They're not voting for a lower cost of living; it is that way because they live in low demand areas, so there are few external factors driving up the costs of living. Individual responsibility and all of those red herring topics have nothing to do with it. What's even funnier is you bring up "entitlement mentality" when it's these very states which are the largest recipients of entitlements.
I see you're going off the highway ramp again. None of this has anything to do with access to poor access to healthcare in these states.
Incorrect. I'm not sure how it is you know what is in my interest or not.
As for those who left, that may very well be the case. The changes in how people work make the decisions on where to live different; giving them options due to remote work. What you don't seem to be factoring in are those who left temporarily, so the question is whether or not they will be coming back. The other thing you don't mention is the fact those leaving the city have just moved to the immediate suburbs. As I've already mentioned, the real estate market in the NYC suburban area is doing extremely well. It's the first time I've ever had realtors calling me to see if I'm interested in selling.
Who says I haven't? That does not change the fact that access is a problem in these states.