I was born in Tempe, a Phoenix suburb, and have lived in Arizona my entire life (56 years), mostly in Phoenix. I am now at a point in my life that I hate living here. As many posters have observed, the pollution, traffic, and crime are now out-of-sight, to say nothing of the transmogrification of Phoenix into Mexico Norte. In addition, the entire state seems to have been hijacked by carpetbaggers and Rinos (e.g., John McCain). I'm largely indifferent to the heat; I don't particularly like it, but it's something one simply grows accustomed to.
I'll admit that Phoenix is still preferable to, say, Gary IN or Detroit. However, when I think back on the Phoenix of the 1970's and earlier, I'm stunned at how much it's deteriorated from what it once was.
