It's certainly got it ups, downs and quirks like every place else, but I'm convinced you'd have a hard time finding a more well rounded state. It's usually called "America in Miniature" for the diverse geography-- mountains, forests, cities, costal plains and the ocean. But it goes deeper than that. Talk to residents of the western mountains of Garret County, residents of the metropolitan region between Baltimore and D.C., then to people on the  Eastern shore. They're all within a four or five hour drive from one another but are as different from one another as people living on opposite ends of the county. Just take a look at the diversity of comments in on this page. People who complain about MD based on some limited experience say: "it's too conservative", "it's too liberal", "it's too urban", "it's too rural", it's too hot", "it's too cold". How can all these be complaints about the same state be true? As someone born and raised there-- I can say it makes sense. 

There is something there for everyone to love and something for everyone to hate. Sure, I hate the high taxes, the bad traffic around the cities, and the lousy humidity in the summer, but I've always gathered the things I love from it too. I've loved living in the quiet countryside but with only a half an hour commute to work or the city and being only a day trip away from the mountains and the ocean. You could spend a Saturday in Washington just as easily as Philly and be home in time for dinner. I've loved the change of seasons. MD has them all. True summers can be hot but you'll also see your share of New England style nor'easters in the winter. You can find the best of the north and south cuisine along with the region's own particular favorites. You can go for a nice pile of steamed crabs and cold beer on the deck of a bayside restaurant one night and a homemade Amish feast the next. A hike in the mountains is hours away from a fishing trip on the bay or day at the beach. As one of the original colonies, MD is rich in history and historical places as well. Industry here is diverse too. Everything from farming, to fishing, to bioscience to aerospace. Maryland is home to Johns Hopkins, Black & Decker/ DeWalt, Lockheed Martin, McCormick & Company, W. R. Grace and Company and many more. It's not only close to DC, Philly, and NY, Baltimore's a seaport itself.

Frankly, most of the negative comments I read here are just simply invalid because they're way too subjective and based on very minimal experience. To the guy who accused the Chesapeake Bay of being a worthless "marsh", I don't know what kind of traumatic day trip he was forced into but he's talking about the largest estuary in the U.S. surrounded by a watershed encompassing over 64,000 square miles in six states. It produces 500 million pounds of seafood per year, and is a commercial and recreational resource for the more than 15 million people. It requires a 17.6 mile bridge-tunnel to cross its mouth  http://www.cbbt.com/facts.html  (Do some research before you criticize buddy--  http://www.baydreaming.com/ )

Other people love to cite Baltimore's (Maryland's) crime rate but always fail to remind you it's nearly all drug dealers killing each other in a very few areas of the city. It's not the widespread problem implied by the sensationalistic media. And finally, anyone who makes the blanket statement that EVERYONE in even a small state is "rude", "dumb" or otherwise "nasty" need not be taken seriously enough to waste your time with.

Love it or hate it, anyone really interested in discovering it would quickly see that "America in Miniature" is a well deserved description of Maryland.