rlongo924
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Happiest Countries in the World
(This post was last modified: 05-23-2012 06:08 PM by rlongo924.)
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| 05-23-2012 06:07 PM |
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FitAsFuck
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 01:35 AM)houston Wrote: I would be a very happy man if America was like that. It seems like Danish guys would also be some of the big pussies in the world if they never have to go out and get it. Any truth to that?
Strong generalization - but with some truth to it. If you use/misuse the security net, then it can act like quite a cushion which of course, does not encourage you to aim high. There are a large part of the population that will propably, more or less, fit into that container. But there are also quite a lot of people who do aim high and really go for it, both inside the country but also, as mentioned earlier, outside of Denmark.
I do not think you can say, that because of the security net, then people are less likely to actually go for their dream. People could might as well follow every dream and idea that they have, because they have the knowledge that they will always be able to survive, no matter how bad it goes. But some will also just be content with what they have and live their "normal" lives. In my opinion, it is way more complicated than just social security = lazy beta males. There are quite a lot of other factors that do play a role in that equation.
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| 05-25-2012 02:10 AM |
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ElJefe
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
There are many factors.
Main factor is the low level of equality. I think ignorance also plays a big role. Denmark is no longer the most "equal" country in the world, so I expect over time as Danes cue into this, they will become more irritated at the higher apparent wealth of more well-to-do neighbors. Price levels in DK are also very high. This gives them great purchasing power when in other countries on vacation, which in turn makes them think they're rich. However compared to your middle-class American family in the US, Danes have shitty purchasing power, cannot afford nice cars, going out, or enjoying life the way you could in the US.
Human beings do not care about absolute wealth or success. They care about relative success or wealth. This again plays into the mating game. Status is a relative concept, higher status being better, lower status worth. Status in itself means little unless you have someone to compare it to.
It would be an even higher score if the weather was good, which is why I suspect Norway isn't top-scorer. I expect Norway to come out #1 before too long, inspite of their generally shitty weather (which is even worse than Danish weather). Denmark and Sweden will move down that list.
A year from now you'll wish you started today
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| 05-25-2012 06:03 AM |
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Hawk
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 05:57 AM)Icarus Wrote: (05-25-2012 05:50 AM)Hawk Wrote: All this is based on a survey of a few minutes on the Web, maybe I've made mistakes. Somebody else has found more things these countries share?
If by "these countries" you mean Scandinavian countries, you forgot the obvious: Scandinavian countries have enormous ethnic homogeneity. There is such a thing as a "Swedish" face. And Sweden is a bit of a "one tribe in one country".
That is why Scandinavians can have more or less functioning social welfare systems: one does not mind too much paying taxes if the ones who benefit from them are one's tribesmen. Which is why multiculturalism will be Scandinavia's death sentence.
Southern European countries were also very homogeneous and they have weak welfare systems. It seems more to have with historical causes. The three European welfare models depend on who governed most of the time in 1945-1975, when it was formed:
-Very strong welfare states formed where Social-Democrats governed: Scandinavia and Austria.
-Strong welfare states formed where Christian-Democrats governed (France, Germany, etc.).
-Weak welfares states in countries with dictatorships (Spain, Portugal) or where the left was not allowed to govern and there was no alternative to the ruling party (Italy, Greece).
Talking about taxes, let's compare statistics about two countries, Sweden and Spain (the country with the lowest social spending in Western Europe):
-Amount of taxes paid by an industrial worker in Spain in relation to a Swedish one: 75%.
-Amount of taxes paid by banks and big corporations in Spain in relation to their Swedish counterparts: 20%.
(This post was last modified: 05-25-2012 06:14 AM by Hawk.)
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| 05-25-2012 06:12 AM |
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Icarus
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 06:12 AM)Hawk Wrote: Southern European countries were also very homogeneous and they have weak welfare systems. It seems more to have with historical causes.
I disagree. Sweden is basically one big family, despite the fact that the Sami in Lappland are Uralic instead of Nordic. Until a few decades ago (before the massive wave of immigration), most Swedes in major Swedish cities were "pure" Nordic.
By contrast, Spain is much more diverse. For starters, Spain has many nations and many official languages. Galicians are different from the Valencians, for example. Ethnically speaking, Spain is a melting pot of Celtic, Germanic (mostly Visigothic), Jewish, Arabic, Berber, Caucasian (via the Alani from what is now Georgia), Greek and Phoenician DNA.
In Sweden, the family is weak and the society is strong. In Spain, the family is strong and the society is weak. Swedes are more into universalist and collectivist baloney than the Spaniards.
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(This post was last modified: 05-25-2012 06:30 AM by Icarus.)
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| 05-25-2012 06:29 AM |
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Hawk
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 06:29 AM)Icarus Wrote: (05-25-2012 06:12 AM)Hawk Wrote: Southern European countries were also very homogeneous and they have weak welfare systems. It seems more to have with historical causes.
I disagree. Sweden is basically one big family, despite the fact that the Sami in Lappland are Uralic instead of Nordic. Until a few decades ago (before the massive wave of immigration), most Swedes in major Swedish cities were "pure" Nordic.
By contrast, Spain is much more diverse. For starters, Spain has many nations and many official languages. Galicians are different from the Valencians, for example. Ethnically speaking, Spain is a melting pot of Celtic, Germanic (mostly Visigothic), Jewish, Arabic, Berber, Caucasian (via the Alani from what is now Georgia), Greek and Phoenician DNA.
In Sweden, the family is weak and the society is strong. In Spain, the family is strong and the society is weak. Swedes are more into universalist and collectivist baloney than the Spaniards.
That situation is common in Western Europe. Spanish and Catalan are as different as Southern and Northern English, French and Occitan, or High and Low German (the latter are even more different). An Occitan writer, Frederic Mistral, even won the Nobel Prize. Whether they're called dialects or languages depends on other reasons.
Yes, Spain has been invaded many times, but population genetics tell us that Spaniards are a fairly homogeneous people. 70% of Spanish men carry the same genetic haplogroup (R1b, West European) while only 40% of Swedes do (I1, Nordic).
(This post was last modified: 05-25-2012 08:24 AM by Hawk.)
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| 05-25-2012 08:19 AM |
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Moma
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 02:10 AM)FitAsFuck Wrote: (05-25-2012 01:35 AM)houston Wrote: I would be a very happy man if America was like that. It seems like Danish guys would also be some of the big pussies in the world if they never have to go out and get it. Any truth to that?
Strong generalization - but with some truth to it. If you use/misuse the security net, then it can act like quite a cushion which of course, does not encourage you to aim high. There are a large part of the population that will propably, more or less, fit into that container. But there are also quite a lot of people who do aim high and really go for it, both inside the country but also, as mentioned earlier, outside of Denmark.
I do not think you can say, that because of the security net, then people are less likely to actually go for their dream. People could might as well follow every dream and idea that they have, because they have the knowledge that they will always be able to survive, no matter how bad it goes. But some will also just be content with what they have and live their "normal" lives. In my opinion, it is way more complicated than just social security = lazy beta males. There are quite a lot of other factors that do play a role in that equation.
I disagree. I have very good friends from DK and their mentality annoyed me. They always had this lah lah lah mentality, very Mickey Mouse with their thoughts and no drive to accomplish anything major.
I grew up in a country with social net and it produces the highest level of dossers one can imagine.
With a huge social safety net something has to give and this means that those who strive hard to carve out something aren't as rewarded as they would be in a more competitive society.
If we all win, what's the point in trying our hardest?
It's the same reason, the most cunning PUA's come out of hard cities.
How many guys from the Dominican Republic come out with sharp game? Hardly any because getting pum pum there is like seeing snow in Winnipeg during December, a guarantee.
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| 05-25-2012 12:38 PM |
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The following 1 user Likes Moma's post:1 user Likes Moma's post
The Troubled One
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Hawk
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RE: Happiest Countries in the World
(05-25-2012 01:11 PM)Icarus Wrote: In Spain, if you're 18 and you want to move out, people will wonder why you hate your family.
I disagree. The reasons why people don't move out earlier in Spain are poor State grants for studies and shitty salaries. Trust me, I'm Spanish.
I was crazy to move out since I was 18, but I couldn't as I would have received a paltry €2,000 grant per year, a misery (I make more every month now). I had to study in my hometown while living with my parents, except one year in Italy thanks to the European Union and its Erasmus grants.
(05-25-2012 12:38 PM)Moma Wrote: With a huge social safety net something has to give and this means that those who strive hard to carve out something aren't as rewarded as they would be in a more competitive society.
If we all win, what's the point in trying our hardest?
Actually, I think it's rather the opposite. In a country without welfare state, only those with a rich daddy can afford to try to accomplish their dreams. And, if there is no social mobility, even trying becomes pointless.
(This post was last modified: 05-25-2012 03:39 PM by Hawk.)
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| 05-25-2012 03:23 PM |
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