Worst and best possible US states to live in

[sentinel89]

Growing up in the upper Midwest (Illinois and Wisconsin), I was always fascinated with what was south and west of me. South, Lower Midwest (Kansas, Oklahoma), Southwest, West, etc. I still think that sunbelt cities/states have an edge over more established regions and legacy cities in the North/Northeast and West Coast. Sunbelt cities tend to be more ethnically integrated, affordable, you can get lost in the crowd a little easier, the weather/scenery are more conducive to varied lifestyles that you could get into. I think my native Chicagoland has enough quantity to satisfy some of my needs since it's such a massive area, but it's actually just a more glamorous version of Detroit. Northern Illinois/Southeastern Wisconsin puts you in the Chi-Milwaukee-Madison triangle and has some nice scenery, but the women are vacuous and rotund.

If I ever relocated wthin the United States, it would be South Texas (like El Paso), possibly New Mexico or Arizona. Austin has long been a cool western-y city, but I've heard its been overrun with snobby yuppies and the COL has skyrocketed. Miami also intrigues me, but there might be too many big city drawbacks, wannabe superstar culture. Other pockets of Florida intrigue me, but I sense I'd like Texas or NM/AZ better. The close proximity to Mexico alone is a selling point.

The worst places to be in the USA, well... California has a lot to see but has become a hellish state with it's ungodly COL and teetering economy. SoCal is ground zero for hyper-consumerism. American pop-trash culture trends start there and spread elsewhere. Nor Cal suburbs might be single guy hell what with the horrible gender ratios and robotic, conceited people.

Seattle and Portland would depress the hell out of me: the weather, the demographics, the attitudes, ugh, major ugh.

Other notables:

Detroit/Michigan/Ohio/Indiana - cookie cutter Midwestern stuff, rust belt stagnancy, chock full of fat, racist white, black and mexican people who's lives revolve around beer, chicken wings and Monday night football.

Nebraska/Dakotas - there. is. just. nothing. out. there. period.

Washington DC/NOVA - I think enough has been documented about this place.

So, I guess my list looks like this:

Best:

Texas, and neighboring southwestern areas

Worst:

Rust Belt, Nebraska/Dakotas, the Capital, Basically the entire west coast

I think NYC, Philadelphia, LA, and maybe Houston are the only acceptable places. The problem with any city in Florida is "it's where the party's at!" There's plenty of latinas but they are all 100% Americanized. At least in LA there are still some authentic Latinas and Asians. But no matter what, you absolutely need to go to a place that has a large community of foreign women, so metropolitan areas are really the only option. Plus, anglo-women are actually more tolerable in the city.

[IraqVet2003]

I would like to say deciding which US states are the worst and best possible places to live in will depend upon each person's experience and what they look for. Here are some of the following states that I have lived in (Alaska, Hawaii, and Georgia while growing up in the military, vacationed in, or when going college) and a few I have researched and even considered moving to:

1.) Alaska

PROS: No state income tax
All qualified Alaska state residents receive a dividend check every year (Alaska Permanent Dividend Fund-paid from oil revenues). The amount varies from year to year (anywhere from $800-$2000)
Short, but beautiful summers-near 24hour sunlight. Great scenery-mountains, forest, streams, and rivers.
If you are into the following outdoor activities- hiking, fishing, hunting, skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiles, etc.
Most people I found to be friendly or helpful (live-let-live philosophy)
Great Salmon, Halibut, and King Crab

CONS: High cost-of-living (high rent, housing cost, food prices, gas, and utilities)
Long, dark and very cold winters. It is not unusual for temperatures to drop down to -25, -30, -40, or even -50 BELOW ZERO with "ice fog". The further north you live in the state, the colder and darker it will be.
"Cabin Fever"
Prejudice/racism towards Native Alaskans
Geographic Isolation: Alaska being thousands of miles from the "Lower 48". And within the state, cities are separated by vast distances, few roads. Also, many areas (such as villages) you can reach only by plane.
Natural Disasters: Earthquakes, volcanic activity(Aleutian Islands), tsunamis, forest fires.
Dangerous animals: Bears, Moose, wolves

I'm looking at Alaska. I know it takes A LOT A LOT A LOT of preparation beforehand and even during/after the move. What was it like for you? I assume you lived in a census-designated city and not one of the random villages in the Arctic Circle.

Blue Murder, you are right I currently live in Fairbanks, Alaska which is a small city with a population of around 85,000 (this includes the surrounding areas of the North Star Borough of Fox and North Pole). Fairbanks is just over 100 miles south of the Artic Circle. In addition, there are two military bases/post near this town in which Fort Wainwright (U.S. Army) that is adjacent to this area and Eielson AFB (U.S. Air Force) that is 26 miles south of Fairbanks. Alaska, Blue Murder is also divided into boroughs not counties (just as the state of La. is divided into Parishes). As for myself I plan to leave Alaska for the city of Las Vegas, Nevada. I'm tired of the long, very cold and dark winters as well as the isolation and with very little choices in entertainment or chain restaurants. Of course if anyone is into shopping malls, big museums, zoos, or major chain restaurants (such as Outback Steakhouse, T.G.I. Fridays, Apple bees, Golden Corral, Olive Garden, etc.) that you would find in the "lower 48" then move to Anchorage. Which is Alaska's largest city with nearly half of the state's population or over 250,000. Also, as for Alaska not having a state income tax, that may change according to this article from Veteran's Today:

"ALASKA GOVERNOR PROPOSES STATE'S FIRST INCOME TAX IN DECADES"
http://www.veteranstodaymoney.com/2015/ ... in-decades

[IraqVet2003]

Hello my fellow H.A.ers, I have found another interesting article on yahoo entitled:

"WHAT IT REALLY COSTS TO LIVE IN HAWAII"

http://www.businessinsider.com/what-it- ... ii-2015-12

[GoingAwol]

I live in East Tennessee and it's pretty nice here.