheltered and willfully ignorant.

Michigan's natural wonders are very enjoyable, provided the employment can be obtained and held.

The other option, of course, is to open a car wash or oil change shop in Florida. The wealthy Cuban community (who own and control Florida) needs its Benzes serviced. It's a different world than Indiana/Michigan/Ohio.

[michiganmoon]

Originally Posted by michiganstinks

If anyone is having any ideas about relocating to Michigan, think twice. This message could save you a lot of time, energy, and money. Find another place to relocate to. If you have family here, tell them to run as far away from Michigan as they can get! Michigan has been a time bomb waiting to explode, and it has done just that. The economy here is dismal to say the least. Unemplyment, foreclosures, taxes, crime, all are at an all time high! Thanks to the BIG 3 auto makers, & corrupt politicians, Michigan's economy wont see the light of day anytime soon! This is just simply a miserable place, and because of the dismal state Michigan is in, so are the people! Just about everyone is miserable here. Most people wake up in the morning scared to death that by the end of the day some wont have jobs. The fear that your lives will take that financial turn that people have watched happen to most people we know. Right now, relocating to Michigan for any reason is a mistake. BUT, that is just one mans opinion.

I can attest to this. Every day in Michigan it rains fireballs across the state for at least 3 hours and your lean-two will burn down (there aren't any houses left). 100% of our state was laid off so everyone is on welfare and there are roving bands of lawless hooligans that pillage the countryside. All of our beautiful shoreline, more shoreline than any other state but Alaska? Forget it! It is filled with lethal freshwater sharks that sometimes even jump up onto the shoreline to snag unwary people walking down the shoreline or sun tanners at the beach. They eat about 25 of us a day. GWBush tried to trade our state to Canada for another NHL franchise, but they turned it down. Hold on, I have to get going, there is a mob outside and we are going to burn someone at the stake for practicing witchcraft!!!

Stay out of Michigan!!!!

[jeeg]

Originally Posted by michiganmoon

I can attest to this. Every day in Michigan it rains fireballs across the state for at least 3 hours and your lean-two will burn down (there aren't any houses left). 100% of our state was laid off so everyone is on welfare and there are roving bands of lawless hooligans that pillage the countryside. All of our beautiful shoreline, more shoreline than any other state but Alaska? Forget it! It is filled with lethal freshwater sharks that sometimes even jump up onto the shoreline to snag unwary people walking down the shoreline or sun tanners at the beach. They eat about 25 of us a day. GWBush tried to trade our state to Canada for another NHL franchise, but they turned it down. Hold on, I have to get going, there is a mob outside and we are going to burn someone at the stake for practicing witchcraft!!!

Stay out of Michigan!!!!

Dang it Michiganmoon! I'm trying my darnest to lure fresh blood to our state and here you go scaring them all off again. I for one am getting tired of eating my fellow Michiganians! They all taste the same. I'm hoping to snare us some folks from the gulf states or the eastern starboard. I hear they are much tastier! Anyhow........... it makes it sort of hard to lure them here if you're scaring them away with the truth!