This Should Surprise No One...

The Ten States That Restrict Personal Freedom (And Those That Protect It)

24/7 considered the ten states that the report lists as “most free” and those ten that are “least free.” We have used Mercatus Center analysis and definitions for what makes people free. Here is a list of the most and least free states, according to the Mercatus Center.

The States That Protect Personal Freedom:

1. New Hampshire
Fiscal freedom: 0.299 (2nd highest)
Regulatory freedom: 0.058 (18th highest)
Personal freedom: 0.084 (11th highest)
Net Migration (2000-2009): +2.8%

The States That Restrict Personal Freedom:

5. Massachusetts

Fiscal freedom: -0.023 (23rd lowest)

Regulatory freedom: -0.222 (2nd lowest)

Personal freedom: -0.147 (4th lowest)

Net Migration (2000-2009): -4.3%

MA only came in the top five, but given the competition (in order, HI, CA, NJ, and NY) that's a pretty crowded field. Second lowest in regulatory freedom - but that's got nothing to do with why businesses - and taxpayers - are leaving in droves, right "Cadillac" Deval? Fourth lowest in personal freedom, yet we still see skyrocketing crime in MA's big cities. Nope, that's just coincidence. And yet NH, literally next door, is ranked #1. Go figure...

New Hampshire's motto is "Live Free or Die"; Massachusetts's model is "Live Free or Here"...

That is all.