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Every single state in the US has its very own motto. I mean, New York's state motto is “Excelsior,” and “Eureka!” speaks of California. But what if we try calling the states by their very real names? After all, these do indeed sound a little outdated.

So when someone on r/AskReddit posted a question “If the US States had honest slogans, what would some of them be?” the level of hilarity reached up to the max, and we have some of the most painfully accurate suggestions down below.

We do suspect these will not be approved by the governors any time soon, but hey, we all secretly know that the “You can't afford to live here” motto for California would fit way better. No empty promises, no understatement, simply facts.

RELATED:

    The motto “In God we trust” is known to virtually every American, but do you know what’s the motto for the state of Florida? (This question is for Pandas living in different states.)

    In fact, every single US state has its very own motto, a unifying pledge for its people which represents the nation’s common good. Interestingly, 24 of these mottos are in English, 20 in Latin, and the rest are in French, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Hawaiian, and Chinook.

    Mottos encapsulate the essence of every state and speak of religion, equality, history, patriotism, and other American values.

    #4

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Monolith1011 , David King Report

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    WilvanderHeijden
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If they would allow they same speeds as on the German autobahn it would attract a lot of tourists.

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    #5

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    TimtheBigDaddy , Claire à Taiwan Report

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    MrTree1779
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I lived in Arizona for 8 years. This is a perfectly accurate description of the heat.

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    But some states have more peculiar mottos than others. For example, Washington's state motto is "Alki" or "Al-ki" in the American indigenous language Chinook. It translates as "bye and bye," but can be interpreted to mean "Into the future."

    According to Forbes, this peculiar motto can be traced back to JK Duncan of Governor Stevens’ state surveying expedition that designed its territorial seal in the 1850s.

    “It refers to the forward-thinking nature of the west coast settlers who named their settlement New York when they built it at Alki Point.”

    #7

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    twitchy_taco , pixabay Report

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    Brandy Grote
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Although millions do... We have the largest county in the US, but it is also one of the poorest.

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    #8

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    nt96 Report

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    Malakai
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    This could not be more true. Northwest Florida is Alabama's dump.

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    #9

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Swinnyjr , maxpixel Report

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    Tee
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Well at least I tried 🤷🏽‍♀️ I come back tomorrow

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    Other interesting mottos include: "Live free or die" for New Hampshire, "To be rather than to seem" for North Carolina, and "Mountaineers are always free" for West Virginia.

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    One unique example is Alaska, which adopted the motto "North to the future," which speaks of Alaska as a land of promise since 1967’s Alaska Purchase Centennial.

    #12

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    nothingweasel , maxpixel Report

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    Mama Panda
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes there is a tree but you can't see it because all of the dogs are lined up!

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    #13

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    NotAVerifiableFact , wikimedia Report

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    MrTree1779
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Better: "There's way more to us than NYC. But you'll probably never get the urge to find out."

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    #17

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    disincongruous , needpix Report

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    Mewton’s Third Paw
    Community Member
    4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Nah, I was thinking of Maine. Maine isn’t a state you confuse with another state. That’d be like Wyoming or Montana or something. Maine stands out.

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    #21

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    yentlequible , pixabay Report

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    Lizzie Robbins
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Im 15 and one of the only black people here because me and my twin sister were adopted by white people. When I see a black person i do a double take 😂

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    #25

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    coolsguy17 Report

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    K
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    96% of Yellowstone National Park is in Wyoming. The Fountain Paint Pot - also in Wyoming.

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    #27

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    aelbric , goodfreephotos Report

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    Tee
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    If this ain't the truth. I'm from Michigan and our roads are just terrible 😑

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    #29

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    751uw6 , wikimedia Report

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    MrTree1779
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Better: "We have more cows than people. And if you don't like football and beer, just leave."

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    #30

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    mcondo1 , Ken Lund Report

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    Tabitha L
    Community Member
    4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yes!!!!! But could we have a picture of Louisiana? This looks like the Mississippi capital.

    Kelly Hartle
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Notice there's not enough to say about Indiana that we get anything beyond The Hoosier State, and no one knows for sure what a Hoosier was, originally.

    ZombieGirl
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I have never heard anyone say that phrase while living here in Louisiana, lol. Am I missing something?

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    #37

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    SwimMikeRun , pikrepo Report

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    Kevin Malone
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Charleston is the best i've lived here my whole life and i have no complaints except when i go to the beach it is soooo touristy. and a lot of richer people from up north come down here.

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    #38

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Ozurip , pixabay Report

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    MrTree1779
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Better: "We're located in the North, but we vote like we're in the South."

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    #40

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Lives4Glitter , wikimedia Report

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    Leo Domitrix
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I live in Virginia. I'd have said: "The Yankee South. Just ask the rest of the South."

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    #43

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    biochemthisd , wikimedia Report

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    Luna Lovegood
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hey!! Georgia has excellent coastline! And Atlanta! And Savannah! And some hills! And small southern towns and... yeah that's all I got. And I grew up in Georgia.

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    #46

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Senna420 , wikimedia Report

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    Malakai
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yep! LLCs have the greatest protections in Delaware vs any other state, and you can legally register a business in Delaware and operate it regardless of the actual state you're running it from--you just have to pay taxes if you make over a certain amount in sales, I believe.

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    #48

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    MrF33 Report

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    Nathan Girard
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    All those cars and there's only one identifiable Subaru in the photo though

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    #50

    Honest-State-Mottoes-Slogans

    Mojotothemax , pikist Report

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