As a supplement to the ‘Nine High IQ Societies” post, I put some famous names in the appropriate HiQ organization. I make no representation as to the veracity of the scores: I just copy what’s available. In cases where there are multiple values, I have used the lowest reported number. As well, I am assuming all scores are from a standardized test with a SD=15, and not a number someone’s publicist made up. Historical figure’s IQ’s are estimated from the body of work.
I could not find anyone smart enough to make The Omega Society, which is a problem they likely have, too.
A recent look at the slightly disturbing prevalence of 17-year olds in rock music lyrics revealed that ‘seventeen’ may well be used for it’s songwriting convenience, and not for nefarious purposes. The three-syllable word is easy to work into lyric structure. Another three-syllable word that’s easy to write with is Saturday, and it may outdo every other day for song title, despite the best efforts of the Mamas & Papas. Starting with Mr. Sam Cooke:
Another Saturday Night (1964)
“Another Saturday night and I ain’t got nobody”
Saturday In The Park (Chicago 1972)
“Saturday, in the park”
Saturday Night (Eagles 1973)
“Whatever happened to Saturday night?”
Saturday NIght’s All Right For Fighting (Elton John 1973)
“Oh, Saturday night’s alright for fighting”
Saturday Night (Bay City Rollers 1974)
“On Saturday night, Saturday night”
Some might want to include ‘Saturday Night Special’ (Lynyrd Skynyrd 1975), but that is a slang term for a cheap handgun, and not really about the day. Maybe you could combine songs about seventeen, with songs about Saturday. Seventeen on a Saturday night? What couldn’t go wrong?
“Saturday, in the park”
“I saw him dancin’ there by the record machine I knew he must’ve been about 17″
“Another Saturday night and I ain’t got nobody”
“But the moment that I first laid Eyes on him, all alone On the edge of seventeen”
“On Saturday night, Saturday night”
“Young and sweet Only seventeen”
See? Start combining ‘seventeen’, with ‘ Saturday’, and you veer off into cougar territory.
Word Watch
Mondegreen (n) – “is a mishearing or misinterpretation of a phrase in a way that gives it a new meaning. Mondegreens are most often created by a person listening to a poem or a song; the listener, being unable to hear a lyric clearly, substitutes words that sound similar and make some kind of sense.”
An Example:
While writing this post, I looked at footage of Elton John’s “Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting” from his 1980 Central Park concert. I have been a fan of Sir John since first hearing his music as a child, and this has been one of my favorites. There was a time when ‘classic rock’, was just, rock.
Because of the energetic way in which the song is performed, the lyrics can be difficult to understand. In the 50 years I’ve heard this song, I’ve never looked up the lyrics. I remedied that, and this is what the actual lyrics are, and what I thought they were.
Actual
“My sister looks cute in her braces and boots A gob of grease in her hair”
Heard
“My sister looks cute in her braces and boots She’s got the breeze in her hair”
Honestly, would you rather have ‘the breeze’, or ‘a gob of grease’, in your hair?
Actual
“We had it with your discipline”
Heard
I never knew what this line was. It sounded like ‘We had it with your destar plan’, which makes no sense.
Actual
“I’m a juvenile product of the working class Whose best friend floats in the bottom of a glass, oh”
Heard
“I’m a usual product of the working class Whose best friend floats in the bottom of a glass, oh”
I followed up the initial posting of “Nine High IQ Societies” with “Eight Unusual High IQ Societies”, which listed HiQ societies catering to specialist intelligences. I have updated the original information, but time has not been kind. As usual, where multiple qualifiying scores are given, they are for SD=15/SD=16 on a standardized test.
Mysterium
IQ 132+
Apparently defunct. The original link is inactive, without even a placeholder ‘Domain for Sale’ page. The only ‘Mysterium’ I could find was for a board game. From the 2010 entry:
“Mysterium is not just another high IQ society. Mysterium is not something you join, receive a certificate to hang on the wall, then vegetate. Mysterium is not for the “average genius” with a pocket full of ideals and nothing to show for it. Mysterium is beyond outer space, inner space, and cyberspace. Mysterium is a nurturing, stimulating, and inspiring “growth link” to human creativity, ingenuity, and originality that is undergirded by experience and productivity.”
IQ 135+/138+ 99th percentile, and pass a Musical IQ test.
No fee information
Semi-defunct. There is a page of information on the iqsocieties.org page, but links to a dedicated page are inoperative on a redirect error. A Musical IQ test is required, but there is apparently no way to access it. From the 2010 entry:
“Chorium was founded to promote intellectual engagement among musicians. It is free to join the community although membership is restricted to the the top 1% of the population. Prospective members have to complete a two part test which explores Classical and Musical I.Q.”
IQ 139+ (top 0.5%), and poetry or music published in a peer-reviewed venue.
No fee information
The site does have a page listing current members (or those who consent), with links to some. The homepage tab header says ‘99.5’, making it look like a radio station site.
“The Poetic Genius Society is composed of intellectually gifted individuals with a passion for poetry. They are the creative artists of our time, whose literary output interprets the heritage of the past and the urgent now. Founded by Dr. Greg Grove in 1998, our fellowship of poets has been a thriving haven for aspiring artists in the High IQ community. Although our ranks are extremely diverse, we share a common bond in our love for all things poetic.”
Genius Society
IQ 146+
Apparently defunct. Link goes to a placeholder page, and the domain is apparently for sale. The only ‘Genius Society’ I could find is for an anime fan page. From the 2010 entry:
“The Genius Society is a worldwide high IQ society, founded in January 2004, with the purpose of bringing together qualified members at the 99.9th percentile in intelligence. As we need a measure of creativity, in addition to a High IQ, membership will be open only to individuals who are engaged in scientific research as demonstrated by peer-reviewed publications. The Genius Society aims to foster communication, friendship and cultural exchange among its members.”
Artifex Mens Congregatio
IQ 148+
Apparently defunct. Link goes to an error page. No useful links when the name is searched. From the 2010 entry:
“The Artifex Mens Congregatio ( Artistic Minds Society ) was founded in 2006 by Robert Mestre, Walter VanHuissteden and Fivos Drymiotis in an effort to create a forum bringing together in friendship and community artistic individuals from all over the globe. We would like to attract members interested in philosophy, science, poetry, art and puzzle design.”
“The International Society for Philosophical Enquiry (ISPE) is a high-IQ society open to people who score at or above the 99.9th percentile on a standardized psychometric test of intelligence. Often referred to by the abbreviation “ISPE,” our society was originally founded as The Thousand* in 1974 by Christopher Harding of Australia. We are a non-profit organization, and we refer to our members as “Thousanders” because only one out of a thousand people will qualify for membership in ISPE, statistically speaking. We are the third-oldest high-IQ society in the world, with Mensa being the oldest (98th percentile) and Intertel being the second-oldest (99th percentile). ISPE is, therefore, the oldest high-IQ society in the world with an entrance requirement set at the 99.9th percentile. We accept the results of many tests for admission. See the “Tests & Test Scores” page located in the “Join ISPE” tab for a list of the specific tests and associated scores that we accept.”
Semi-defunct. There is a related page, but the link to the Society page is dead.
“Ludomind was founded in 1999 by Albert Frank. In 2003, it became an International Society, (re)founded by Peter Bentley and Albert Frank. The goal of the society is – without any exception – to present BEAUTIFUL puzzles. The members must of course specify if they are the author of the puzzle, or give the origin. A puzzle may never come from a (active or inactive) test. Besides, the puzzles may not be (too) cultural, may not be related to a language (some members don’t speak English), and must not need high academics knowledge.”
The Society apparently offers genetic intelligence testing (Membership Application).
“A non-profit society dedicated to bringing together high IQ and creativity for the betterment of the world and fostering a community rich in intelligence and creativity.
The Isi-s (Society 151) was founded with the aim of bringing together intelligent individuals who also value creativity, referred to as geniuses.”
Apparently, the traditional ‘genius’ IQ of 140 isn’t going to cut it.
In the 14 years since ‘Nine High IQ Societies’ was published, it has been one of the more popular posts. Time for an update. Changes since the original post in 2010 are noted. Qualifying IQ scores are typically from the latest Stanford – Binet (SD 15). Where multiple qualifying scores are shown they represent SD=15/SD=16. Monetary values are US Dollars.
A brief word on IQ testing. No reputable organization will accept tests taken prior to age 16, and many have the cutoff at 18. Childhood IQ is measured in relation to peers, while adult IQ is compared to the population at large. The result is that an individual’s adult score will usually be lower than the childhood result. You didn’t get dumber; the competition got better. An SAT/ACT score is a much better indicator than that test you took in the 5th grade. Consequently, many people will quote their childhood results. On the statistical tails, one point represents a notable difference.
Also of note is that ‘genius’ is not an official term. The Wikipedia IQ Classification shows that the term was used for the 1916 Stanford – Binet, and not since. There is an edifying sample question from that test, as well as information on the population base for the original test. It was not representative of the Human population. Nonetheless, many people consider an IQ 140+ to be ‘genius’ level.
IQ 124+ or top 5% on any standardized test. (1 in 20)
Membership fee: One-time $259 (was $79 in 2010)
From the site:
“IHIQS was started by Nathan Haselbauer as the New York High IQ Society in 2000, with the aim of promoting discussions on a variety of intellectual topics. The organization became IHIQS later that year to reflect its growing international membership and is open to individuals who have demonstrated an IQ in the top five percent of the population.”
No numeric IQ value; top 2% (~132) on any standardized test. (1 in 50)
Membership fee: $79/year, pro-rated by month of joining.
Lifetime memberships are available, pro-rated by age. The most expensive is, as you would expect, the 0 – 9 division at $2246. My cohort comes in at $1302 for the remainder of actuarial life. I was surprised that Mensan’s 100+ must still pay a $155 ‘lifetime’ membership fee. You might be able to renew annually and still come out ahead, so to speak.
From the site:
“Mensa has around 150,000 members of all ages in 90+ countries worldwide. The society provides its members with diverse and exciting opportunities for social, cultural, and intellectual interaction.”
No fee, but the site does say that membership is decided by committee, and that unsuccessful candidates may not be contacted.
In their own words:
“The Top One Percent Society (TOPS) was founded in July 1989 by Ronald K. Hoeflin, Ph.D.
TOPS is a high IQ society, at the 99th percentile of intelligence, dedicated to the intellectual stimulation and growth of its members. To this effect, a private discussion group has been set in place:”
They might want to charge a fee, and use some of the proceeds to update their horrible mid-90’s website that hasn’t been updated since 2015.
As they say:
“Colloquy is, to the best of our knowledge, the first high-IQ society based entirely on the Internet. As of 2015 Colloquy remains entirely Internet-based and cost-free to members. It is created as a forum for the collegial sharing of thoughts, experiences, and creative expression among people of superior intelligence.”
No website. The link goes to a domain for sale. Possibly defunct.
From the 2010 post:
“Cerebrals Society is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the search of high intellectual giftedness among individuals, bringing highly gifted individuals together, and making full use of high intellectual giftedness for the good of human society in general, where possible. Cerebrals society will strive to reach understanding and promote thoughtfulness within as without, to spread what it gathers and reach always one step further into uncertainties of humanity.”
No fee, but the print journal is $30/year, while the digital version is $10/year.
The Society helpfully provides a page on the site that lists qualifying scores from a number of standardized tests.
From the ‘What is TNS?’ page on the site:
“Founded in 1978, TNS is “committed to friendship, communication, the adventure of intellectual exploration, and a greater realization of individual potentials” (quoted from our Constitution). The guiding principles of the Society are democracy, collegiality, respect for diverse philosophies, and openness to innovation and evolution.”
“Fellows Society for Exceptionally and Profoundly Gifted (FSEPG) – Vertex, is an International Nonprofit Association gathering individuals with scores above IQ 160 SD16 on professional, standardized tests of intelligence – a rarity of 1/11,000 or 3.75 standard deviations above the mean – as far as intelligence can be reliably measured. It is one of the very few associations whose members are selected by means of professional, standardized, supervised intelligence tests only, which makes the society entrance claim undoubted as per standards of the scientific community.”
“Membership in the Society is open to anyone who has received a score on an accepted IQ test that is equal to or greater than that received by the highest one thirty thousandth of the general population.”
A little curious if this group is still active. The website does not appear to have been updated since 2018, and still lists Yahoo!Groups (shut down in 2020) as the discussion forum. Content on the rest of the site is thin.
Of the six measurements evaluated, two are city-specific, and not directly comparable to the State metrics. While I ranked the city scores 12 – 1, just as or the States, I did not use that score for the final tally. Because we are looking at States, I noted how many Cities each State had on one of the City lists, and used that incidence number for the score. This prevents a City with a high crime ranking, for instance, from skewing the State result.
For each metric, States were assigned values 12 – 1, with 12 the top entry, or the worst place on that particular list. The values were summed across categories, and the City scores added as noted. No further data processing was done: the scores are the scores. Based on the metrics and methodology described over the series of posts, and ranked from Not-really-so-bad, to Get-out-now, here are arguably the 12 worst States to live in the United States.
Louisiana
The Pelican State makes the list because it scores very high on people leaving, and because Lake Charles saw a near 7% population decrease 2020 – 2022, putting it on the City list of population decliners. The State population as a whole declined 1.8% over the period, good for third in that category.
Connecticut
To the surprise of no-one who lives in or around The Nutmeg State, Connecticut is on the list because it has the second-highest State tax burden in the country. The State is also top 12 for cost-of-living. Whatever the attractions of living there, you are going to pay for them.
Colorado
The Rocky Mountains are high, and so is the inflation rate in The Centennial State. Highest in the country, in fact. Colorado did not make the list in any other category, but let prices skyrocket, and you’re sitting at number 10. In fairness, inflation rate is such a transient measure, that if you move to Colorado next year, it will be fine. Probably.
Vermont
The Green Mountain State is in the top 10 for cost-of-living, and ranks #4 on tax burden. That combination lands it at #9. It is a pretty State, but maintaining that scenery costs money, apparently.
Utah
Utah makes the tax burden list, although at the bottom on that list, it’s still a higher burden than 38 other States. There is one city on the population decliners list, but the main reason The Beehive State is on this list, is that it has the second-highest inflation rate among the several States. Again, a transient condition, but those taxes aren’t going away.
Maryland
Maryland ranks around the middle of ne’er-do-wells on the cost-of-living and inflation rate lists, and a city makes the most dangerous cities list, although at the bottom. At #7, The Old Line State marks the first State on the list where crime becomes a factor.
Alaska
If you plan on living in The Last Frontier, bring bags of money. The tax burden is remarkably low, but the cost-of-living and inflation rate are remarkably high. Alaska makes the list at #6 just on those two factors.
Massachusetts
Second-highest cost-of-living in the country, and hemorrhaging people at the State and City level, The Bay State has citizens voting with their feet.
Illinois
From 2020 – 2023, The Land of Lincoln saw 2 people out of every 100 leave for other pastures, good for #2 on that measurement. The State has a medium-high tax burden among the top 12 offenders, which may increase as there are fewer people to pay taxes.
Before we look at the Top 3 Worst States in America, I’d like to point out that the scores for these States were double those of any other State. Remember, in this scenario, high score loses. These States are in a dystopian league of their own. To this point, most States scored in a couple of categories with middling scores, or one category with a high score. These States had high scores across multiple categories. They are the Get-out-now States. And, people are.
New York
The Empire State has well and truly fallen. Number one in population decrease and tax burden, #4 for cost-of-living. The Big Apple itself lost over 5% of its population 2020 – 2022, while the State itself lost a nation-leading 3% of its population. A place where nobody lives, nothing works, and the State has all the money. People used to come to this country, to get away from places like this. Ellis Island has become a monument to irony.
Hawai’i
Hawai’ians have the highest cost-of-living by a margin: over 20% higher than next-highest Massachusetts, but The Aloha State makes up for it with the fourth-highest State tax burden. The inflation rate is high, and that and the other factors may be why the State is on the list of largest population decliners. ‘Aloha’, also means ‘goodbye’.
California
Look up ‘failed state’. Was it a picture of California? The (once) Golden State was the only one to score in all six categories, and not by a little bit. California has become America’s own totalitarian regime. Third-highest cost-of-living, fourth in inflation rate and population decline, and the fifth-highest State tax burden. Five of the fastest-shrinking cities in the country are in California, all of them in the Bay Area. Three of the Top 12 crime-ridden cities are in California, one in the Bay Area. No other State placed more than one city in either category. ‘The Big One’ might actually be an improvement.
Conclusions
The first cut on any analysis is, does it feel right? Do the conclusions jibe with observation? I have seen people defend obviously wrong conclusions because ‘that’s what the math says’. The ‘math’ means nothing, by itself. If the conclusions are at variance with observation, the model is wrong.
The conclusions here feel right, especially the top 5. They are places historically and currently infamous for high costs and governed with a heavy hand. I do not think the same type of analysis with different metrics would yield markedly different results. California would still be the worst place to live in America. You could ask half of Oregon.
To this point, we’ve seen the expensive States, the States that are becoming more expensive, places people are leaving, and States that love them some taxes. If you live in one of these expensive, reducing opportunity, tax-suffering places, you would hope that you would not also be at higher risk of having someone break into your house and take what little you have. Let’s find out where those place are.
The usual way to assess violent crime prevalence is incidents per 100,000 people. Ratios and percentages mean more than bare numbers. If a community has 1,000 violent crimes in a year, that’s a lot for a town of 10,000 people; and a place I’d be happy to live if the population was 250,000. Data without context is meaningless. There are a number of sites with this or similar information, and most have links to sources. Much of the information for this post is from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Bureau is rather behind in it’s crime statistic reporting: the latest available violent crime data is from 2019. I would wager their Donald Trump file is much more current. Priorities, you know. This also means there is no FBI violent crime data for the entirety of the Biden Administration, a period covering a whole lot of violent crime.
As for what constitutes violent crime, and what we are looking at, we’ll use the definition straight off the FBI site:
“In the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, violent crime is composed of four offenses: murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and aggravated assault. Violent crimes are defined in the UCR Program as those offenses which involve force or threat of force.”
The first part of the quote illustrates one of the main problems with many crime statistics: they rely on jurisdictions to self-report. There have also been changes in the way some crimes are reported, making historical comparison difficult. While violent crime is almost certainly under-reported, capturing the true value is less important than having consistent comparisons. Flawed data is still useful if it is consistently flawed. It’s when parameters start changing across datasets that problems occur.
For 2019, the mean violent crime rate in the US was 364/100,000, or 0.364%. To put another way, that’s about 1 victim for every 270 people. The 2022 rate was 0.380%, but since we have 2019 data, we’ll use the 2019 average. Of note, the 1991 US violent crime incidence was an eye-popping 0.758%, or 1 person in 132, more than twice the rate today. That was the national average. How did we ever survive? As usual, Blue = Democrat Red = Republican, and the year is the commencement year for the current party in power. For 2019, the most Gotham-like cities in the US were:
If you look at other sources, using more recent data than the FBI has released, the rankings are not significantly different. It’s worth pointing out that a list of Safest Cities is meaningless, as many communities report no violent crime. It is evident, though, that some cities thought dens of iniquity are not as bad as feared. The actual Gotham City? You have to go all the way to #59 to find the Big Apple, and the violent crime incidence is 0.346%, or right around the national average. The first Empire State city to appear is Buffalo, at #22. Chicago? #17 at 1.099%, or about 3 times the national average. Los Angeles checks in at #32 and 0.761%.
On the other hand, the violent crime incident rates at the top of the list are shocking. In St. Louis, 1 in 48 people could be a violent crime victim. I say ‘could be’, because it’s likely that crime doesn’t visit once per person. You could be robbed and beaten. I do not know if that hypothetical would be recorded as two separate crimes that happened to the same victim, or if it’s just one incident. They would certainly be charged as two crimes. Still, 48, or more, people is not an unreasonable number to know. If you live in any of the top three or four cities on the list, you likely know a victim, or are one, of violent crime. It is notable that 3 of the top 12, Stockton, Oakland, and San Bernardino, are located in California. Missouri manages to place two cities, St Louis (1), and Kansas CIty (5) in the top five. Oooh, that’s not going to help in the rankings.
Other cities that frequently appear on high-crime lists are Philadelphia (0.948%), Atlanta (0.935%), Las Vegas (0.618%), and another California city, Fresno (0.565%). The lowest reported rate I could find was Irvine, California, at 0.061%, or 6x lower than the national average. If you have to live in California, live there.
“If you know, what I mean.” (‘I Saw Her Standing There’ Beatles 1963)
What is the deal with rock bands and 17-year olds? This seeming obsession has been noticed by many, many folks for the uncomfortably high creep factor, especially given the rock-n-roller reputation. Besides the titular reference, just-to-hand examples include:
Let’s Go (The Cars 1979)
“And she won’t give up ‘Cause she’s seventeen”
Dancing Queen (ABBA 1976)
“Young and sweet Only seventeen”
Edge of Seventeen (Stevie Nicks 1981)
But the moment that I first laid Eyes on him, all alone On the edge of seventeen
I Love Rock & Roll (Joan Jett & The Blackhearts 1981)
“I saw him dancin’ there by the record machine I knew he must’ve been about 17″
There are many theories, most available on the internet, but I’m going with the one that passes the Okham Test:
17 is popular with songwriters because it easy to rhyme with; and it has three syllables so it is easy to fit into the cadence of many songs.
So, not a genre of music populated by horny young people, but a mere rhyming scheme. In truth, this appears to an instance of serendipitous coalescence, as the concrete and abstract come together. Still a little creepy, though.
They will be paid. Our question today is, where will you pay the most?
For this comparison, we will ignore Federal taxes, as those are the same in every State, and focus on the State-specific tax burden. For this analysis, tax burden is defined as the sum of State and local taxes divided by a State’s share of the net national product. The net national product is a country’s Gross National Product minus the depreciation (replacement cost) of capital assets. The taxes for this consideration are only those afflicted statewide on the general public, and do not include licensing, use, permitting, or any local taxes, such as property assessments. If you live in a State that allows local income taxes, like California and New York, your tax bite will likely be higher.
The most recent year for which I could find reliable data was 2022, when the US national average State tax burden was 11.20 %. Of interest, the States with a burden equal to the national average (Iowa/Kansas #16 tie), are well above the mean of 25. This says to me that the State’s with the higher burdens are skewing the average. As usual States are coded to gubernatorial affiliation Democrat = Blue Republican = Red, and the years are the current Party’s commencement in power.
Residents of The Bay State may be surprised that ‘Taxachusetts’ doesn’t make the Top 12. Massachusetts just misses the cut at #13 and 11.50%, not far off the national average, but with an 8% difference, significantly below the next contender. Otherwise, the usual suspects are all present.
Alaska’s rate is so low as to be a near-outlier. I visited Michigan on vacation one year, and noticed that my tax burden would be significantly lower than where I live ( #19 Oregon 10.80%).
Looking at historical trends, for the period 2000 – 2022, the States with the largest increase in tax burden were:
It’s two decades, but, still. Things aren’t looking great for Hawai’i: a declining population, rising prices in a place that is already the most expensive State in the country, and rising taxes. And, no easy way to leave.
Some States saw tax burden decrease for the period:
The astute will notice that there are only 10 States here, because after Missouri, the tax burden increased. During the Insane Clown Posse years 2019 – 2022, the States with the largest tax burden increase:
Alaskans enjoy the lowest State tax burden in the country, and their taxes are declining? Likely the State’s 35% (!) tax on oil sales has something to do with that. Political party prevalence seems to be a mixed bag among advancers and decliners.
Whatever the State tax burden is, States collect revenue in different ways. Some emphasize consumption taxes, others are focused on income confiscation, and some hit you with everything they can, including collection methods of very dubious legality. Looking at you, California.
The Top 12 and Bottom 12 States by Tax Burden, and how they collect:
Nothing mixed here: the top 12 are predominantly Democrat, while the bottom of the list is a Republican lock, with Michigan the lone Democrat entry. Interesting how Oklahoma collects tax in every category, yet still has a lower State tax burden than 40 other States, and it looks like Alaska doesn’t collect much if you don’t buy anything. I noticed a number of States that had multiple revenue streams, yet were below the national average tax burden. Sort of a nickel-and-dime approach, although in some States it’s more like fives and tens. I have lived in places that took this approach, and it is annoying. You feel like the State has its hand out every time you turn around. Because, it does.
Although this exercise deals with taxes residents pay, many State and local governments get a significant amount of revenue from ‘tourist taxes’, usually rental car, restaurant, and hotel room surcharges. Florida is big on this, and outside the occasional car rental, those taxes tend to be transparent to residents. This transparency also makes these taxes an easy sell: you’re not paying them, and those Yankees can leave some more money with us. Until you aren’t a resident anymore, and come for a visit. The last time I was in Florida, I was floored by the rental car surcharges. Hotel room fees added a fair bit more. I can’t really complain too much: I probably voted for some of those taxes.
Much of the information for this post came from this site, and there is a wealth of information, and explanation on how it is derived. I will point out that while I got source information, including spreadsheets, from the site, the presentation is mine.
Tax Burden
You would think there would be a standard definition for a term so often used, but that is not the case. In fact, most sources just demonstrate the use of the term in a sentence. ‘Tax burden’ refers to a specific value, as given at the start of the post. For the most part, the definitions found do not indicate how this value is obtained. That’s not really a definition, at all.
Collins English Dictionary “the amount of tax paid by a person, company, or country in a specified period considered as a proportion of total income in that period.”
“Multinationals can also shift profits to reduce their total tax burden; they can show larger profits in countries with lower tax rates.“
Not political, or anything.
Mirriam-Webster “responsibility for paying a greater portion of taxes”
“The tax burden has been falling increasingly on the middle class.”
See above.
Oxford Reference “The amount of tax suffered by an individual or organization.”
True as far as it goes, which isn’t far enough. I do like the very British, and very old-school, use of the word ‘suffered’.
Cambridge Dictionary “the total amount of tax paid by a particular group of people, an industry, etc., especially as compared to what other groups, industries, etc. pay:“
For those who are not an Oxford Man, or even a Baird Man, we’ll let the Oxford refugees weigh in. Probably should have stopped after ‘etc.’
The college basketball season concluded with the South Carolina women and University of Connecticut men taking their respective national titles. The women’s game was the more competitive, but I figured the Gamecocks would be hard to beat coming in at 37 – 0; now 38 – 0. Going wire-to-wire in any sport, in any league, is tough. Iowa gave them all they could handle, but in the end, South Carolina was just better.
I would like to mention University of Connecticut women’s basketball here. They were bounced in the Final Four by the Iowa team that would lose in the championship, but UConn is a basketball factory. Ever since head coach Geno Auriemma took over in 1985 (not a misprint), all that program has done, is collect hardware. Coach Auriemma has been as much of fixture in collegiate basketball as Mike Krzyzewski, and with a better winning percentage. Likely the most stunning stat from Coach Auriemma’s career, is that it took him just 1,135 games as a head coach to reach the 1,000 win mark. I’ll just leave that there.
The men’s game was competitive for most of the first half, but a practiced observer could see the game was over not far into the second half. Radio analyst PJ Carlissimo made the telling observation at half-time that Purdue played as well as they could the first 10 – 12 minutes of the game, and the score was tied. In the second half, Purdue couldn’t buy a basket, while every garbage shot UConn threw up went in. I have been on the bad end of these types of games, and it is demoralizing. Purdue was tired, too. Players slow to get up the floor, and not putting up hands on defense.
The NBA Portland Trailblazers are finishing up their season, and fans were sorely tested. Last offseason, ownership got rid of everyone who was anyone, and the first few weeks of the season were awkward, as the fans didn’t know any of the new faces on the roster. They may still not, as this was viewed as a write-off season by many, with some pundits expecting fewer than 20 wins on the 84-game season. They have to date won just over 1 out of every 4 games, which is good for second-to-last in the Western Conference, but it is over 20 wins.
Baseball
The MLB season has just gotten underway, and while looking for a game score, I discovered the Gameday Coverage page on the mlb.com site. Each team has a page, activated when a game is in play. There are some neat features.
There are three sections: a central screen, and a couple of sidebars. The right sidebar has the box score and the game roster for each team with in-game stats. The center screen, about 4” x 6”, shows a video-game rendition of the view from behind home plate, with the appropriate venue background. The batter is represented by a stationary figure in the batters box, and a sub-divided strike zone is placed vertically over the plate. I am assuming the official strike zone, and not the one the umpire is calling. Neither the pitcher, nor fielders, are shown.
Pitches are shown with pitch type, location, and speed. Very handy for tracking how the pitcher is using his pitches, and how the umpire is calling the game. You can also see some in-game drama. I watched a batter take a strike, then foul off four straight pitches. This must have upset the pitcher, because the next pitch came in high and tight. All recorded on the screen. Kind of neat.
The play-by-play is shown on the left sidebar, and at the top is a fascinating bit of kit. A small screen gives a plan view of the particular park, with each postion shown by a small, marked rectangle. And not just some generic representation, either. I don’t know if the players are mic’ed up with a transmitter, like an RF tag, but the rectangles show the defensive player’s positions in real-time. When there is a mound meeting, all the infield rectangles converge on the mound. You can also see the outfielders huddling in center field, which TV never shows. When there is a pitching change, the pitcher rectangle heads for the dugout. I thought a refinement might be for the manager to be represented by a shepherd’s crook when they head for the mound.
The animation shows the ball getting tossed around the infield after an out, which is fun. The only time the animation fails is when a ball is put in play. It can’t keep up, so it’s hard to tell what is happening, until the play-by-play catches up. A minor quibble, really. There is a reminder on the screen that it is a Beta test, and I hope it stays.
In the search for the Worst Place to Live in America, we looked at which States people were fleeing. In this post, we’ll look at the States with the highest-cost-of-living, and the States with the highest inflation rates, and see if there might be a correlation between the cost-of-living, and living desirability.
States with the Highest Cost of Living
The usual way to rank cost-of-living is by CPI, or Consumer Price Index. The weighted mean is taken to be 100, and the CPI for other markets is compared to it. A location with CPI=150, would be 50% more expensive than a place with CPI=100. As of 2023, the 12 most expensive states in the US are:
State gubernatorial affiliation is coded Blue=Democrat, Red=Republican, with the date the start year of the current Party in power. By CPI, Hawai’i is nearly twice as expensive as the average, but that is due in large part to the fact that it’s in the middle of the largest ocean on Earth. Alaska has a land connection to the Lower 48, but realistically, cargo comes in by ship, people by plane. Of the more accessible States, 7 of the 12 are in the Northeast, and the remaining 3 comprise the US West Coast. The States with the lowest cost of living:
After Reconstruction, most of the Southern States became Democrat strongholds for more than a century. And, voters in those States appear to have been caught up in the Reagan Revolution. Political leadership is but one factor in cost-of-living, and, depending on other variables, maybe not even the most important. But, the Republican Party has historically favored the individual over the collective, so the political climate is not inconsequential.
States with the Highest Rate of Inflation
One cause of inflation is where demand for goods and services exceeds supply, such as rapid population increase, and suppliers raise prices. Another cause is a general wage increase, where both supplier costs increase, and there is an increase in the available money supply, further driving retail price increases. A third inflation driver is an increase in the available money supply, causing suppliers to raise prices to bring revenue more in line with the available money. This type usually does not see an overall wage increase, meaning purchasing power is eroded.
Likewise, deflation may be expected if there is a rapid population decrease in an economy, or if there is a significant supply increase in goods or services, with no proportional population increase.
For the period January 2021 – February 2024, the States with the highest inflation rate:
The source uses January 2021 for a base, and the latest data is from February 2024. It is worth noting that Arizona, Delaware, Florida, and Utah all had significant population increases during the period. Inflationary pressure in California and Hawai’i can’t be from that, as those States’ population has declined for the interval. So, in the Golden State and the Aloha State, prices for goods and services are rising, while the population is declining. These are the only States on this list for which that is true. A version of the stagflation of the 1970’s, and if you were there, you remember how miserable it was.
For comparison, the State’s with the lowest rate of inflation:
Half of the State’s on this list, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and West Virginia, are also in the top 12 population-declining States, so perhaps some deflationary pressure. Doesn’t really imply good things for those economies. The remaining State’s have relatively stable populations, so other factors are likely at play.
This source cites a research firm as their data source, and those folks aren’t saying. As professionals, I trust that their data sources are good. Several sites cite this source for their data, including this site. I would not consider MERIC to be original data, but their CPI rankings are consistent with other sources, including Forbes, who apparently did their own in-house analysis.
The two major Parties get their own section on this official US Government site, and the Republicans have chosen to put an Inflation Tracker in theirs. You can download the original data in spreadsheet form. Their Methodology page gives the source-data agencies, so if desired, you can locate the original data yourself.
Fixed Points 
Of the six measurements evaluated, two are city-specific, and not directly comparable to the State metrics. While I ranked the city scores 12 – 1, just as or the States, I did not use that score for the final tally. Because we are looking at States, I noted how many Cities each State had on one of the City lists, and used that incidence number for the score. This prevents a City with a high crime ranking, for instance, from skewing the State result.
For each metric, States were assigned values 12 – 1, with 12 the top entry, or the worst place on that particular list. The values were summed across categories, and the City scores added as noted. No further data processing was done: the scores are the scores. Based on the metrics and methodology described over the series of posts, and ranked from Not-really-so-bad, to Get-out-now, here are arguably the 12 worst States to live in the United States.
Louisiana
The Pelican State makes the list because it scores very high on people leaving, and because Lake Charles saw a near 7% population decrease 2020 – 2022, putting it on the City list of population decliners. The State population as a whole declined 1.8% over the period, good for third in that category.
Connecticut
To the surprise of no-one who lives in or around The Nutmeg State, Connecticut is on the list because it has the second-highest State tax burden in the country. The State is also top 12 for cost-of-living. Whatever the attractions of living there, you are going to pay for them.
Colorado
The Rocky Mountains are high, and so is the inflation rate in The Centennial State. Highest in the country, in fact. Colorado did not make the list in any other category, but let prices skyrocket, and you’re sitting at number 10. In fairness, inflation rate is such a transient measure, that if you move to Colorado next year, it will be fine. Probably.
Vermont
The Green Mountain State is in the top 10 for cost-of-living, and ranks #4 on tax burden. That combination lands it at #9. It is a pretty State, but maintaining that scenery costs money, apparently.
Utah
Utah makes the tax burden list, although at the bottom on that list, it’s still a higher burden than 38 other States. There is one city on the population decliners list, but the main reason The Beehive State is on this list, is that it has the second-highest inflation rate among the several States. Again, a transient condition, but those taxes aren’t going away.
Maryland
Maryland ranks around the middle of ne’er-do-wells on the cost-of-living and inflation rate lists, and a city makes the most dangerous cities list, although at the bottom. At #7, The Old Line State marks the first State on the list where crime becomes a factor.
Alaska
If you plan on living in The Last Frontier, bring bags of money. The tax burden is remarkably low, but the cost-of-living and inflation rate are remarkably high. Alaska makes the list at #6 just on those two factors.
Massachusetts
Second-highest cost-of-living in the country, and hemorrhaging people at the State and City level, The Bay State has citizens voting with their feet.
Illinois
From 2020 – 2023, The Land of Lincoln saw 2 people out of every 100 leave for other pastures, good for #2 on that measurement. The State has a medium-high tax burden among the top 12 offenders, which may increase as there are fewer people to pay taxes.
Before we look at the Top 3 Worst States in America, I’d like to point out that the scores for these States were double those of any other State. Remember, in this scenario, high score loses. These States are in a dystopian league of their own. To this point, most States scored in a couple of categories with middling scores, or one category with a high score. These States had high scores across multiple categories. They are the Get-out-now States. And, people are.
New York
The Empire State has well and truly fallen. Number one in population decrease and tax burden, #4 for cost-of-living. The Big Apple itself lost over 5% of its population 2020 – 2022, while the State itself lost a nation-leading 3% of its population. A place where nobody lives, nothing works, and the State has all the money. People used to come to this country, to get away from places like this. Ellis Island has become a monument to irony.
Hawai’i
Hawai’ians have the highest cost-of-living by a margin: over 20% higher than next-highest Massachusetts, but The Aloha State makes up for it with the fourth-highest State tax burden. The inflation rate is high, and that and the other factors may be why the State is on the list of largest population decliners. ‘Aloha’, also means ‘goodbye’.
California
Look up ‘failed state’. Was it a picture of California? The (once) Golden State was the only one to score in all six categories, and not by a little bit. California has become America’s own totalitarian regime. Third-highest cost-of-living, fourth in inflation rate and population decline, and the fifth-highest State tax burden. Five of the fastest-shrinking cities in the country are in California, all of them in the Bay Area. Three of the Top 12 crime-ridden cities are in California, one in the Bay Area. No other State placed more than one city in either category. ‘The Big One’ might actually be an improvement.
Conclusions
The first cut on any analysis is, does it feel right? Do the conclusions jibe with observation? I have seen people defend obviously wrong conclusions because ‘that’s what the math says’. The ‘math’ means nothing, by itself. If the conclusions are at variance with observation, the model is wrong.
The conclusions here feel right, especially the top 5. They are places historically and currently infamous for high costs and governed with a heavy hand. I do not think the same type of analysis with different metrics would yield markedly different results. California would still be the worst place to live in America. You could ask half of Oregon.
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