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Related videos: How to Become the 51st State (Released 3/10/2028) The U.S. Interstate Highway System Explained (Released 4/8/2022) Why the 25 Biggest American Cities Exist (Released 4/25/2025) Every U.S. Territory Explained (Released 7/4/2025) States Compared Playlist And as promised, here is the script from my video: Let me first state that I’m Mr. Beat. I’ve lived in two of the fifty states in these somewhat United States…I lived in Nebraska for about four years, but for the rest of my life I’ve lived in Kansas The state in the middle. The middle of Middle America. I’m currently here in Topeka, Kansas, the city where I was born And home of the capitol of Kansas, the place where the government of Kansas does stuff “A single courageous State may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory; and try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.”^1 That’s a quote from the legendary Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis that basically explains federalism, or the idea that power is divided between the federal government and each of the 50 state governments. Indeed, the Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution says that “all powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” And this, Benedict Cumberbatch, is the whole freaking basis for the laboratories of democracy concept articulated by Brandeis. And I think Brandeis was right. The United States is totally like 50 different laboratories of democracy all running different experiments at the same time. While we focus a lot on what the FEDERAL government is doing in DC, the truth is, your day-to-day life is much more shaped by the folks in your state capitol. (pointing) In this video, we’re looking at how all 50 states govern themselves…from how they tax you to how they pick their noses…I mean judges. For the Kansas stuff, I got some help from…. (introduce themselves) WHATS UP YALL this is Paris with Loud Light, we’re a Kansas based advocacy non-profit known for our work here in the Capitol and getting young folks to vote. Today I’m here with Mr. Beat to talk about what goes on in that building. Yeah, what goes on in that building? But yeah, Paris will be chiming in from time to time. And at the end of the video, BASED on all this information, I’m gonna reveal to you which state is the most “average” American state based on all these metrics, according to the latest publicly available data. Ready to begin? I was born ready What should we begin with? Let’s start with what goes on inside this building and how state legislatures work! But I’m scared about what goes on this building! #1 State Representation and Legislatures First of all, all but one state legislature is bicameral, meaning they’re set up like the federal government, with two houses- a Senate and House of Representatives. The exception? Nebraska, which has just one chamber. As such, Nebraska has fewer members of its state legislature than any other state. The smallest bicameral state legislature is Alaska, with 60 total lawmaker peoples, 40 in the House…20 in the Senate. Minnesota has the most Senators of all states, with 67 total lawmaker peoples in its Senate. New Hampshire has the most representatives in its lower chamber AND HECK…the most TOTAL in its legislature. 424 total lawmaker peoples. And with 400 members, it has by far the biggest House of Representatives of any state. On average, each Representative in New Hampshire represents about 3,300 people. Oh HECK yeah. That’s what I’m freaking talking about. Let’s goooooooooo. But yeah, unfortunately New Hampshire is not average. The average legislature membership is around 148 lawmaker peeps. New Hampshire also has the longest requirement to be able to run for its Senate. You have to live in the state for 7 years to run for Senate! In Alabama, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, and North Dakota, a Representative’s term is 4 years. For all the other states it’s two years. 4 years is pretty standard for Senate terms in most legislatures, although for some states the terms are 2 years or even BOTH 2 years and 4 years. These 16 states have term limits for their members: State & Term Limit
Are there term limits in Kansas? In Kansas, members of the House are elected for two years, while Senators are elected for 4 years. We do NOT have term limits for these seats, so legislators can run as many times as they want. We DO have term limits for the Governors seat, which is two terms, each 4 years. This year ends Governor Laura Kelly’s two terms, so Kansans will vote on a new governor this year. Do you know how long the longest tenured member has been in there? Um, yeah, she was way off. But I’m embarrassed for not knowing this, too, because the longest tenured member of the Kansas legislature is Barbara Ballard, who is my representative and I’ve actually met her a few times. She’s been serving since 1993. Most state legislatures don’t meet the entire year. In these four states, they basically meet throughout the entire year, though: Pennsylvania Michigan New Jersey Ohio 46 state legislatures hold regular sessions every year. The other four states- Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, and Texas…meet every OTHER year…the odd-numbered years. Well that’s odd. When does the Kansas legislature typically meet? (The Kansas Legislature meets annually starting on the second Monday of the year in January. Legislative leadership sets the calendar, with sessions typically ending in the spring time around April or May. After the first adjournment, there is a small break and then legislators return for what is called a “veto session”, where they vote to override the veto of bills the Governor rejects. After that, they adjourn until the next year with select committees still meeting during the downtime. Most state legislatures begin regular sessions in January. North Carolina likes to be all weird and start in April. Those freaks. You have to be at least 18 years old to run to be in the legislature for most states. In Kentucky, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Tennessee, you have to be 30 years old to run for the Senate. Dang, that’s old. #2 Taxes How do states pay for their bills? Well first of all, every state is dependent, at least somewhat, on federal funding. But the state MOST dependent on federal funding? Alaska. The state least dependent on federal funding? New Jersey. Otherwise, every state mostly raises money from a combination of property taxes, income taxes, and sales taxes. 42 states have a state income tax. These states have a flat income tax. These states tend to tax the wealthiest folks more. These states DON’T have a state income tax.^2 But that doesn’t mean folks there ain’t gettin taxed. Louisiana, Tennessee, Washington, Arkansas, and Alabama all have the highest sales tax rates in the country, while Oregon, New Hampshire, Montana, and Delaware have NO sales tax. Holy dang. Some of the highest PROPERTY taxes are seen in places like California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. What about the corporations? Those poor, poor corporations. Well, 44 states have some kind of corporate income tax, with the highest rate being in New Jersey. What about excise taxes, or taxes on certain products? Well, pretty much every state taxes alcohol, cigarettes, and gas…and if cannabis is legal there they tax it, too. Alcohol taxes tend to be highest in Washington and lowest in Wyoming.^345 Cigarette taxes tend to be highest in New York and lowest in Missouri.^6 Gas taxes are highest in California and lowest in Alaska.^7 Cannabis taxes also tend to be highest in Washington and also tend to be lowest in Missouri.^8 Oh don’t be fooled, cannabis sales generated nearly $256 million in tax revenue for Missouri last year alone. Regarding a balanced mix of ALL types of taxes, I believe Idaho, Indiana, and Utah do a pretty good job finding a sweet spot. What’s a unique challenge a state like Kansas has collecting enough taxes? Kansas is known for the infamous “Brownback tax experiment”. During Governor Sam Brownback’s term, income and corporate taxes were slashed. The state general fund in Kansas, what we use to pay for things saw a major depletion in revenue. The budget crisis got so out of hand that in 2017 the Republican majority legislature voted against their leader Gov. Sam Brownback’s to end the tax experiment. Kansas recovered from this experiment. However, in 2024, Republican leadership were able to cut income tax brackets down to just two. Legislators are continuing their efforts to create Brownback style tax cuts, leading to revenue shortfalls in 2026. Another challenge is overspending by the state legislature. Kansans may not know that while the Governor may send the legislature a proposed budget, legislators ultimately are the final decision maker on budget spending. The governor can line item veto certain things in the budget, but they can not veto the overall budget. -And now some words about a sponsor for this video- Sometimes we, unfortunately, have to give corporations our data. We’ve been looking at buying a new car and yeah, had to give some car dealerships our information, and yeah, now they WON’T STOP CALLING ME. But I hate to break it to you, every time you go online, giant corporations are also STEALING your personal data. And then data brokers are turning around and selling your personal data to ANYONE. Stuff like your address, your phone number, even your political beliefs and income level. But you wanna know one way I fight back. By using DeleteMe. DeleteMe proactively removes our home address, phone numbers, and family details from the internet. What I like about DeleteMe is that it sends you these personalized privacy reports showing what they found, where they found it, and what they DELETED. I’ve been using it for several years at this point and it’s done a really good job scrubbing my personal information from all kinds of messed up sites out there. Protect YOUR personal information and your family’s personal information with DeleteMe. And get 20% off DeleteMe consumer plans when you go to joindeleteme.com/mrbeat and use promo code MRBEAT at checkout (QR code on screen). That’s join delete me dot com/MRBEAT, code MRBEAT. #3 Democracy Which states are more democratic? No, I’m not talking about the Democratic Party. I’m talking about “democratic” with a lower case “d.” Well, first of all, Minnesota has the highest voter turnout. Hawaii has the lowest. According to the Cost of Voting Index, Washington most recently ranked number one as the easiest state to vote in, and Mississippi ranked as the most difficult state to vote in.^9 Indeed, states run elections, and each state runs elections differently. Still, most states have more in common than differences. Only three states- Alabama, Mississippi, and New Hampshire- don’t allow early in-person voting. All states allow mail-in voting in some form, but some are much stricter about it than others. These states (California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, and Washington) automatically mail a ballot to every registered voter. These states only let you vote by mail if they approve of your excuse for doing so. (Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia). 36 states currently require some form of voter ID in order to vote. In your opinion, how strict is Kansas compared to other states when it comes to voting laws? Kansas has some of the strictest voter ID policies in the nation. Photo ID is a requirement to vote here in Kansas. Recently, the Secretary of State’s office has been heavily focused on maintaining the voter roll and removing voters who are inactive. Kansas also has multiple deadlines for voter registration before both primary and general elections, as well as deadlines for mail ballot requests and returns. A ballot initiative allows citizens to propose new laws or constitutional amendments for people to vote on. A referendum allows people to vote on laws or constitutional amendments proposed by state legislatures. These 26 states have some type of citizen-based ballot measure process.^10 Kansas is one of 24 states that doesn’t have a statewide citizen-initiated ballot measure. How does that shape state politics, in your opinion? Honestly in my opinion it shapes a lot because the state legislature and local governments are the only ones who can put special questions onto the ballot. This is what happened in 2022 when we voted in a constitutional amendment that would have changed the constitution to allow legislators to ban abortion. In our neighboring states citizens can lead ballot initiatives, and Kansas citizens certainly have the spirit to do this for popular issues such as medical marijuana or raising the state minimum wage. With a 2/3rd majority vote, legislators can propose these constitutional amendments to rewrite our state constitution in their favor. They even can decide what election, primary or general, will carry these amendments. In the 2026 primary, Kansans will vote on an amendment that would politicize our Supreme Court. In the general, kansans will vote on amendment to ban non citizen voting in Kansas, which is already banned in our state constitution. Ok, how about after the votes are in? Most states allow counting ballots before Election Day. These 10 states require election officials to wait until Election Day to start counting ballots. (Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Alabama, Mississippi, New Hampshire, South Dakota, West Virginia, Indiana, Idaho, Maryland) #4 Judicial Appointments How do states get judges? Don’t worry, I’m not gonna JUDGE you if you don’t know this. 38 states use some form of election to pick at least SOME of their judges. There are generally three types of such elections: partisan elections, nonpartisan elections, and retention elections. In partisan elections, judges run for office with a political party affiliation listed on the ballot next to their name. These states do this.^11 In nonpartisan elections, judges run for office, but no party affiliation is listed on the ballot. THESE states do this.^12 In retention elections, a simple “yes/no” vote is applied to predetermined candidates appointed by the Governor from a list of qualified candidates. THESE states do this.^13 These eight states don’t elect any judges by popular election at all. (Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Virginia). Yep, judges in those states are all appointed. How do we pick judges in Kansas? Currently in Kansas our judges are selected by a merit-based process. They nominate 3 candidates, then the Governor selects one of the three. Kansans also vote on these judges through retention votes on the ballot. This process came about after a 1950s controversy named the “Triple Play”. The “Triple play” is known as a back room deal struck by at the time Republican Supreme Court Justice Governor, and Lieutenant Governor After the Governor lost the Republican primary while running for a second term and shortly before the newly elected Democratic Governor was to take over, both Justice William Smith and Gov. Hall resigned from their positions. After Lt. Gov. McCuish took over in the last days of the term, he appointed Gov. Fred Hall onto the Supreme Court. There was major backlash. At the time Kansas elected its judges, but that was changed to the merit based selection instead of partisan races. How might that change soon? The Kansas Legislature placed a constitutional amendment onto the 2026 August primary ballot that would get rid of this process and reintroduce partisan judges to the Kansas Supreme Court. While many other states who elect judges hold nonpartisan races, the 2026 amendment would allow judges to fully embrace partisanship and work with the state Republican or Democratic parties. It’s widely known that the state legislature beefs heavily with the state Supreme Court over their 2019 ruling protecting abortion rights and cases over funding education. The proposed amendment has been presented as a way to get rid of what top Kansas Republicans describe as “activist judges”. #5 Social Issues Social issues are where the “Two Americas” often really do show up. Ever since the Dobbs v. Jackson decision, abortion laws have varied wildly across the country. In THESE states, abortion is legal at any stage. In these states, it’s legal through the second trimester. In these, it’s legal through the 24th week since the last menstrual period began. In these, it’s legal before fetal viability. In these, it’s legal through the 22nd week since the last menstrual period began. In these, it’s legal through the 18th week since the last menstrual period began. In these, it’s legal through the 12th week since the last menstrual period began. I never thought I would say “menstrual period” so much in a video. In these, it’s legal before a heartbeat is detected. In these, it’s completely illegal. How about cannabis legalization? It’s a patchwork. Cannabis is currently legal for recreational use in 24 states and legal for medical use in 40 states. Idaho arguably has the strictest laws against it. How about the moral panic against transgender folks? States like Florida, Idaho, and Oklahoma have some of the most anti-transgender laws in the country. Wait Kansas? The day session started, legislative leadership scheduled a hearing with less than 24 hours notice on a bill that requires transgender Kansans to forfeit their licenses and reissue them with their sex assigned at birth. Using a controversial “gut-n-go” procedure, where lawmakers can skip bill processes by placing bill contents into other bills, lawmakers expanded this bill to include a “bathroom bounty”. Now, any person who believes another Kansan is using the incorrect bathroom can sue that person for money, while also allowing the Attorney General to investigate as well. After passing it made national headlines everywhere as it is one of the most extreme anti-trans laws in the nation. 27 states still have the death penalty on the books. Man, Florida….man…has been leading the way with executions lately….they carried out 19 in 2025 alone, nearly 40% of the national total. #6 The Economy Probably no surprise here, but the states with the most people tend to have the biggest economies. California, Texas, New York, and Florida…or the Big Four, as I tend to call them, are the only states in the country with an annual GDP exceeding $1.5 trillion. In fact, if California was an independent country, it’d have the 5th biggest economy in the world. Vermont has the lowest annual GDP. But GDP sucks…as an economic metric. How about GDP per capita? Well, New York and Massachusetts win there. And Mississippi and West Virginia are at the very bottom. How about median household income? Maryland and Massachusetts once again win there. And uh…yeah…sadly Mississippi and West Virginia both once again at the bottom. But cost of living, eh? Ok, now Mississippi and West Virginia don’t look as bad. Mississippi and Oklahoma both are the most affordable states to live in, while Hawaii and Massachusetts are the most expensive states to live in. Washington currently has the country’s highest minimum wage at $17.13 while 20 states have the same minimum wage as the federal minimum wage. Nearly $10 an hour difference is kind of crazy. 26 states have “Right to Work” laws, which say workers don’t have to be a member of a labor union. How about the social safety net? Massachusetts and Minnesota lead the country with higher spending on public welfare programs such as unemployment and childcare benefits. At the bottom? States like Mississippi and Alabama. 40 states have expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. These 10 states (Texas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Wyoming, Wisconsin) do not, although Wisconsin doesn’t have a coverage gap because it lets all adults going through poverty enroll. Maybe speak to what has gone on in Kansas in recent years with Medicaid expansion. Long story short, nothing. Kansas is one of the few states that rejects federal funding for healthcare and refuses to expand medicaid. Medicaid expansion is broadly popular among Kansans and was a top priority for Governor Laura Kelly. However, this must go through the state legislature, where leaders House Speaker Daniel Hawkins and Senate President Ty Masterson refuse to hold a vote on expansion. And speaking of poverty…. Louisiana has the highest poverty rate and New Hampshire has the lowest. #7 Education That’s freaking right. States control most K through 12 education policy, and the vast majority of the funding they use for public education comes from state and local taxes. Some states lean into school choice, pursuing options like vouchers, Education Savings Accounts, or charter schools. Other states focus more on traditional public schools. Basically, the darker the shade of red the state is on this map, the more school choice options the state tends to have.^14 The darker the shade on THIS map, the higher the teacher is paid.^15 And what do you know, Missouri and Mississippi are both facing significant teacher shortages right now. Go figure! New York spends more per student than any other state ($31,629 per year). Idaho spends the least amount ($11,056). Dang, what a difference. But that doesn’t mean Idaho has the worst education system. New Mexico often ranks dead last in both reading and math proficiency, and also has the highest dropout rates. Massachusetts often ranks first when it comes to those things. In general, it’s much more difficult to graduate in the Northeastern states. These states also, along with California, tend to have the highest investment in special education. You might be surprised to learn that each state has wildly different curriculum standards. You got states like Texas and their “Texas Exceptionalism” emphasis, in which they’re learning Texas history in 4th grade and then again in 7th grade. That’s two full years of just Texas history, man.^16 Utah and Ohio make you take a stand-alone course in financial literacy, which I’m personally a fan of. Eight states (Alaska, Delaware, Kansas, Maine, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wyoming) don’t require a civics or government course in order to graduate high school, which I’m personally NOT a fan of.^17 What are some trends over the past few years that you’ve noticed with education funding and programs in Kansas? In Kansas, funding and specifically special education funding is a yearly debate as educators fight for the legislature to fund schools to the required amount. Legislators have also been more involved in day to day operations as they’ve began to require parents permission for students to protest and banning cellphones in classrooms. #8 Religion Sure, most Americans are Christian, but what kind of Christian? Often when we look at this type of information, it’s better to look at a county map, so…uh…yeah…you’re looking at a county map right now. Unless you’re NOT looking! Come on, Millie Bobby Brown, look! I got lots of great maps. As you can see on this map, there are a lot of Baptists in the South, a lot of Catholics in the Southwest, and a lot of Lutherans in the Northern Midwest.^18 his map shows religious diversity in the United States. The darker the county, the more different types of religion within each county.^19 This map shows the most and least religious states. The darker the color, the more religious the state.^20 In case you’re wondering, Vermont is the least religious state and Mississippi is the most religious state. And finally, this map shows the percentage of atheists in each state. The darker the state, the more atheists in each state.^21 If you were to guess the religiosity of Kansas in terms of ranks, what would you guess? #9 Environment While the federal government regulates the land and water of every state, some states, like California and Vermont, have even stricter rules. Hawaii and Vermont both have the most pristine air and water quality. West Virginia and Louisiana have the worst.^22 This map shows the percentage of renewable energy generated in each state.^23 Washington, Idaho, and Vermont all lead the way with renewable energy. Missouri, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Rhode Island are all way behind. The states with the most protected land are generally out West^24, and this definitely coincides with the states with the most FEDERAL LAND within their border.^25 Dang Nevada. BLMaxxing. Want to build something? There are generally less hoops to jump through in states like Missouri and Idaho and more hoops to jump through in states like California and New York. That doesn’t surprise you. Every state has to deal with climate change and national disasters, but which state has the most worries and which has the least worries? The most vulnerable state is probably Louisiana, which has a triple threat of sea-level rise, increasingly powerful hurricanes, and flooding. The least vulnerable state is probably Vermont. The darker the state on this map, the more homeowners were likely to face high financial losses following a natural disaster in 2025.^26 #10 Infrastructure When we talk about infrastructure, we’re talking about the basic things needed for a state to function property. Most people automatically think about roads and bridges when they think of infrastructure, but they should also be thinking about sidewalks, parks, dams, ports, airports, railroads, public transit systems, telecommunications networks, water supply systems, power plants, schools, hospitals, law enforcement agencies, fire stations….heck even banks to a certain extent. And, believe it or not, multiple reports have concluded that Nebraska has the best infrastructure in the country. Alaska seems to have the worst, but at least they have a good excuse. It’s the biggest yet least densely populated state, after all, filled with vast swaths of wilderness. And we’ll stop it there. I know there are plenty of other ways we can compare all 50 states, but we have to stop it somewhere, ok Ghostface Killah? So as I made this video, I made a spreadsheet to help me try to figure out what that most “average” state was. If a state was in the most average range in a specific category, I marked it. And so, based on which state got the MOST marks on that spreadsheet, I’ve determined that the most “average” state, at least in terms of how it governs, is Indiana. But sorry Indiana, Kansas is still the most mid. Thank you to Paris and Caitlyn from Loud Light for helping me make this video. If you live in Kansas, be sure to check out the excellent work they are doing by following their social media stuff that’s on the screen right now. I think it is. Is it? Yeah, it is. I can’t see it. Thank you Mr. Beat for collabing with us and working to spread the word on whats going on in Kansas. You can follow us on Instagram, Tiktok, facebook, and more to stay updated on what’s going on as Kansas heads into a major election year. This year Kansas will elect a new Governor, Secretary of State, vote on constitutional amendments, and so much more so stay tuned, stay engaged, and REGISTER TO VOTE! You should subscribe to my channel. And if you have already subscribed to my channel for a long time, you should consider becoming a Channel Member or Patreon supporter. And now it’s time for a shout out for my Patreon supporters who donate at least $15 or more each month to my channel. Starting with my biggest donors in alphabetical order, thank you to… Thanks to ALL my Channel Members and Patreon supporters, and thank YOU for staying curious! ____________________________________ ^1. New State Ice Co. v. Liebmann, 285 U.S. 262 (1932) ^2. https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/state-income-tax-rates-2026/ ^3. https://www.thereflector.com/stories/washington-state-retains-its-status-as-state-with-highest-excise-tax-on-distilled-spirits ^4. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/alcohol-tax-by-state ^5. https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/distilled-spirits-taxes/ ^6. https://www.tax-rates.org/taxtables/excise-tax-by-state ^7. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/gas-taxes-by-state ^8. https://www.publicnow.com/view/B3878CA5AEBD70328601CDA91878B46A5BCD8262 ^9. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_of_Voting_Index ^10. https://ballotpedia.org/States_with_initiative_or_referendum ^11. https://ballotpedia.org/Judicial_election_methods_by_state ^12. https://ballotpedia.org/Judicial_election_methods_by_state ^13. https://ballotpedia.org/Judicial_election_methods_by_state ^14. https://www.hoover.org/schoolchoicemap ^15. https://www.customwritings.com/blog/analytics-and-facts/average-teachers-salary-by-state-where-teachers-earn-more.html ^16. https://www.texaspolicy.com/social-studies-teks-reform-the-story-so-far/ ^17. https://www.hoover.org/research/state-civics-requirements-2024 ^18. https://www.usreligioncensus.org/sites/default/files/2022-11/Largest%20Religious%20Group%202020USRC.pdf ^19. https://www.usreligioncensus.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/ReligiousDiversity-Jones.pdf ^20. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/09/16/how-religious-is-your-state/ ^21. https://i.redd.it/6vpv3ouqxorz.png ^22. https://wallethub.com/edu/greenest-states/11987 ^23. https://www.reddit.com/r/dataisbeautiful/comments/i4i8bl/oc_renewable_states_of_america_percentage_of/#lightbox ^24. https://cohesivefire.nemac.org/node/215 ^25. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_lands#/media/File:Map_of_all_U.S._Federal_Land.jpg ^26. https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-where-natural-disasters-threaten-us-homeowners-2093080 Sources/further reading: https://ballotpedia.org/State_legislative_sessions https://www.multistate.us/charts/legislative-session-dates https://ballotpedia.org/State_legislator https://ballotpedia.org/State_legislature_candidate_requirements_by_state https://wallethub.com/edu/states-most-least-dependent-on-the-federal-government/2700 https://taxfoundation.org/datamaps/state-maps/ https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/sales-tax-rates/ https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/property-taxes-by-state-county/ https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/state-corporate-income-tax-rates-brackets/ https://ballotpedia.org/States_with_gubernatorial_term_limits https://ballotpedia.org/Voter_turnout_in_United_States_elections https://spn.org/election-laws/ https://ballotpedia.org/Absentee/mail-in_voting_legislation_in_the_United_States https://ballotpedia.org/Judicial_election_methods_by_state https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_law_in_the_United_States_by_state https://translegislation.com/ https://www.hippo.com/blog/best-states-for-climate-change https://www.asce.org/publications-and-news/civil-engineering-source/article/2026/01/30/infrastructure-report-cards-reveal-similar-challenges-in-california-florida-texas#:~:text=State%20of%20California%20California%20is,moved%20up%20to%20a%20D%2B https://infrastructurereportcard.org/ https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/rankings/infrastructure https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/11/us-states-best-infrastructure-georgia-arizona-virginia.html Creative commons credits: James Brooks. Quintin Soloviev
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Political Spectrums Explained - Why is there a left wing and a right wing? (Released 11/22/2019) Why did the American Political Parties Switch? (Released 3/4/2022) Yes, We're in the Seventh Party System (Released 1/9/2026) If Every President Took The Political Compass Test (Released 10/23/2020) The American Urban/Rural Political Divide (Released 7/22/2022) Why Do We Get So Angry Over Politics? (Released 1/4/2019) And as promised, here is the script from my video: I’m Mr. Beat and I like to think of myself as a (censored) and a bit of a (censored) as well I’m sorry to censor myself, but I didn’t want to ruin the surprise. There are four types of political groups that every single human being on the planet is a member of, whether they realize it or not. In this video, I’m gonna explain what those four political groups are. Clone: Hey punk Mr. Beat: I thought I told you to start a country in Antarctica Clone: I did. It’s done. Marie Byrd Land. Beatlandia. Mr. Beat: Oh, well thank you. Why are you here? Clone: I’m here to ask you what’s a “political group.” (pause) What’s a political group? Mr. Beat: A political group is- A political group is… A group that forms in response to politics. Clone (long pause): What’s politics again? Mr. Beat: (quickly): How the power in government is distributed. More broadly speaking, how power is distributed between people…period. That’s why I always loved the old quote, “Just because you don’t take an interest in politics doesn’t mean politics won’t take an interest in you.” (clips) The people who say “I don’t want to make this political” are so cringe. Look man, we can’t escape politics. Politics is everywhere, and every day we are constantly affected by it. So anyway, I’ve noticed that throughout history four groups tend to naturally form in response to politics. It’s worth noting that this is something I’ve come up with…on my own. If you’re a political scientist watching this and you’re like, “well that just sounds like blah blah blah,” well then please let me know in the comments about that. But also remember I wrote the script for this video not KNOWING about blah blah blah, so don’t call me an idiot, please? Alright, and I do mean to get political, but here are the four types of political groups. (hold up five fingers) Clone: You’re holding up five fingers. Mr. Beat: (look over, then slowly lower thumb) (mumbling) Thumbs not a finger -Conservatives- (Hit the Brakes!) Conservatives generally seek to keep things the same. They seek to preserve what’s good in the existing order. Now, that doesn’t mean they aren’t for SOME change, but conservatives want caution, slow evolution….incremental reform, not rapid revolution. Oh crap, am I starting to rap? (rap “they want caution/slow evolution/incremental reform/not rapid revolution”) Conservatives tend to think “why change what isn’t broken?” They say proceed with caution because we just don’t know what we might destroy. Conservatives tend to promote “traditional values.” Clone: What the heck does that mean? Mr. Beat: THE RULE OF EXISTING LAWS Prioritizing stability, safety, faith, family, a more limited government, the preservation of established institutions. Stuff like that. Now, being a conservative ain’t all biscuits and gravy. Their stubbornness to change can cause them to constantly be searching for allies to help them double down. They tend to favor whatever benefits the status quo, even if that means tens of millions of people are left behind. Often, conservatives tend to have the mindset that we don’t need to help more people. People are doing fine. Often, conservatives are financially stable themselves. Overall, though, they tend to focus on the present, a present anchored by the past. -Reformers- (Fix It!) Reformers generally seek to change things for the better. They believe the existing system might be fundamentally sound, but it still requires…uh…significant updates, you could say. They aren’t looking to burn the house down….ehhh…..they just think the plumbing is backed up and the roof needs shingles, know what I’m sayin’? Of all the political groups, reformers tend to question things the most. Reformers tend to value empathy, inclusion, justice, equality, and innovation. Reformers tend to trust human reason and experts. And they ain’t afraid to change existing institutions and they ain’t afraid to use the government to make changes. They tend to be pretty passionate about helping the marginalized and they generally tend to be open to new ideas. That all said, reformers recognize that pain for some is needed to help more people. But overall…yep…reformers believe that more people need help. Just like conservatives, reformers are usually financially stable themselves. Now, being a reformer ain’t all macaroni and cheese. Their openness to new ideas can lead them to underestimate tradeoffs, human nature’s limits, the value of inherited wisdom, and unintended consequences. Sometimes they mistakenly dismiss tradition as nothing more than oppression. Not only that, reformers often have a hard time actually getting stuff done. They tend to quickly create purity tests and are constantly looking out for traitors to the movement because….well because questioning things is what made them reformers to begin with. Overall, though, reformers tend to focus on the future. How can we make life better for those who aren’t around yet? -Reactionaries- (Erase and Rewind) Well, Reactionaries react. They generally want change by tearing down and destroying everything. Reactionaries are often the most misunderstood group. Often, folks lump them in with conservatives or say they are extreme traditionalists. But they are definitely not conservative, and in some cases they couldn’t care less about tradition. Like children, reactionaries let only their emotions guide their political perspectives….especially fear and anger. For the typical reactionary, it’s about feelings, not facts. Reactionaries often have nothing to lose and everyone to blame. This is the easiest way to spot a reactionary- they are often quick to scapegoat specific groups. Immigrants. Transgender folks. Billionaires. “The Media.” Reactionaries tend to think we need to burn everything down and start over from scratch, they are perfectly ok with hurting a lot of people in order to do so, especially those aforementioned scapegoats. In fact, they would argue that they NEED to hurt people in order to fix the political order. Ok so so far I have made reactionaries look pretty bad, so let me defend them a bit. Reactionaries are often financially struggling and only want to destroy the entire system because the system has not worked for them…like, at all. Most are not inherently bad people. They are just desperate, and often have been screwed over for GENERATIONS. They want reform, but don’t see reformers as allies because reformers tend to be privileged and still want to keep the current system and even still often benefit from the current system. Overall, though, reactionaries look to a distant, often made-up past, and they often have no hope for the future. -NPCs- (Autopilot) Using a video game reference here for the youth, but Non-Player Characters, or NPCs, aren’t paying attention to politics. NPCs seemingly lack a personal political compass. They uncritically absorb and repeat the dominant narratives and social cues of their environment. In other words, they go along with the majority without any independent analysis or skepticism. They’re background characters following a script. True followers. Sheep. Sure, they’ll go along with change. Change can happen as long as there is no pain to get there. Like conservatives and reformers, NPCs also benefit from the status quo, but they just don’t care how or why. In their defense, NPCs often have NO IDEA that they are NPCs. And often modern society offers so much work and distractions that of course they wouldn’t figure out that they are NPCs. And I should stress, they are NOT NPCs when it comes to everything. Some of the most intelligent, inspirational, and dynamic people in the world are NPCs. They’re just NPCs when it comes to politics. Overall, NPCs are only focused on the immediate present. Cogs in the machine but don’t know. Stuck in each moment, with no desire to get out of it. -These four political groups are not static- So, to refresh. Reformers tend to push forward toward a utopian vision. Reactionaries tend to push backward toward an imagined golden age. Conservatives try to stay grounded in the workable past AND present without radical lurches either way. NPCs are just along for the ride. I like to think of myself as a reformer, but at times I also feel more like a conservative. And stop it with the stupid left wing-right wing crap- it’s time to admit that the old left wing-right wing political spectrum isn’t that accurate. I made a whole video about why that is, by the way. The fact is, there are not only people who self-identify as right wing who are actually reactionary, there are people who self-identify as LEFT WING who are ALSO reactionary. Presenting my political group diagram! (with diagram behind me) NPCs here to represent where the true center of politics is. Reformers up here to represent where politics is going. Conservatives over here to represent where politics is staying. Reactionaries down here to drag everyone down to….ya know… To be clear, we NEED all four groups. The healthiest societies probably need constant tension between all four groups. Especially reformers and conservatives. And yes, we even need reactionaries, as they remind us what happens if we completely give into our most destructive emotions. As long as they stay out of power. Conservatives- it works, keep it Reformers- it’s ok, improve it Reactaries- it’s so broken, so tear it all down NPC- it’s just there, so uh, follow it? Conservatives- caution, duty Reformers- change and hope Reactionaries- fear, loathing, resentment NPC- Shoulder shrug emoji Now you may be wondering, why did I draw up the diagram like this? First of all, why are there so many NPCs? Well, according to a recent Gallup poll, more than 2/3 of Americans don’t follow politics that closely.^1 (pointing) So that’s, like, more than 66% of the population. But the number of people in each political group is constantly changing! (slowly float off screen) Woah When things are generally going well, the NPC group tends to grow and the other three groups tend to shrink. However, when things are NOT going so well, the NPC group tends to shrink and the reformer and reactionary groups …aka the change groups…tend to get bigger, especially the reactionaries group. When NPCs become politically activated, sad to say they often begin by becoming reactionaries, as it’s usually economic despair and disillusionment with the whole system that leads them to become politically active to begin with. (walking in) And that’s what we’re seeing right now. Reactionaries have become such a big group that they have become a major political force, even taking over many powerful governments around the world. Now, most republics prevent reactionaries, but some do slip into leadership, and when that happens…welllll terrible, terrible things can happen. I believe so many people are worried about the world right now because so many reactionaries have gained power when they’re often the least qualified to hold such power. (walk off) (walk on screen) In my opinion, all other three political groups- reformers, conservatives and yes, NPCs, have to unite against reactionaries if we want our species to survive. I know, easier said than done. Reformers often look at conservatives as obstacles to progress. Conservatives often look at reformers as naive, reckless, and overly idealistic. Both reformers and conservatives often look at the NPC as the “swing vote” that is easily convinced by the loudest voice. All of them tend to put the reactionaries into the “basket of deplorables.” But have some empathy for reactionaries. They’re feelings are real. Their suffering is real. And they deserve to be happy. And yes, even some reactionaries can be reachable. Many reactionaries end up becoming conservatives and reformers, and yep, even NPCs if things get better enough. So, at least for now, I am calling for all Reformers and Conservatives to put aside their differences to not only fight back against Reactionaries, but also to recruit NPCs to help them fight back against Reactionaries. And after we fight them. We help them, so that reactionaries never try to take over the world again. So what about YOU? What political group do YOU belong to? What political group do you think I belong to? Do you think my four political groups are crap? Well, they could be. After all, I kind of just made them up. I presented to you in this video a…how do you say…HYPOTHESIS? Political scientists feel free to put me in my place in the comments below. Thanks for staying curious! _________________________________________ ^1.https://news.gallup.com/poll/513128/attention-political-news-slips-back-typical-levels.aspx?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_content=morelink&utm_campaign=syndication |
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