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Lol, you just nit pick the stats the United States does poorly on.
You can do that with any country to make it look bad.
remember not everyone has such a negative outlook on things, some people focus on the negative, others are proud of the positives.
Remember i'm not trying to claim the United States is the best, i am just saying we are average in the developed world.
Lol, you just nit pick the stats the United States does poorly on.
You can do that with any country to make it look bad.
remember not everyone has such a negative outlook on things, some people focus on the negative, others are proud of the positives.
Remember i'm not trying to claim the United States is the best, i am just saying we are average in the developed world.
I'm not nitpicking anything. I'm looking at the objective measures, and ALL the stats. When you look at ALL the stats, the US ranks poorly in more categories than it ranks well.
Try removing countries like Brazil, Mexico, Slovenia etc. that are not really developing countries and you'll see the US doesn't rank very well.
Higher disposable income when inequality is not taken into account..
When inequality is not taken into account? Why not? Why when calculating other statistical data inequality is taken into account and in this case you choose to provide data "when inequality is NOT taken into account? Now, can you provide data when inequality is taken into account, just for the sake of it? Just because there is inequlity in ANY country.
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Originally Posted by Paparappa
Americans also have to pay more for healthcare and other services that other countries provide for free (paid for by taxes)...
"Free (paid for by taxes)", what? Who are you kidding? Is it free or is it not? I know that my brother living in Germany pays for his and his family health care (directly and indirectly through taxes) through the nose. Two friends in Germany who are self-empoyed choose to stay uninsured and pay out of pocket when needed due to very high health insurance for self-empoyed.
If you calculate all the direct and indirect taxes people pay for health insurance in Germany, it becomes much higher than in the USA for many people. I'm not kidding.
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Originally Posted by Paparappa
Income mobility is worse than most other developed countries
This statement is just plain wrong. I don't even want to comment on that.
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Originally Posted by Paparappa
How about good healthcare? An inexpensive good college education? Decent public transportation? What price do you put on safety?
I definitely agree about good healthcare FOR EVERYBODY NOT ONLY FOR SOME and about good college education, again FOR EVERYBODY, NOT JUST FOR SOME.
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Originally Posted by Paparappa
It's always about money, isn't it?
If you're honest enough to yourself, you'll agree that it's always about money EVERYWHERE. We'll want a nice lifestyle, a great career, vacations, working less earning more, eating out, having nice things, a new car, house and so on, doesn't matter where we live. Am I correct? It's all about money in Canada, US, Germany, Russia or Papua New Guinea. Everybody wants a good life and money is definitely one of the things that can afford it. Don't tell me only Americans want to make a good living.
As an example, just consider how many Canadians live in the US and how many of them constantly move to the US for career. If money (and career) wouldn't be important, why would they do this? Canada is nice enough! They have clean cities, public (and "free", as you say) health care, good quality affordable education, much less crime and so on. Why would they leave their nice country and forsake all this to move to a country that is, according to you, lacking in all areas comparing to other "first world" countries? Looks like it's not all exactly as "your" statistics show, at least it doesn't tell the whole story, if it tells anything at all.
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Originally Posted by Paparappa
Obesity is also caused by poverty and not having access to healthy food.
Furthermore, living amongst grossly fat people is not a pleasant experience. Unless you're one of them.
I'm pretty sure everybody in the US can afford a healthy diet. I don't think, McDonald's meal cost less than buying fresh vegetables, meat, grains and so on and cook at home. But yes, living amongst grossly fat people is not a pleasant experience. I definitely agree on that. By the way, just came back from Germany. I was surprised by the number of fat people there. Didn't expect that after being absent for a couple of years. They need some adjustment in their diet, as well.
And yes, the level of violent crime in the US is too high for my taste. This is a huge drawback.
Last edited by movingwiththewind; 06-13-2013 at 03:07 PM..
I'm not nitpicking anything. I'm looking at the objective measures, and ALL the stats. When you look at ALL the stats, the US ranks poorly in more categories than it ranks well.
Try removing countries like Brazil, Mexico, Slovenia etc. that are not really developing countries and you'll see the US doesn't rank very well.
When you look at ALL the stats the United States ranks 6.
By the way, just came back from Germany. I was surprised by the number of fat people there. Didn't expect that after being absent for a couple of years. They need some adjustment in their diet, as well.
So i suppose you didnt experience much culture shock going from the States to Germany?
When inequality is not taken into account? Why not? Why when calculating other statistical data inequality is taken into account and in this case you choose to provide data "when inequality is NOT taken into account? Now, can you provide data when inequality is taken into account, just for the sake of it? Just because there is inequlity in ANY country.
For an accurate comparison, you have to look at median income. Median being the middle value, not the average value. Median household income - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The US still ranks near the top, but the differences are not that high, especially considering the free services the government offers in other countries. As for what I mean by "free..."
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"Free (paid for by taxes)", what? Who are you kidding? Is it free or is it not?
It's free in the context of income comparison.
Let's say an American makes 40k a year. Let's say that's about 33k after taxes.
Let's say someone from an European country makes 37k a year, about 29k after taxes.
The American makes more money, but he also has to pay more for healthcare, daycare, college, has to drive because public transportation sucks and roads are not really made for bikes, and other services that are already covered by the European's taxes. In this context, the European services can be considered free because they're already paid for.
Quote:
I know that my brother living in Germany pays for his and his family health care (directly and indirectly through taxes) through the nose. Two friends in Germany who are self-empoyed choose to stay uninsured and pay out of pocket when needed due to very high health insurance for self-empoyed.
If you calculate all the direct and indirect taxes people pay for health insurance in Germany, it becomes much higher than in the USA for many people. I'm not kidding.
These are anecdotes though. I'm looking at what the average person pays for healthcare, and all statistics point towards the US being the most expensive developed country in the world. That's not to say that there aren't people who would pay more in Germany and less in the US, but for most people that is not the case.
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This statement is just plain wrong. I don't even want to comment on that.
I gave you the statistics. You choose to ignore them.
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If you're honest enough to yourself, you'll agree that it's always about money EVERYWHERE. We'll want a nice lifestyle, a great career, vacations, working less earning more, eating out, having nice things, a new car, house and so on, doesn't matter where we live. Am I correct? It's all about money in Canada, US, Germany, Russia or Papua New Guinea. Everybody wants a good life and money is definitely one of the things that can afford it. Don't tell me only Americans want to make a good living.
Yes, and America is the only developed country where employees are not guaranteed paid vacations (only short unpaid ones). Every other country guarantees 2-4 weeks, in part due to the higher taxes. Not much of a point making more money if you're employer doesn't let you take a vacation and/or it's unpaid. Plus, American employees work more than most.
I think a lot of people would rather make less money but have good paid vacations and to have to worry about health insurance etc.
Quote:
As an example, just consider how many Canadians live in the US and how many of them constantly move to the US for career. If money (and career) wouldn't be important, why would they do this? Canada is nice enough! They have clean cities, public (and "free", as you say) health care, good quality affordable education, much less crime and so on. Why would they leave their nice country and forsake all this to move to a country that is, according to you, lacking in all areas comparing to other "first world" countries? Looks like it's not all exactly as "your" statistics show, at least it doesn't tell the whole story, if it tells anything at all.
There are many possible reasons for this. Maybe they can't get the job or research opportunities they want in Canada, or maybe they just think more money = better. If you're rich or semi-rich, you can live in a nice area in the US and afford healthcare etc. Problem is, only a small percentage can be considered rich or semi-rich.
When I was younger, I thought the US was the best and that money was everything. Needless to say, I've changed my mind.
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I'm pretty sure everybody in the US can afford a healthy diet. I don't think, McDonald's meal cost less than buying fresh vegetables, meat, grains and so on and cook at home. But yes, living amongst grossly fat people is not a pleasant experience. I definitely agree on that. By the way, just came back from Germany. I was surprised by the number of fat people there. Didn't expect that after being absent for a couple of years. They need some adjustment in their diet, as well.
Yes, Germans are the fattest in Europe. However
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By the way, just came back from Germany. I was surprised by the number of fat people there. Didn't expect that after being absent for a couple of years. They need some adjustment in their diet, as well. 
