What are unique features about your state/province you like?

[Kaltovar]

I live in Maine. We have Ranked Choice Voting and Citizens Referendums. This has resulted in a state where:

You can legally carry a concealed weapon of almost any type with no permit (but we also have some of the toughest laws for USING them on people in the country)

Healthcare for the poor is widespread and free

Marijuana is legal to grow, give away, and soon sell

The public regularly just decides to give state money to infrastructure, education, and industry projects via referendum.

Assisted Suicide for terminally ill people is legal.

---

In other words? The widespread conservative bent toward firearms is respected but we also get all the lefty things that most of us like here. Regardless of whether the administration is Republican or Democrat we can still usually make progress on INDIVIDUAL ISSUES because if the Senate is barring them we can just do a Citizens Referendum. Soon the Party Blocs are going to dissolve because of Ranked Choice Voting, and we're seeing an interesting mix of candidates (socialists, traditionalists, single-issue pro gunners, New York Liberals, true centrists) start to run for all kinds of local elections.

TL;DR I love my state. What are some reasons you love your state or province (if outside the US)?

[Farnhamia]

Colorado is almost square, with no squiggly borders, our lowest point is higher than the highest point in Pennsylvania, and if you arrange the sections right, you can fit New Zealand inside our unsquiggly border.

Oh, yeah ... we has mountains.

[Kaltovar]

Colorado is almost square, with no squiggly borders, our lowest point is higher than the highest point in Pennsylvania, and if you arrange the sections right, you can fit New Zealand inside our unsquiggly border.

Oh, yeah ... we has mountains.

I do actually rather like the square states. They please my OCD brain.

[Teachian]

Colorado is almost square, with no squiggly borders, our lowest point is higher than the highest point in Pennsylvania, and if you arrange the sections right, you can fit New Zealand inside our unsquiggly border.

Oh, yeah ... we has mountains.

I do actually rather like the square states. They please my OCD brain.

I want to say aesthetically pleasing borders were actually the intention when those territories/states were first being mapped. They are purty.

As for my state... we're not allowed to pump our own gas anymore. Don't know the story why, but it's fun imagining that we somehow messed it up that badly.

[Farnhamia]

I do actually rather like the square states. They please my OCD brain.

I want to say aesthetically pleasing borders were actually the intention when those territories/states were first being mapped. They are purty.

As for my state... we're not allowed to pump our own gas anymore. Don't know the story why, but it's fun imagining that we somehow messed it up that badly.

"Sir? Sir, the gasoline is supposed to go in the vehicle, not on it. No, no, in that hole there ... please, just let me do, sir."

[Telconi]

I like the physical terrain of my state, the ability to leave home and be either at the ocean or on top of a mountain or in a vast desert withing a handful of hours of drive time is nice.

Also the jokes are funny.

[Xmara]

I live in West Virginia, AKA the setting for Fallout 76 and an incredibly strange state.

If you do some digging, you'll find some really weird stuff here, like:

Haunted insane asylum
Haunted prison
Not one, but TWO amusement parks built on old Indian burial mounds (one is still in operation)
Congressional fallout shelter

Some other interesting things:

Mothman
The fact that a UFO cult actually set up a human cloning lab here that was funded by a former state legislator who wanted to clone his deceased infant son
Frank Drake introduced his Drake equation in Green Bank, WV
The story of the Greenbrier Ghost, the only recorded instance where the alleged testimony of a ghost helped convict a murderer

[Xmara]

I do actually rather like the square states. They please my OCD brain.

I want to say aesthetically pleasing borders were actually the intention when those territories/states were first being mapped. They are purty.

As for my state... we're not allowed to pump our own gas anymore. Don't know the story why, but it's fun imagining that we somehow messed it up that badly.

New Jersey, right?

[Geneviev]

My home state of Hessen has the Rhön mountains that I could see from my house, and they're absolutely beautiful. And we have less people, mostly, so that could be good or bad. And California is a very long state.

[Farnhamia]

My home state of Hessen has the Rhön mountains that I could see from my house, and they're absolutely beautiful. And we have less people, mostly, so that could be good or bad. And California is a very long state.

You're a ... one of the Chatti? *runs away* Help! Help! The Germans are coming!

[Geneviev]

My home state of Hessen has the Rhön mountains that I could see from my house, and they're absolutely beautiful. And we have less people, mostly, so that could be good or bad. And California is a very long state.

You're a ... one of the Chatti? *runs away* Help! Help! The Germans are coming!

And I'm definitely that intimidating.

[Crysuko]

In this little town I live in, it's very communal, pubs and food places damn near every 10th step and a pretty swanky high street.

[New haven america]

The corrupt cops out and about keep you on your toes.

[Torisakia]

Alabama was the location of the first ever 911 call in 1968. So they have that. But otherwise Alabama is a terrible state with no redeeming qualities.

[Kaltovar]

We're not allowed to pump our own gas anymore. Don't know the story why, but it's fun imagining that we somehow messed it up that badly.

Woah, what the fuck? I can't even fathom that xD

I like the physical terrain of my state, the ability to leave home and be either at the ocean or on top of a mountain or in a vast desert withing a handful of hours of drive time is nice.

Also the jokes are funny.

Very similar in Maine but with no deserts! I wish we had more deserts.

I live in West Virginia, AKA the setting for Fallout 76 and an incredibly strange state.


Congressional fallout shelter

Love that thing

Mothman
The fact that a UFO cult actually set up a human cloning lab here that was funded by a former state legislator who wanted to clone his deceased infant son

What the fuck? That's insane. Thank you.

The story of the Greenbrier Ghost, the only recorded instance where the alleged testimony of a ghost helped convict a murderer

Daaaamn >.>

My home state of Hessen has the Rhön mountains that I could see from my house, and they're absolutely beautiful. And we have less people, mostly, so that could be good or bad. And California is a very long state.

First non US poster here! Wahoo! Love mountains. We have Mt. Katahdin here and it's purdy. Some of us call it Knife Mountain because it's super long and has the famous knife's edge.

In this little town I live in, it's very communal, pubs and food places damn near every 10th step and a pretty swanky high street.

I wish there was more community here, but it's a banal college town where the population turns over every 4 years :c

The corrupt cops out and about keep you on your toes.

I'm really glad the cops where I live are super nice. They'll go out of their way not to fuck with you. Well, actually, in my TOWN they kinda suck cuz it's a college town ... But most places in Maine they're good.

Alabama was the location of the first ever 911 call in 1968. So they have that. But otherwise Alabama is a terrible state with no redeeming qualities.

Woah, there was a point in history where Alabama was on the cutting edge of social progress and information technology? That's insane!

All good replies so far. I love learning these things

[Neanderthaland]

I'd tell you, but Minnesotans are humble.

[Kaltovar]

I'd tell you, but Minnesotans are humble.

I am at least a million times as humble as thou art!

[Neanderthaland]

I'd tell you, but Minnesotans are humble.

I am at least a million times as humble as thou art!

Okay Moses.

[Kowani]

I’m from Granada. We have much history, good weather, crappy beaches, and terrible accents.

[Lillorainen]

My home state of Hessen has the Rhön mountains that I could see from my house, and they're absolutely beautiful. And we have less people, mostly, so that could be good or bad. And California is a very long state.

Guude!

I'm from Germany, too - the State of NRW, to be precise. To other Germans around - I know what you're thinking, and you're right. We have a lot of issues in here, like, high unemployment, educational problems, financial issues, a rich-poor divide so obvious, that one's fate can already be predicted by which side of a river or a highway one is born on (albeit absolutely nowhere near most other countries of the world), problems with transport, law enforcement issues, yadda yadda yadda, but a medal has always two sides.

• We have a rich and diverse regional culture - certainly a result of being one of the "Hyphen States", with the Rhinelands, Westphalia, and Lippe having been separate for many centuries up until immediately after WW2.
• Contrary to popular belief, we're more than just one huge post-industrial ghetto metropolitan area - we also have beautiful landscapes, including, but not limited to, the Eifel, the Berg Lands, the Sauerland, as well as the Teutoburg Forest and its immediate surroundings.
• We have quite nice cities like Cologne, Düsseldorf, Aachen, Münster, Paderborn ... the list could continue.
• We have Bielefeld, the city that doesn't exist.
• Carnival. Self-explanatory.
• Rhenish dialect. Self-explanatory.
• Football ("soccer") culture. Self-explanatory.
• While the beer issue might be controversial (Kölsch, Alt, Pils, ...), we have enough variations of beer to serve almost everyone's tastes.
• We're hearty, we're cheerful, we have a good sense of humor and self-irony. (The latter plays a particular role in the Ruhr area for some odd reason.)

While my home state may not necessarily be the one I enjoy being in the most, I'm willing to defend many aspects of it. ^^

[The Republic of Fore]

I now live in Maryland. I love the food, and the people. The sports fans are all pretty great as well. And the accent.

[New Bremerton]

Sarawak, Malaysia, where I currently live: Nothing. Malaysia sucks.

Hong Kong, Hong Kong, where I grew up: The food. The people and their love of freedom and democracy. Their persistence and ingenuity in the face of relentless adversity and hostility toward them by Chinese-backed thugs in uniform. The sheer economic prosperity facilitated by the British after WWII. The memories of my childhood, the international schools I attended and the friends I've made over the years. How everything runs smoothly and on time (although the MTR has since been coopted by the HKPF at the expense of protesters and ordinary commuters).

England, United Kingdom, where I studied for a few years: A common language. A temperate climate. Snow in winter. The enthusiasm with which Christmas is celebrated, similar to how it is Stateside. The girls I could have dated. Doctor Who. Torchwood. Open borders with Wales and Scotland, which are beautiful places to visit. Vibrant, cosmopolitan London. The relatively free and open democratic political system. The Queen and the Royal Family.

[Heloin]

I like living in the butt of the joke for anything American related. As for back home, the crushing poverty and the Matobo Hills are basically all we had unless you want to go to Gwanda because you hate yourself I guess.

[Talvezout]

California has it's whole host of issues, but one of the things I love is that there's so much stuff to do here. You got the beaches, forests, mountains, museums, parks, restaurants, rivers, etc

[Ethel mermania]

Ocean beaches and Broadway.