I agree with most of this, but I do have to say that a couple of these articles make decent points:
"Consider, for example, the tab for the same assortment of ground beef, tuna, milk, eggs, margarine, potatoes, bananas, bread, orange juice, coffee, sugar and cereal: In Twin Falls, Idaho, $23.41. In New York City in December of 2010, you would have to shell out 72 percent more, $40.29, according to The Council for Community and Economic Research. That higher percentage carries across all expenditures, from child care costs to haircuts."
It's easy to ridicule when you live in a low cost of living area, but when the same food costs almost double, calculations often don't add up in the same way.