It's so bad you have to pay people to move to Vermont

[bigbob]

Is the rural NH countryside being destroyed by gigantic, ugly, industrial, wind turbines like it is in VT?

There are a few wind farms in NH, newest is in Antrim. Not as many as Maine. Power has to come from somewhere. VT now has many hayfields filled with solar panels, didn't they ban billboards back in the 60's since they were ugly?

 

[thetrailboss]

I like the part where they keep Bernie in office. How much does he do for the State of Vermont, instead of being a professional Presidential Candidate for HOW many years? Lol!!! Yep, you get what you vote for!

Don't get me started on Bernie. :lol: Four years ago someone on the Snowbird Tram assumed that because I was from Vermont that I automatically LOVED Bernie. i gave her a pretty dirty look.

Admittedly, when I was younger, I did agree with a lot of his concerns. Hell, in someways I still do. But as I got older and the years passed by, I slowly realized that the only thing that Bernie did was get elected so he could keep a job. His first job years after college and "borrowing" or stealing from neighbors to survive? Being Mayor of Burlington. Look at what legislation he has sponsored or even gotten through. I will save you the time--it is none. What is worse in my mind is that his message resonates with A LOT of people right now who are not doing well at all and have been screwed but he has NO INTENTION of making good on any of those promises--he wants to sell a few more books, buy a FOURTH house, and keep a job. That's it. I find that downright infuriating to take such advantage of people who are hurting. You will see that a lot of Vermont voters buy him lock, stock, and barrel, but there are an increasing number who see through him.

It is also classic that he is now going on YEARS without having a meaningful sit-down with the Vermont press to answer questions.

 

[Smellytele]

Yes NH does have wind turbines.
Also the issue with NH and taxes is property tax. So if you are living on a fixed budget (ie retired) property tax keeps going up.

 

[thetrailboss]

Yes NH does have wind turbines.
Also the issue with NH and taxes is property tax. So if you are living on a fixed budget (ie retired) property tax keeps going up.

Very true, but the trade-off is that it is THE ONLY tax. Still, they are relying a lot on that tax to fund things and that is not sustainable.

 

[VTKilarney]

Yes NH does have wind turbines.
Also the issue with NH and taxes is property tax. So if you are living on a fixed budget (ie retired) property tax keeps going up.

Isn’t there a senior adjustment? My mother in law paid a substantially reduced rate in Nashua.

 

[Smellytele]

Isn’t there a senior adjustment? My mother in law paid a substantially reduced rate in Nashua.

Maybe it is by town but I parents nor in-laws ever had a reduced rate. Veterans and their spouses if they have passed do get a discount state wide.

 

[deadheadskier]

yes, by town. We don't have it in Newmarket, but I know Exeter does for retirees.

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[Bumpsis]

Is the rural NH countryside being destroyed by gigantic, ugly, industrial, wind turbines like it is in VT?

yeah, coal burning smokestacks with ash ponds leaching mercury, arsenic and other toxic goodies are just so much more aesthetically pleasing...

 

[JimG.]

Yes NH does have wind turbines.
Also the issue with NH and taxes is property tax. So if you are living on a fixed budget (ie retired) property tax keeps going up.

Yes the property taxes are biggest disadvantage I found but we will downsize considerably. We are pretty well set financially so property taxes that are outrageous percentage wise will still be considerably lower than what I'm paying here in NY. We aren't depending on SS at all but I found it amazing that a few states (8 total I think) tax SS benefits.

 

[spring_mountain_high]

Don't get me started on Bernie. :lol: Four years ago someone on the Snowbird Tram assumed that because I was from Vermont that I automatically LOVED Bernie. i gave her a pretty dirty look.

Admittedly, when I was younger, I did agree with a lot of his concerns. Hell, in someways I still do. But as I got older and the years passed by, I slowly realized that the only thing that Bernie did was get elected so he could keep a job. His first job years after college and "borrowing" or stealing from neighbors to survive? Being Mayor of Burlington. Look at what legislation he has sponsored or even gotten through. I will save you the time--it is none. What is worse in my mind is that his message resonates with A LOT of people right now who are not doing well at all and have been screwed but he has NO INTENTION of making good on any of those promises--he wants to sell a few more books, buy a FOURTH house, and keep a job. That's it. I find that downright infuriating to take such advantage of people who are hurting. You will see that a lot of Vermont voters buy him lock, stock, and barrel, but there are an increasing number who see through him.

It is also classic that he is now going on YEARS without having a meaningful sit-down with the Vermont press to answer questions.

oh man don't get me started on that jerk...wanting to educate people and give them healthcare...the fucking nerve!

 

[EPB]

oh man don't get me started on that jerk...wanting to educate people and give them healthcare...the fucking nerve!

It is pretty amazing that he's such a charitable instructor and doctor that he's just going to give educations and healthcare to everyone.

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[raisingarizona]

It is pretty amazing that he's such a charitable instructor and doctor that he's just going to give educations and healthcare to everyone.

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He’s gonna fire up that printer and hand out free money to everyone!

 

[BenedictGomez]

Admittedly, when I was younger, I did agree with a lot of his concerns. Hell, in someways I still do. But as I got older and the years passed by, I slowly realized that the only thing that Bernie did was get elected so he could keep a job. His first job years after college and "borrowing" or stealing from neighbors to survive? Being Mayor of Burlington. Look at what legislation he has sponsored or even gotten through. I will save you the time--it is none. What is worse in my mind is that his message resonates with A LOT of people right now who are not doing well at all and have been screwed but he has NO INTENTION of making good on any of those promises--he wants to sell a few more books, buy a FOURTH house, and keep a job. That's it. I find that downright infuriating to take such advantage of people who are hurting.

Yup; Bernie Sanders is a total fraud.

I think of him as the government version of one of those phony religious preachers who trick people into giving them all their money.

 

[farlep99]

I must say, I like the conversation here. Full disclosure, I was born here, raised here, went to public school here (gasp), educated here (under-grad and graduate), been employed here (from small biz to full on corporate) and now raising children here so I am probably biased.

A few points:
1) we prob should have the Circ but the demise of IBM had nothing to do with that (I will stop beating that dead horse now, sorry)
2) I am fully aware that I could make 2-3x my salary elsewhere but-
- my kids would prob have to be in private school
- my house would cost twice as much
- I would not be able to live the lifestyle I have now
3) it is really nice here (referring to the Chittenden/Washington county area)
- I can ski 40-50 days
- my kids have access to a great education
- I have all the benefits of a small, tight knit community
- I have lake Champlain at my disposal all summer
- I have found employment that matches my education level
- healthcare here is world class
4) other nice things here:
- 99% of people have health insurance (yes it is expensive, but good for society at large)
- public education here is good (see above comment)
- one of the healthiest states in the country
- while it can be a pain in the ass, Vermont does not look the way it does by accident, there is something to be said about Vermont’s approach to growth and development (I have been to a lot of other places and Vermont is quite unique in this sense)
- proximity to other places ( Montreal, Boston, NYC). We can be rural without being isolated.
5) it’s not all perfect
- low population density- a blessing (small towns) and a curse (makes everything expensive)
- high taxes (but good education and we take care of our fellow Vermonters)
- employment can be tough (but there are opportunities out there)
- finding employees is tough ( we need to attract more workers for sure)

Bottom line is I can live very well here on a decent salary in a vacation paradise and still be productive in life and raise kids. What could be better than that? Virtually anywhere else that has this kind of access to outdoor recreation (skiing, hiking, boating, fishing, hunting, etc) is expensive, devoid of legit job opportunities, isolated from quality cultural and medical facilities, or is not a great place to live year round.

That “premium” I spoke of before is the quality of life here, it has value. I would have to be a very wealthy man to live this way anywhere else.

This is really well put & why I also live, work, and am raising children here. I often find myself jealous of my own kids that they get to grow up here. So much fun stuff for kids and while I'm an avid skier and it's a huge part of why I moved to VT in the first place (I would've loved to go out west but extended family reasons made that tough), I've come to appreciate summer/fall here just as much as ski season.

 

[thetrailboss]

oh man don't get me started on that jerk...wanting to educate people and give them healthcare...the fucking nerve!

Those are indeed issues with which we all agree. But again, ask yourself, what has he actually DONE to advance those issues? Nothing other than run his mouth. All hat and no cattle as they say out here in the west.

 

[thetrailboss]

Yup; Bernie Sanders is a total fraud.

I think of him as the government version of one of those phony religious preachers who trick people into giving them all their money.

Good one. :lol:

He's got a great gig. Say all these things that everyone wants and then when he fails to deliver he can just shrug and blame DC politics. He plays the victim.

 

[raisingarizona]

Good one. :lol:

He's got a great gig. Say all these things that everyone wants and then when he fails to deliver he can just shrug and blame DC politics. He plays the victim.

And never once during his last campaign did he ever lay out a plan or explain how any of his grand ideas would actually work. He just kept saying what people wanted to hear over and over again.

We would definitely be a better and happier country if everyone was insured and educated but then there’s reality. Heck, a lot of this thread has been on the people in Vermont being taxed too much, imagine the taxes if we had all of that “free” stuff.

 

[kbroderick]

And never once during his last campaign did he ever lay out a plan or explain how any of his grand ideas would actually work. He just kept saying what people wanted to hear over and over again.

We would definitely be a better and happier country if everyone was insured and educated but then there’s reality. Heck, a lot of this thread has been on the people in Vermont being taxed too much, imagine the taxes if we had all of that “free” stuff.

Whether or not he did last time around, he has provided specific cost estimates and funding sources this time around. You can debate the education side of it, but the data is damned clear that doing health care the way we do it is stupid. We spend more (even per capita) and get less than any first-world nation. Take the same amount of money we already spend, collect it via taxes, and you could fund nationalized health care with reasonable care levels.

With health-care costs controlled, you substantially reduce the year-over-year cost increases for a lot of Vermont government spending on both the government and education sides of things, as well as making things a lot more sane for small businesses and more welcome to entrepreneurs, who can now take bigger risks because a business setback doesn't mean their kids can't get their inhalers.

 

[raisingarizona]

Oh yeah, I agree that our health care is totally f-d but I imagine we spend a big chunk of our money on military efforts. One could argue that we should stay out of foreign affairs but it’s probably too late for that.

 

[FBGM]

republicans Should not be allowed to ski.