St. Cloud Personal Injury Lawyer - Miscellaneous

Gift Cards... Buyer Beware.

Mike Bryant — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:15:00 GMT

Representative Joe Atkins recently passed along advice following his legislation concerning gift cards.

According to the National Retail Federation, gift cards are going to be this year's most popular holiday gift. For consumers who purchase gift cards with hidden fees or
expiration dates, however, they could again be this year's biggest
holiday rip-off.

In Minnesota, a two-year-old state law has offered some important
protections to Minnesota consumers by prohibiting expiration dates and
fees on gift cards. But the law only goes so far. To get their money's
worth, holiday shoppers in Minnesota should:

1. Avoid bank cards and cards issued by credit card companies, which
are subject to federal law and still have fees and expiration dates

2. Look closely at the card - even though it may look like it comes
directly from the retailer, the small print may reveal it is a bank card
with fees and an expiration date

3. Avoid cards where you can see the number on the card before
purchasing it - these cards are popular with cyber-thieves who use the
number to make online purchases without having to buy the card

Gift cards are great. But rather than being the gift that keeps on
giving, they can often be the gift that keeps on taking. Expiration
dates and fees erode the value of the cards, sometimes leaving the
recipient with nothing. That’s why I worked with retailers to pass
Minnesota's law. But consumers still need to be careful about what sort
of gift cards they purchase.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Minnesotans Live a Long Time

Joe Crumley — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:56:11 GMT

The front page of the St. Cloud Times lists deaths in the area, and today’s caught my eye. It is accurately reproduced below, with the ages highlighted:

Madolin Bay, 91, Glenwood
Melvin Beranek, 84, Foley
Doris Butcher, 88, Onamia
Annie Francis (Saumer) Carlson, 94, Isle
Ruth Christ, 90, Shakopee, formerly of Princeton
Allyn Davidshofer, 89, Cold Spring
Eldon H. Lockhart, 100, Sauk Rapids
Norma Elaine (Soberg) Norling, 76, Brainerd
Robert E. Riddle, Sr., 81, Little Falls
Geraldine L. Wieczek, 85.

Wow. the lowest age was 76, the average was 87.8!

Is there something in the water up here? I'm sure the families of all these people are grieving their loss, but they must also be praising the long lives these folks had.

It got me thinking, how does life expectancy in Minnesota stack up? Pretty high on the list, according to a story from Business Week. The story noted:

Minnesota is one example of how income isn’t necessarily correlated with life expectancy. The Harvard study found that low-income, white rural populations in the North, including Minnesota, the Dakotas, Iowa, Montana, and Nebraska, have life expectancies of 76.2 years for men and 81.8 years for women. That’s substantially more than 98% of the average white population. Many counties in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” fared well in life expectancy, but Nicollet County was the top at 81.1 years.

Here's a chart ranking the states from a recent study:

Rank

State

Life Expectancy

1

Hawaii

80.0

2

Minnesota

78.8

3

Utah

78.7

4

Connecticut

78.7

5

Massachusetts

78.4

6

New Hampshire

78.3

7

Iowa

78.3

8

North Dakota

78.3

9

Rhode Island

78.3

10

California

78.2

11

Vermont

78.2

12

Colorado

78.2

13

Washington

78.2

14

Wisconsin

77.9

15

Idaho

77.9

16

Nebraska

77.8

17

Oregon

77.8

18

South Dakota

77.7

19

New York

77.7

20

Maine

77.6

21

Florida

77.5

22

Arizona

77.5

23

New Jersey

77.5

24

Kansas

77.3

25

Montana

77.2

26

Alaska

77.1

27

New Mexico

77.0

28

Virginia

76.8

29

Delaware

76.8

30

Texas

76.7

31

Pennsylvania

76.7

32

Wyoming

76.7

33

Illinois

76.4

34

Michigan

76.3

35

Maryland

76.3

36

Ohio

76.2

37

Indiana

76.1

38

Missouri

75.9

39

Nevada

75.8

40

North Carolina

75.8

41

Georgia

75.3

42

Kentucky

75.2

43

Arkansas

75.2

44

Oklahoma

75.2

45

Tennessee

75.1

46

West Virginia

75.1

47

South Carolina

74.8

48

Alabama

74.4

49

Louisiana

74.2

50

Mississippi

73.6

51

District of Columbia

72.0

Data: Harvard University Initiative for Global Health and the Harvard School of Public Health

Life expectancy is something to which lawyers and insurers pay close attention. If a person suffers a permanent injury, that means they will carry that pain and suffering for a very long time. That's one reason an insuarnce company will often pay a lot more for an injury to a 30-year-old than the identical injury to a 70-year-old.

But when highly qualified personal injury lawyers argue these claims with insurers, we point out a 70-year-old Minnesotan is just getting started!

We look for the opposite when a settlement is structured, as I pointed out in my Spring 2007 Practice Pointers Column:

Structured Settlement Specialist Tom Dunlap taught me another use of the [Life Expectancy] tables... When we buy structured settlements with lifetime benefits, we want the annuity company to use the lowest life expectancy, since this will tend to increase the amount of the periodic payments the company is willing to pay.... Tom indicates that an excellent specialist will investigate the medical records to see if there is anything that the insurer can use to reduce the life expectancy of the plaintiff. In many situations, the plaintiff receives millions of dollars more with a rated life expectancy!

Now, everything will be just fine if we can get Hawaiian InjuryBoard lawyer Wayne Parsons to lend us Minnesotans the weather they have in his #1 state.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Veteran's Day - Inauspicious Origins

Joe Crumley — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:38:19 GMT

In the closing hours of World War I, Marshall Foch, the French Commander of Allied forces, ordered troops under his command to continue their attacks despite the Armistice that had been signed earlier. 11,000 additinal casualties resulted. Despite the terrible unnecessary loss of life that resulted that day, the agreed armistice time of 11:00 AM; the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, remains the moment of remembrance in many nations worldwide.

Veterans Day was originally called Armistice Day in the U.S., Britain, France and other countries. After World War II, it was renamed Veterans Day in the United States and Remembrance Day in the British Commonwealth.

This was the first global war, with truly modern weapons. There were over 40 million casualties. Major parts of Europe, especially France and Russia, were devastated. Millions of refugees were displaced, and four empires ended. In addition, historians point to the war as one of the triggers of the Russian Revolution. Heavy reparations demanded by the Allies led to German financial distress, and the rise of Adolf Hitler. Sadly, World War I is thus considered a major cause of World War II, rather than the hoped-for "war to end all wars.".

Many nations take a two-minute moment of silence at 11:00 am to honor the dead. We need to remember and respect the service of all our veterans.

We Americans were late to this war, but the worldwide catastrophe is still remembered. At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, take a moment to think about the benefits of peace.

Here is my Veteran's Day blog last year

My June 6 blog paid tribute to our Normandy D-Day heroes.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

How to Win Every Case - Lessons from High School Soccer

Joe Crumley — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:17:39 GMT

Minnesota just held the high school soccer championship.

My daughter's school, Wayzata, has a very talented bubble of players graduating. There was so much talent that most of the girls, including my daughter, never had a chance to break into the varsity until their senior year. Some never made the jump. Others went to private schools and neighboring districts where they played varsity, many winning accolades. Wayzata had such a plethora of talent that many of the girls on the bench and on the junior varsity could have started on other varsity teams.

The starters on the team got most of the playing time. My daughter's position opened up this year, so she went straight from junior varsity to starter. She had lots of playing time. Others had a tougher year. The coach made efforts to give all the players a chance, but it is important to build endurance among your starting eleven.

One of my daughter's best friends, Nora, had played soccer and hockey with her for years. Last year, Nora didn’t make the varsity soccer team. This year, she made the team, but there were two or three forwards ahead of her on the roster. In soccer, only two forwards typically start. She was getting some playing time, but not much. She would usually sub in for 20 minutes or 10, or some games not at all.

She wasn't starting, but when Nora came into the game, she always changed the game. Her energy level was always high. She would hustle and fight and create chances for herself and others. We've always admired Nora. She has speed, strength and an unmatched competitive spirit, no matter which sport she plays. When challenged, she is brick-solid, but when she squares her shoulders and starts her arm and legs churning, she can fly down the field or the ice.

That was what she was doing when she got into soccer games. She seemed to put herself “behind the defense” and into one-on-ones with the opposing goalie all the time. She may have had more breakaways than any other forward all year, simply because of her pure hustle and hard work.

But she was positively snake-bit when it came to scoring. English 'footballers' yell “Unlucky” when things go badly, and Nora probably heard that enough to make her sick. She hit more crossbars and goalposts, and goalkeeper fingers than anyone on the team. Despite making all those chances for herself, she never scored a single goal all year.

Between her bench warming and her own goal scoring hex, she was probably very frustrated with her soccer season. But she redoubled her efforts, seldom failing to spark some excitement when she got on the field.

The team had ups and downs in the season, but managed to get to post season play undefeated, but with five ties. Their play improved steadily through the year, but because of their many ties, their ranking stayed below the top four until the post-season. But they continued on, finally winning their semi-final and earning a chance at the state championship.

The opponent was, of course, mighty Woodbury High School. The Woodbury team was not only first in the state; they were ranked first in the nation. They were defending champions. Woodbury had so much talent, they opened a second high school this year, splitting the student body, and that team made the state tournament in the smaller school bracket!

Woodbury was undefeated - for 2-1/2 years. They had eliminated Wayzata from the state tournament the last four times. They had only allowed 3 goals during the season. They were heavily favored to win another state championship.

In soccer, as in other sports, the farther you get into post-season play, the more the coaches tend to rely on the starters. The last five or six games are single elimination, and soccer can be a low-scoring sport. One mistake can end the season. Like letting the Yankees get a one run lead with Mariano Rivera closing, a one goal deficit is huge. So some coaches are reluctant to put in subs, especially in close games. Nora was probably wondering whether she'd ever see the field in the championship, given what was at stake.

The Championship was a nail-biter. Woodbury was as big, strong, fast and talented as everyone expected. But our girls were giving it their full effort. The first half was scoreless, but in the second half, Wayzata scored first when Erin neatly tucked in a goalkeeper bobble. But ten minutes later, the ref made a very questionable call, and Woodbury tied the game on a penalty kick.

Nora's work ethic again paid off as Head Coach Tony Peszneker subbed her onto the field. She was on the field late in the game with the score tied against the #1 team in the country.

Woodbury's defense was holding strong. But Wayzata kept attacking. Takira, another reserve, drove forward but was stymied by Kassey Kallman, Miss Minnesota soccer, arguably the best player in the state. Lauren, a starter, was stopped as well.

Nora tried to collect a free kick but was stopped by Miss Soccer. A throw-in to the corner, and Nora was again stopped by Kallman! Is there any getting around this Amazon? But Nora stuck with her, and Kallman failed to clear the ball.

Takira dances with ball on the sideline, drops it to Lauren. Lauren patiently splits the defenders with a firm pass. Takira threads a delicate pass through to Nora, who gets clear behind the Woodbury defense.

Stymied repeatedly on the ground, Nora looks to the air, turning and dropping a perfect pass 40 yards across the field to the head of Taylor, Wayzata's top scorer, who then perfectly flicks it over the goalie and into the corner of the goal for the go ahead goal with 11 minutes left! What a pass, what a goal!

The team drops into defensive mode, and Molly, Ally and Kylie fight off wave after wave of Woodbury counter attacks. Megan makes the last of many great saves and the day is won!

Nora never did score a goal this year. But her 5^th assist of the year was probably the most important pass anyone on the team made all year. It won the state championship. And she has that memory forever. Her game is a true testament to hard work and perseverance.

In our lives and in our practices, we are often faced with roadblocks and frustration. Seemingly insurmountable opponents loom ahead of us, and the natural inclination is to duck, or avoid. Take a lesson from Nora, square your shoulders, lean into the job, and work your ass off. You may have a surprising result.

High school soccer is finally over (forever for us). Hockey started Monday, but the coaches had earlier told us said they’d be thrilled to wait for Nora and Emma to finish their extended soccer season.

And what a finish!

Highlights:

http://nwtv12.dayport.com/viewer/viewerpage.php?Art_ID=6144&tf=nwtv12player.tpl&Category_ID=3

The entire game can be viewed here:

http://nwtv12.web.entriq.net/viewer/content/special.php?Art_ID=6137&Format_ID=2&BitRate_ID=8&Contract_ID=-1&Obj_ID=4

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Just Because It's Twitter, You Still Can't Text And Drive

Mike Bryant — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:26:00 GMT

My partner Joe Crumley wrote a great piece about the dangers of texting. He, like a number of other writers here at the InjuryBoard, continue to point out the dangers of texting and driving. Go watch the video that a couple of members have posted.

A recent study concerning the social networking tool, Twitter, points out there is more reason for concern. According to Crowd Science, about 11% of Twitter users admitted to accessing social media while driving in the preceding 30 days, compared to only 5% of other social media users. 29% of Twitter users said they had accessed social media from cars at some point in the past, compared with 13% of non-users. This is one too many people reading and twittering while they should be driving.

Since this post will go out on a tweet, I truly hope not one single person reads it while they're driving. It makes you wonder how broad we need to make the law to make sure that people get the idea. A number of other interesting findings from the study:

- 41% of Twitter users prefer to contact friends via social media rather than telephone, compared with 25% of non-Twitter social media users, and 11% (vs. only 6% of those not using Twitter) actually prefer social media over face-to-face contacts.

- More than twice as many males than females (32% to 15%) access Twitter primarily through a third-party application.

- 43% of Twitter users employ a third-party application at least some of the time, and 26% as their main mode of access.

- Twitter users tend to be older than non-Twitter social media users (54% over 30 years old, vs. 42%), twice as likely to be self-employed or entrepreneurs (18% vs. 9%) and to be planning to start a business during the next six months, and more tech-savvy (24% vs. 15%

Driving needs to be driving time.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

"F**k You!" - Schwarzenegger Veto Message to Legislator

Joe Crumley — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:47:04 GMT

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a clear - and profane - message to a California Legislator who heckled and criticized him recently.

The Guver-nator vetoed a bill sponsored by the legislator, San Francisco San Francisco Assemblyman Tom Ammiano. Letters or "Veto Messages" are often attached to vetoes, but slightly hidden within this veto message was the infamous expletive F**k You (except fully spelled out). As you can see below, the first letter of each line in the message spell out the slam.

The SanFrancisco Chronicle noted:

... the veto message came after Ammiano called the governor a liar and shouted from the audience to "kiss my gay ass" when Schwarzenegger unexpectedly showed up at a Democratic Party dinner in San Francisco on Oct. 7.

Ammiano later called Schwarzenegger's attendance at the event a "cheap publicity stunt" that wasn't at all amusing, in light of the governor's cuts in social services, ordered furloughs of state workers and failure to act on some gay-rights issues.

The Star Tribune reported:

"My goodness. What a coincidence," said Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear. "I suppose when you do so many vetoes, something like this is bound to happen."

Schwarzenegger's veto messages are sent to the lawmakers who authored the bills, and posted on the governor's Web site. McLear noted that the left-hand margin of past veto messages has spelled out words such as "poet" and "soap."

I'm not sure how such political commentary relates to InjuryBoard, but I'm disturbed.

Claiming coincidence is a joke or an out-and-out lie. The odds of such a clear message randomly appearing are astronomical. It is clear that the Governor or one of his staff sent this message.

This is reprehensible behavior. A governor leads, and sets an example for the citizens of the state. He's treating his office as a joke. What example is this for the schoolchildren of California? Being a crude foul-mouth .... is okay; you could be governor of California with that potty-mouth.

On the surface it may seem a clever way to respond to rudeness from a competing politician. But this is a major veto. In sending his little message, the governor vetoed a bill that was important to the Port of San Francisco. You can only hope that he intended the veto all along, and the message was an afterthought.

But if Ah-nuld thinks it's okay to veto a major bill just to make a joke or to slap down a politician, he needs to be impeached, because this is a major disgrace to his office. He earns this photo:

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Frivolous Stella Awards

Mike Bryant — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 09:17:00 GMT

It's always interesting when a friend emails me an example of a frivolous lawsuit or sometimes I see them posted on a couple of the non lawyer websites I frequent on occasion. They are stories of people using lawn mowers to cut their hair or brushing their teeth with a shot gun. In many examples, the person also got enough money to go off and buy a small country.

The thing is, when you try to find the real case or follow up on the "facts" , guess what, the case was made up. Or the case was overblown to begin with. Sure there is always a dumb case or a fight over pants that might have gone further than some would have expected, but almost always the system takes care of those. They are thrown out on summery judgment, or if they get to the jury, real people see that there are no damages there.

What's unfortunate is the stories do get passed around. There is the made up Winnebago case that national news outlets actually covered or actually they just posted the made up press release. So next time you hear or read about one of these cases, treat it like the email that offers 1,000,000,000,000 , if you just give them your bank account number. If it sounds out of line , it most likely is.

If you hear about one of these cases feel free to post about it here or with one of the other Injuryboard members, We aren't afraid of talking about the topic and do spend time on get to the truth all the time.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Driver Guilty - Drunk Driving a La-Z-Boy?!

Joe Crumley — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:37:09 GMT

10/31 - After you read this, look at the Updated Post here.

11/3/09 - Another update! DWI La-Z-Boy Isn't - Trademark Foul Kills E-Bay Auction at $43,500

_______________________________________________________

Drinking and driving is always a bad combination, but a Minnesota man has taken DWI in a more casual direction. Dennis LeRoy Anderson of Proctor, Minnesota (near Duluth), pled guilty Monday of DUI … while on a La-Z-Boy recliner!

The 61 year old Anderson had converted a La-Z-Boy recliner with wheels, a lawnmower engine, stereo, cupholders and headlights (see photo). Anderson does auto body work when he’s not making furniture into hot rods.

Unfortunately, he had a lot too much to drink before climbing into his chair, registering a 0.29% blood alcohol content, 3-1/2 times the legal limit! Anderson left the Keyboard Lounge on August 31, 2008, hopped on his La-Z-Boy but promptly crashed it into a real car in the parking lot.

The Star Tribune reported:

Deputy Police Chief Troy Foucault said the chair is "quite decked out." Along with the stereo and cup holders, it is powered by a converted lawnmower
with a Briggs & Stratton engine, a steering wheel, headlights and a power antenna.

Foucault estimated that the La-Z-Boy can top out at 15 to 20 miles per hour. A National Hot Rod Association sticker adorns the headrest.

The chair was impounded and will be sold at the next police auction.

"We have quite a few people calling about buying it," said Foucault, who half-seriously acknowledged that he's tempted to bid on it, except that "I have kids who would take it out and drive it on the street."

Anderson, with a prior conviction for drunken driving, was sentenced to 180 days in jail and a fine of $2,000.

Driving while drunk is serious business. As my partner Mike Bryant has written, drunk drivers can cause serious injuries to themselves and others.

Notice the ill-advised between-the-legs placement of that steering column/gearshift lever/whatever it is? I gotta think that "second collision" at 15-20mph could have caused more than "minor injuries." Ouch!

____________________________________________________________________

10/31 - Updated Post here.

11/3/09 - Another update! DWI La-Z-Boy Isn't - Trademark Foul Kills E-Bay Auction at $43,500

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Fire Prevention Week 2009

Mike Bryant — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 22:11:00 GMT

Sponsored annually by the National Fire Prevention Association it has been Fire Prevention Week. To help with the effort, cities across the state are holding forums, providing daily fire prevention tips and publicizing the effort in local newspapers and on city websites.

Residential fires accounted for 87 percent of all fire deaths in 2001. The most dangerous place to be, in regards to fire, is in your own home. In 2001, careless smoking was the leading cause of fire fatalities in Minnesota, with 10 civilian deaths (21 percent). As of August 1, 1993, smoke detectors are required in every Minnesota dwelling that has a sleeping area.

During the home heating season, your home can be a cozy, warm place to spend the winter, but it can become a nightmare if you don't "Watch What You Heat!"
Safety around heating equipment and appliances is an important first step in reducing the number of fires that occur annually. Keep children and loose clothing at a safe distance.
Use a yard stick to measure the distance between anything that can burn and your home heating equipment. If you don't have at least three feet of clearance, you are at risk.
Always turn off portable heating appliances when leaving home or retiring for the evening. Be sure the fire in the fireplace is out before going to bed.
Have chimneys, fireplaces and other heating devices inspected by a qualified professional at the start of every heating season.
Use a sturdy screen or glass closure in front of your fireplace, and burn only clean fireplace wood. Never burn treated lumber.
Install smoke detectors on every level of your home, including the basement, and test them monthly.
If you smell gas in your home, contact your local utility company or qualified professional heating contractor immediately, and follow their advice.
Install a residential fire sprinkler system in your home.
Inspect heat tape before using. Never thaw frozen pipes with an open flame.

Last year in Minnesota, 52 people lost their lives in fires. Another 144 were injured seriously enough to require transport or treatment by fire department responders.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Mike Bryant

Cancer, Aging Research Gets Three Americans Nobel Prize

Joe Crumley — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:48:53 GMT

The Nobel Prize was awarded today to three American scientists for their discoveries related to how chromosomes protect themselves from degradation. The discovery has huge significance in the areas of cancer research and aging. It was also the first Nobel awarded to more than one woman.

Sharing the $1.4 million prize are Elizabeth Blackburn of the University of California, San Francisco, Carol Greider, Ph.D. of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Jack Szostak, Ph.D. of Massachusetts General Hospital.

The New York Times reported that although the award was swept by Americans again, two of the three were immigrants. The Times also explained the science behind the award:

The recipients solved a longstanding puzzle involving the ends of chromosomes, the giant molecules of DNA that embody the genetic information. These ends, called telomeres, get shorter each time a cell divides and so serve as a kind of clock that counts off the cell’s allotted span of life.
...

The field of telomere research grew out of a puzzle in the mechanics of copying DNA. The copying enzyme works in such a way that one of the two strands of the double helix is left a little shorter after each division. Work by the three winners and others led to the discovery of telomerase, a special enzyme that can prevent the shortening by adding extra pieces of DNA.

Dr. Blackburn addressed this problem by working with a single-celled organism found in pond water known as Tetrahymena. It was particularly suitable because its genome is divided into many small chromosomes so each cell has a large number of telomeres.

While she and Dr. Greider were working with Tetrahymena, Dr. Szostak was studying the same problem in yeast. The two groups in collaboration worked out the basic mechanism of how telomerase works and the special piece of RNA it carries to help elongate the chromosomes. RNA is a close chemical cousin of DNA.

This piece of basic biology soon turned out to have important implications for aging and cancer. Telomerase is usually active only at the beginning of life; thereafter the telomeres get shorter each time a cell divides. When they get too short, a cell is thrown into senescence, meaning that it is prevented from dividing again.

Short telomeres are known to play a role in certain diseases of aging, and may be of more general importance. Telomeres are also important in cancer, a disease in which control of cell proliferation is lost. Cancer cells need to reactivate the telomerase gene, or their telomeres will get steadily shorter, forcing them into senescence. In some 80 to 90 percent of human cancer cells, the telomerase gene has been switched back on, Dr. Blackburn said. Clinical trials are under way to see if cancers can be treated by inhibiting telomerase.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Joe Crumley

Rank	State	Life Expectancy
1	Hawaii	80.0
2	Minnesota	78.8
3	Utah	78.7
4	Connecticut	78.7
5	Massachusetts	78.4
6	New Hampshire	78.3
7	Iowa	78.3
8	North Dakota	78.3
9	Rhode Island	78.3
10	California	78.2
11	Vermont	78.2
12	Colorado	78.2
13	Washington	78.2
14	Wisconsin	77.9
15	Idaho	77.9
16	Nebraska	77.8
17	Oregon	77.8
18	South Dakota	77.7
19	New York	77.7
20	Maine	77.6
21	Florida	77.5
22	Arizona	77.5
23	New Jersey	77.5
24	Kansas	77.3
25	Montana	77.2
26	Alaska	77.1
27	New Mexico	77.0
28	Virginia	76.8
29	Delaware	76.8
30	Texas	76.7
31	Pennsylvania	76.7
32	Wyoming	76.7
33	Illinois	76.4
34	Michigan	76.3
35	Maryland	76.3
36	Ohio	76.2
37	Indiana	76.1
38	Missouri	75.9
39	Nevada	75.8
40	North Carolina	75.8
41	Georgia	75.3
42	Kentucky	75.2
43	Arkansas	75.2
44	Oklahoma	75.2
45	Tennessee	75.1
46	West Virginia	75.1
47	South Carolina	74.8
48	Alabama	74.4
49	Louisiana	74.2
50	Mississippi	73.6
51	District of Columbia	72.0