MacPherson Freedom Index Free States Chart
Do we still live in a constitutional republic of united states? Does any state government still honor that state's constitution? Did you know that not all state constitutions provide the same protection of your God-given rights? If you want to be free – as free as one can be in this world – in which state should you live?
The MacPherson Freedom Index Free States Chart provides an overview of 20 of the United States, compiled by starting with all 7 states with no personal income tax, plus Tennessee that taxes only interest and dividend income. We then added 12 other states that could be attractive to Patriots, for their low tax burden, low population density, or ease of homesteading. (If you think we should add a state we do not have, please let us know!)
We initially chose the name "Freedom Index" because we intended to assign a scoring system to each criterion. However, once we began working on the project, we realized that our weighting system might be different from those of our clients, or even different from a weighting system we would use if we were in a different stage in life. For instance, if you are earning a lot of money and living on an inexpensive property, a place like Texas might be a good option (no income tax, high property tax), whereas if you are retired and living on an expensive property, a place like Idaho might be a better option (moderate income tax but low property tax, especially with timber exemption). Thus, we leave it up to each user to assign values to each criterion, weighted according to his unique goals and circumstances. We recommend the Hoshin Success Compass method of prioritization taught and facilitated by our friend Matthew Cross of Leadership Alliance, who was the impetus in our development of the MacPherson Freedom Index Free States Chart and with whom we engaged in many hours of brainstorming.
The chart is divided into seven broad categories: Land Overview (basic land and water information), People Overview (population, population density, and transportation), Fourth Commandment (laws affecting the filial relationship), Fifth Commandment (laws affecting the rights to defense of self and others), Sixth Commandment (laws affecting the marital relationship, even if the federal government has claimed to usurp authority over marriage and overruled the state's decisions regarding the same), Seventh Commandment (laws affecting the taking of your property by the state), and Life from Land (the ability to be self sustaining on the land which the Lord your God gives you).
The MacPherson Freedom Index Free States Chart has been featured on the podcast A Brief History of Power by the Rev. Jonathan McAdams Fisk (Pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church (LCMS) in Rockford, Illinois) and the Rev. Dr. Adam Koontz (professor at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana) as well as in Rev. Fisk's The Mad Christian Mondays newsletter. In fact, it was at their request that we finally completed and published it. Check out their podcast here or here.
Please note that this is a work in progress; the information might not be up to date. We welcome your feedback.
To download a copy of the MacPherson Freedom Index Free States Chart, please click here.