How Free are you? Study ranks each State:

[SRath]

Every now and then, a truly interesting study comes along. Have you ever wondered where your State ranks as far as personal freedoms go?

Alaska would have been been one of my top choices, and on personal Liberty alone, they are hands-down the clear winner. I also expected Montana would top the list, but they are ranked 19th, three below my own State of Iowa, which I consider to be repressive. What happened there..?

Kenny, my friend, you gotta move!! New York State is the most repressive and regulated State there is, according to the criteria of this study. I suspect the gun laws and taxes were it's downfall. It is not the least bit surprising that the East Coast and Left coast of California are the considered the worst states to live in if Freedom is important to you.

CF chose his retirement refuge well, with Colorado ranked near the top. Mike is in 5th ranked Texas (Shoulda kept your open-container law. Open gun racks probably helped?). Given the amount of 'freedom' that non-citizens have in Texas, one would expect the least that State could do is extend the same courtesy to it's own citizens.

These rankings not only consider personal liberty, but fiscal freedom from taxation and compliance laws.

"The authors said their understanding of freedom "follows from the natural-rights liberal thought of John Locke, Immanuel Kant and Robert Nozick, but it is also consistent with the rights-generating rule-utilitarianism of Herbert Spencer and others."

It includes the belief in the efficiency and morality of unhampered markets, the system of private property and individual rights and a "deep distrust of taxation, egalitarianism, compulsory welfare and the power of the state."

"Our definition of freedom presents specific challenges on some high-profile issues. Abortion is a critical example. On one account, the fetus is a rights-bearing person, and abortion is therefore an aggressive violation of individual rights that ought to be punished by government. On another account, the fetus does not have rights, and abortion is a permissible exercise of an individual liberty, in which case government regulation of abortion would be an unjust violation of a woman’s rights. Rather than take a stand on one side or the other (or anywhere in between), we have coded the data on state abortion restrictions but have not included the policy in our overall index," the study authors cautioned.

Issues considered for various parts of the study include the use of marijuana, state and local government budgets, gun registration and dealer registration demands, restrictions on alcohol sales, camera surveillance, bicycle helmet laws, gambling rules, fireworks restrictions, compulsory school requirements, insurance rules.

I would be grateful for some help dissecting and examining the criteria and accuracy of this study. Like I said, I don't believe my own State deserves a ranking in the top 20. Ten years ago, yes. But not since the liberals took control and taxed and regulated everything under the sun.

What's your take on this study? Which states are worst for personal freedom?