Here goes... Seattle is a fantastic town, water everywhere, gorgeous vistas and when the weather cooperates (August) there's no better place (I've found) in the entie-ree world.<p>That said, I just moved my teensy company from Seattle to Austin (after nearly, gulp, three decades in the SEA).  Ms. Rich's article reads like the 'impressions' of one who's never, umm, started a company in Seattle.<p>5 reasons I left (and won't be headed back):<p>- traffic is abysmal. Not NYC/LA abysmal, but for a town of its size, truly awful.<p>- weather is grey/overcast and misty (most years) for 10 months.<p>- it's hard to attract/keep talent with families -- home prices near good schools, within short commute of downtown (or eastside) core are high.  Wages are somewhat high, but get eaten up fast if you buy a home.<p>- business taxes, fees. State/county government is bloated and seems very willing to sacrifice job creation for revenue (read: more taxes on the way).<p>- did I mention the weather?  Went back for thanksgiving -  culture shock. Weather was overcast and I was struck by how dark it is.  Light at 9am-ish and starts to get dark at 3:30.<p>There's a reason Seattle runs on caffeine.<p>(edit: thought I had this bulleted list thing down - alas, no)