California Has the Highest State Income Tax in the Nation, Texas Has NO State Income Tax

Most states have good and bad places to live.   Its nice there is a wide array of different taxation policies.    Families with kids in school might prefer higher taxes with better education.  Retired people dont give shit about school and just want cheap cost of living.   So have at it.

There's a reason why houses cost 2 million dollars in California.   Everyone wants to live there.    After my most recent visit I can understand why.    I'm moving to San Luis Opisbo the day after I hit the lottery.     Texas has some cool areas too....Austin is every bit as liberal as San Francisco.   I just dont care for the hot Summers there.

I've yet to find anywhere I'd rather live on my current budget than the Midwest.    And thats ironic given that its largely ignored by most people as a desirable place to live.   Cheap houses, decent year round weather, big cities minus the traffic issues, diverse population with their corresponding restaurant influence... and a good base to travel out of.     I live like a king in Indianapolis compared to what my quality of life would be in some bigger cities.  Also -   Cincinatti, St Louis, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Lexington....they're all great places to live without breaking the bank.    

There's one overriding factor for me. I live in Portland because it's beautiful, I like the climate, and it's a big city with all the attendant amenities but not the coat of living you run into in Seattle or San Francisco.

But what really matters to me is that the people are so truly, genuinely nice. I hear very, very little of that tiresome "I hate XYZ people" shit that spouts out of every orifice in places like Texas.

But y'know, there are people for whom shitholes like Texas are nirvana! And they're free to live there! So, yay America!

You wont hear people talk like that in Austin....and you will hear people talk like that in rural Oregon.   

Thats really the difference - not red state/blue state.

Oh, I'm aware. That's why I said "Portland" and not "Oregon." After all, we have the Cliven Bundy crowd, among others. The eastern and southern counties of Oregon might as well be in Arkansas.

I've been to Austin several times, and it's a great town. It doesn't really belong in Texas. Way too many educated people, for one thing.