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World happiness report and restoring American happiness
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Pelle Svanslös
Mar 22, 2017, 6:43:08 AM3/22/17
to
Quick points:
- Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
- China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
- The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
among the OECD countries; in 2016 it came 19th. The reasons are
declining social support and increased corruption and it is these same
factors that explain why the Nordic countries do so much better.
- Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
http://worldhappiness.report/ed/2017/
Restoring American happiness.
The central paradox of the modern American economy, is this: income per
person has increased roughly three times since 1960, but measured
happiness has not risen. The situation has gotten worse in recent years:
per capita GDP is still rising, but happiness is now actually falling.
The United States can and should raise happiness by addressing
America’s multi-faceted social crisis — rising inequality, corruption,
isolation, and distrust — rather than focusing exclusively or
even mainly on economic growth, especially since the concrete proposals
along these lines would exacerbate rather than ameliorate the
deepening social crisis.
To understand America’s falling happiness, we ... explain the sources of
subjective wellbeing using six underlying variables: log
income per capita (lgdp), healthy life expectancy (hle), social support
(ssup), freedom to make life choices (freedom), generosity of donations
(donation), and perceived corruption of government and business
(corruption).
While two of the explanatory variables moved in the direction of greater
U.S. happiness (lgdp, hle), the four social variables (ssup, freedom,
donation, corruption) all deteriorated — US showed less social support,
less sense of personal freedom, lower donations, and more perceived
corruption of government and business.
America’s crisis is, in short, a social crisis, not an economic crisis.
Almost all of the policy discourse in Washington DC centers on naïve
attempts to raise the economic growth rate, as if a higher growth rate
would somehow heal the deepening divisions and angst in American
society. This kind of growth-only agenda is doubly wrong-headed.
First, most of the pseudo-elixirs for growth — especially the Republican
Party’s beloved nostrum of endless tax cuts and voodoo economics—will
only exacerbate America’s social inequalities and feed the distrust that
is already tearing society apart.
Second, a forthright attack on the real sources of social crisis would
have a much larger and more rapid beneficial effect on U.S. happiness.
Consider the five Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway,
and Sweden), all of which score far higher than the U.S. in happiness
... even though the U.S. has a higher GDP per capita. The explanation is
that the Nordic countries far outpace the U.S. on personal freedom,
social support, and lower corruption, thereby accounting for the higher
levels of Nordic happiness.
It is of course well-known that social capital in the United States has
been in decline for several decades now. In recent years, the evidence
of social crises has become overwhelming, across every aspect of social
life. A small group at the top of the income distribution has continued
to make striking gains in wealth and income, while the rest of
society has faced economic stagnation or decline, worsening public
health indicators including rising rates of drug addiction and suicide,
and declining social trust.
To spell this out: Generalized trust among Americans has been falling
for decades. Trust in government has plummeted to the lowest level in
modern history, consistent with the rise in the perception of
corruption. Income inequality has reached astronomical levels, with the
top 1 percent of American households taking home almost all of the gains
in economic growth in recent decades, while the share of the bottom 50%
plummets. The top 1 percent of households now claims around 23 percent
of income, roughly equal to the share of the bottom 70 percent.
At the same time, the extent of pro-social behavior among Americans
seems to be on the decline ... A recent study showed that the extent of
helping behavior by U.S. residents declined sharply between 2001 and
2011, but this was not true for Canadian residents.
Another very stark indicator of social collapse is the startling finding
that mortality rates are rising for middle-aged white, non-Hispanic men
and women. This trend stands in sharp contrast
to the experience of Western Europe and Canada, where mortality rates
continue to fall. What makes the United States case so disturbing and
revealing is that it is clearly a social crisis as much as a health crisis.
There are several factors at work in this interconnected destruction of
social capital, and their relative importance has not been determined
with any precision or consensus. I would point to five.
The first is the rise of mega-dollars in U.S. politics. A typical
federal election cycle now involves at least $7 billion in campaign
financing, and billions of dollars more in corporate lobbying outlays
that are indirect forms of campaign financing. Because of profoundly
damaging Supreme Court decisions ... billionaires and large corporations
are able to make enormous and essentially untraceable campaign
contributions to candidates. There is a strong and correct
feeling among Americans that the government does not serve their
interest, but rather the interest of powerful lobbies, wealthy
Americans, and of course, the politicians themselves. Political
scientists such as Martin Gilens have shown that only rich Americans
have real input into political decision making.
The second, and closely related, factor is the soaring income and wealth
inequality. Since the 1980s, America has been in a new gilded age, with
tax cuts for the rich, special privileges for the wealthy to hide income
in offshore tax havens, the destruction of union power, financial
deregulation, and other steps to shift national income to the very top
of the income distribution. It has worked better and longer than could
have been imagined. Of course, the big money in politics keeps the
political direction towards further tax cuts and benefits for the
super-rich.
The third factor is the decline in social trust related to the post-1965
surge in immigration to the United States, especially the rise of the
Hispanic population. Putnam reported that communities with higher ethnic
diversity also have lower measures of social trust. This finding seems
true for the United States, but not consistently so for other countries
(such as Canada). Some sociologists suggest that the U.S. high ethnic
diversity is also characterized by considerable economic and ethnic
segregation, so that the potential for inter-group contact to diminish
distrust is not as operative in the United States as in other countries:
“American exceptionalism may be linked to relatively high levels of
heterogeneity combined with the pronounced segregation of cities in the
United States compared with other Western countries … and the
persistence of ethnic inqualities”.
The fourth factor relates to the aftermath of 9/11. America’s reaction
to these unprecedented terrorist attacks was to stoke fear rather than
appeal to social solidarity. The U.S. government launched an open-ended
global war on terror, appealing to the darkest side of human nature
by invoking a stark “us versus them” dualism, and terrifying American
citizens through the government’s projections of fear. Since then, the
United States has been involved in non-stop war and Americans are
subject to daily indignities of searches, frisking, body pat downs,
orders barked at airports, and terrorist alerts. In the meantime, the
U.S. government has repeatedly misled its own citizens about the scope
of its activities, whom it is spying on, and where it is fighting.
The fifth and final factor that I would raise is the severe
deterioration of America’s educational system. On the demand side, the
market premium for a college degree has continued to rise in the United
States, reflecting the fact that new technologies demand better
technical skills. Yet on the supply side, the share of young Americans
completing a bachelor’s degree or higher is essentially stagnant at
around 36 percent. College tuition has soared and student aid has
been pared back dramatically. The result is a $1 trillion mountain of
student debt and a generation of young people with half-finished
bachelor’s degrees facing a precarious future.
This matters because the failure of America to educate its young people
is a major force behind the rise in income inequality (condemning those
with less than a bachelors degree to stagnant or falling incomes) and,
it appears, to the fall of social capital as well. The US political
divide is increasingly a divide between those with a college degree and
those without. This is reflected in the recent presidential election.
In sum, the United States offers a vivid portrait of a country that is
looking for happiness “in all the wrong places”. The dominant political
discourse is all about raising the rate of economic growth. And the
prescriptions for faster growth — mainly deregulation and tax cuts — are
likely to exacerbate, not reduce social tensions. Almost surely, further
tax cuts will increase inequality, social tensions, and the
social and economic divide between those with a college degree and those
without.
America’s happiness agenda should center on rebuilding social capital.
This will require a keen focus on the five main factors that have
contributed to falling social trust and confidence in government.
The first priority should be campaign finance reform, especially to undo
the terrible damage caused by the Citizens United decision.
The second should be a set of policies aiming at reducing income and
wealth inequality. This would include an expanded social safety net,
wealth taxes, and greater public financing of health and education.
The third should be to improve the social relations between the
native-born and immigrant populations. Canada has demonstrated a
considerable success with multiculturalism; the United States has not
tried very hard.
The fourth is to acknowledge and move past the fear created by 9/11 and
its memory. The US remains traumatized to this day; Trump’s ban on
travel ... is a continuing manifestation of the exaggerated and
irrational fears that grip the nation.
The fifth priority, I believe, should be on improved educational
quality, access, and attainment. America has lost the edge in educating
its citizens for the 21st century; that fact alone ensures a social
crisis that will continue to threaten well-being until the commitment to
quality education for all is once again a central tenet of American society.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/sdsn-whr2017/HR17-Ch7_lr.pdf
- Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
- China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
- The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
among the OECD countries; in 2016 it came 19th. The reasons are
declining social support and increased corruption and it is these same
factors that explain why the Nordic countries do so much better.
- Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
http://worldhappiness.report/ed/2017/
Restoring American happiness.
The central paradox of the modern American economy, is this: income per
person has increased roughly three times since 1960, but measured
happiness has not risen. The situation has gotten worse in recent years:
per capita GDP is still rising, but happiness is now actually falling.
The United States can and should raise happiness by addressing
America’s multi-faceted social crisis — rising inequality, corruption,
isolation, and distrust — rather than focusing exclusively or
even mainly on economic growth, especially since the concrete proposals
along these lines would exacerbate rather than ameliorate the
deepening social crisis.
To understand America’s falling happiness, we ... explain the sources of
subjective wellbeing using six underlying variables: log
income per capita (lgdp), healthy life expectancy (hle), social support
(ssup), freedom to make life choices (freedom), generosity of donations
(donation), and perceived corruption of government and business
(corruption).
While two of the explanatory variables moved in the direction of greater
U.S. happiness (lgdp, hle), the four social variables (ssup, freedom,
donation, corruption) all deteriorated — US showed less social support,
less sense of personal freedom, lower donations, and more perceived
corruption of government and business.
America’s crisis is, in short, a social crisis, not an economic crisis.
Almost all of the policy discourse in Washington DC centers on naïve
attempts to raise the economic growth rate, as if a higher growth rate
would somehow heal the deepening divisions and angst in American
society. This kind of growth-only agenda is doubly wrong-headed.
First, most of the pseudo-elixirs for growth — especially the Republican
Party’s beloved nostrum of endless tax cuts and voodoo economics—will
only exacerbate America’s social inequalities and feed the distrust that
is already tearing society apart.
Second, a forthright attack on the real sources of social crisis would
have a much larger and more rapid beneficial effect on U.S. happiness.
Consider the five Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway,
and Sweden), all of which score far higher than the U.S. in happiness
... even though the U.S. has a higher GDP per capita. The explanation is
that the Nordic countries far outpace the U.S. on personal freedom,
social support, and lower corruption, thereby accounting for the higher
levels of Nordic happiness.
It is of course well-known that social capital in the United States has
been in decline for several decades now. In recent years, the evidence
of social crises has become overwhelming, across every aspect of social
life. A small group at the top of the income distribution has continued
to make striking gains in wealth and income, while the rest of
society has faced economic stagnation or decline, worsening public
health indicators including rising rates of drug addiction and suicide,
and declining social trust.
To spell this out: Generalized trust among Americans has been falling
for decades. Trust in government has plummeted to the lowest level in
modern history, consistent with the rise in the perception of
corruption. Income inequality has reached astronomical levels, with the
top 1 percent of American households taking home almost all of the gains
in economic growth in recent decades, while the share of the bottom 50%
plummets. The top 1 percent of households now claims around 23 percent
of income, roughly equal to the share of the bottom 70 percent.
At the same time, the extent of pro-social behavior among Americans
seems to be on the decline ... A recent study showed that the extent of
helping behavior by U.S. residents declined sharply between 2001 and
2011, but this was not true for Canadian residents.
Another very stark indicator of social collapse is the startling finding
that mortality rates are rising for middle-aged white, non-Hispanic men
and women. This trend stands in sharp contrast
to the experience of Western Europe and Canada, where mortality rates
continue to fall. What makes the United States case so disturbing and
revealing is that it is clearly a social crisis as much as a health crisis.
There are several factors at work in this interconnected destruction of
social capital, and their relative importance has not been determined
with any precision or consensus. I would point to five.
The first is the rise of mega-dollars in U.S. politics. A typical
federal election cycle now involves at least $7 billion in campaign
financing, and billions of dollars more in corporate lobbying outlays
that are indirect forms of campaign financing. Because of profoundly
damaging Supreme Court decisions ... billionaires and large corporations
are able to make enormous and essentially untraceable campaign
contributions to candidates. There is a strong and correct
feeling among Americans that the government does not serve their
interest, but rather the interest of powerful lobbies, wealthy
Americans, and of course, the politicians themselves. Political
scientists such as Martin Gilens have shown that only rich Americans
have real input into political decision making.
The second, and closely related, factor is the soaring income and wealth
inequality. Since the 1980s, America has been in a new gilded age, with
tax cuts for the rich, special privileges for the wealthy to hide income
in offshore tax havens, the destruction of union power, financial
deregulation, and other steps to shift national income to the very top
of the income distribution. It has worked better and longer than could
have been imagined. Of course, the big money in politics keeps the
political direction towards further tax cuts and benefits for the
super-rich.
The third factor is the decline in social trust related to the post-1965
surge in immigration to the United States, especially the rise of the
Hispanic population. Putnam reported that communities with higher ethnic
diversity also have lower measures of social trust. This finding seems
true for the United States, but not consistently so for other countries
(such as Canada). Some sociologists suggest that the U.S. high ethnic
diversity is also characterized by considerable economic and ethnic
segregation, so that the potential for inter-group contact to diminish
distrust is not as operative in the United States as in other countries:
“American exceptionalism may be linked to relatively high levels of
heterogeneity combined with the pronounced segregation of cities in the
United States compared with other Western countries … and the
persistence of ethnic inqualities”.
The fourth factor relates to the aftermath of 9/11. America’s reaction
to these unprecedented terrorist attacks was to stoke fear rather than
appeal to social solidarity. The U.S. government launched an open-ended
global war on terror, appealing to the darkest side of human nature
by invoking a stark “us versus them” dualism, and terrifying American
citizens through the government’s projections of fear. Since then, the
United States has been involved in non-stop war and Americans are
subject to daily indignities of searches, frisking, body pat downs,
orders barked at airports, and terrorist alerts. In the meantime, the
U.S. government has repeatedly misled its own citizens about the scope
of its activities, whom it is spying on, and where it is fighting.
The fifth and final factor that I would raise is the severe
deterioration of America’s educational system. On the demand side, the
market premium for a college degree has continued to rise in the United
States, reflecting the fact that new technologies demand better
technical skills. Yet on the supply side, the share of young Americans
completing a bachelor’s degree or higher is essentially stagnant at
around 36 percent. College tuition has soared and student aid has
been pared back dramatically. The result is a $1 trillion mountain of
student debt and a generation of young people with half-finished
bachelor’s degrees facing a precarious future.
This matters because the failure of America to educate its young people
is a major force behind the rise in income inequality (condemning those
with less than a bachelors degree to stagnant or falling incomes) and,
it appears, to the fall of social capital as well. The US political
divide is increasingly a divide between those with a college degree and
those without. This is reflected in the recent presidential election.
In sum, the United States offers a vivid portrait of a country that is
looking for happiness “in all the wrong places”. The dominant political
discourse is all about raising the rate of economic growth. And the
prescriptions for faster growth — mainly deregulation and tax cuts — are
likely to exacerbate, not reduce social tensions. Almost surely, further
tax cuts will increase inequality, social tensions, and the
social and economic divide between those with a college degree and those
without.
America’s happiness agenda should center on rebuilding social capital.
This will require a keen focus on the five main factors that have
contributed to falling social trust and confidence in government.
The first priority should be campaign finance reform, especially to undo
the terrible damage caused by the Citizens United decision.
The second should be a set of policies aiming at reducing income and
wealth inequality. This would include an expanded social safety net,
wealth taxes, and greater public financing of health and education.
The third should be to improve the social relations between the
native-born and immigrant populations. Canada has demonstrated a
considerable success with multiculturalism; the United States has not
tried very hard.
The fourth is to acknowledge and move past the fear created by 9/11 and
its memory. The US remains traumatized to this day; Trump’s ban on
travel ... is a continuing manifestation of the exaggerated and
irrational fears that grip the nation.
The fifth priority, I believe, should be on improved educational
quality, access, and attainment. America has lost the edge in educating
its citizens for the 21st century; that fact alone ensures a social
crisis that will continue to threaten well-being until the commitment to
quality education for all is once again a central tenet of American society.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/sdsn-whr2017/HR17-Ch7_lr.pdf
TT
Mar 22, 2017, 8:10:54 AM3/22/17
to
22.3.2017, 12:43, Pelle Svanslös kirjoitti:
> - Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
They're unhappy having skriptis.
> - Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
soccerfan777
Mar 22, 2017, 8:11:11 AM3/22/17
to
On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 5:43:08 AM UTC-5, Pelle Svanslös wrote:
> Quick points:
> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
> - China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
> - The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
> among the OECD countries; in 2016 it came 19th. The reasons are
> declining social support and increased corruption and it is these same
> factors that explain why the Nordic countries do so much better.
> - Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
With losers like *shitcreep and Whisper coming out of Croatia, how can they be happy?
> Quick points:
> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
> - China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
> - The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
> among the OECD countries; in 2016 it came 19th. The reasons are
> declining social support and increased corruption and it is these same
> factors that explain why the Nordic countries do so much better.
> - Croatia is among the 3 unhappiest countries in Europe.
soccerfan777
Mar 22, 2017, 8:17:59 AM3/22/17
to
Just looking at the top 25, I would say it is surprising Americans are happier than the Brits and Germans. And how are the Israelites so happy with the Palestine conflict going on?
Country
------
Norway
Denmark
Iceland
Switzerland
Finland
Netherlands
Canada
New Zealand
Sweden
Australia
Israel
Costa Rica
Austria
United States
Ireland
Germany
Belgium
Luxembourg
United Kingdom
Chile
United Arab Emirates
Brazil
Czech Republic
Argentina
Country
------
Norway
Denmark
Iceland
Switzerland
Finland
Netherlands
Canada
New Zealand
Sweden
Australia
Israel
Costa Rica
Austria
United States
Ireland
Germany
Belgium
Luxembourg
United Kingdom
Chile
United Arab Emirates
Brazil
Czech Republic
Argentina
soccerfan777
Mar 22, 2017, 8:24:21 AM3/22/17
to
Whole list is on Wikipedia. India is 122nd. Shocking!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Happiness_Report#2017_ranking
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Happiness_Report#2017_ranking
soccerfan777
Mar 22, 2017, 8:35:57 AM3/22/17
to
So basically the top 10 is rounded up by Nordic countries (Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Finland and Sweden), Switzerland, Netherlands and English speaking countries which are not from the British Isles (Canada, New Zealand and Australia).
I have been to Canada, Norway, Netherlands and Switzerland, FYI.
TT
Mar 22, 2017, 8:36:36 AM3/22/17
to
22.3.2017, 14:17, soccerfan777 kirjoitti:
> and how are the Israelites so happy with the Palestine conflict going on?
They get truckloads of money from USA and get to kill arabs on the side.
Also they were given a country which they never had except in fairy
tales (the Bible).
Oh, and they're God's chosen people. Rest can go to hell.
> and how are the Israelites so happy with the Palestine conflict going on?
They get truckloads of money from USA and get to kill arabs on the side.
Also they were given a country which they never had except in fairy
tales (the Bible).
Oh, and they're God's chosen people. Rest can go to hell.
soccerfan777
Mar 22, 2017, 8:44:38 AM3/22/17
to
Lol... and since there is no heaven or hell, Israel should top the list of countries being delusional-happy!
*skriptis
Mar 22, 2017, 10:01:02 AM3/22/17
to
soccerfan777 <zepf...@gmail.com> Wrote in message:
is #122.
Dickhead.
But, seriously, these kind of lists are not meant for direct
comparison of different countries. Happines index is so
subjective. It's not reliable just as you can't exactly compare
pain feeling in medicine.
This list is useful to compare the progress/regress of a certain
country over time, that's what's all about here, and maybe to a
certain degree to compare neighboring countries of similar
mentality, but that's it. It's not meant for world wide
comparison.
Some people are spoiled. E.g. all the Croats who come back from
the world are delighted to be back.
Streets free of crime, drinking tapped water and washing cars with
it as well, clean nature, free college, no migrants, free
healthcare, wonderful climate, Mediterranean, central European
and Alpine, proximity to everywhere in Europe, etc.
You're a young person in Croatia, you can go to college and get
healthcare for $0.
Who can be happy with that?
It's the consequence of too much "Hollywood" so people feel
unhappy because they don't have a villa and a batler. Basically
that's it. Being spoiled and unaware of how things are elsewhere.
It's absurd that we're at #77, but I'm glad it is this way. It
keeps us bellow the radar during these invasions.
--
----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/
> Whole list is on Wikipedia. India is 122nd. Shocking!
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Happiness_Report#2017_ranking
>
Raja retard at his finest. Mocks Croatia for being #77 while India
>
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Happiness_Report#2017_ranking
>
is #122.
Dickhead.
But, seriously, these kind of lists are not meant for direct
comparison of different countries. Happines index is so
subjective. It's not reliable just as you can't exactly compare
pain feeling in medicine.
This list is useful to compare the progress/regress of a certain
country over time, that's what's all about here, and maybe to a
certain degree to compare neighboring countries of similar
mentality, but that's it. It's not meant for world wide
comparison.
Some people are spoiled. E.g. all the Croats who come back from
the world are delighted to be back.
Streets free of crime, drinking tapped water and washing cars with
it as well, clean nature, free college, no migrants, free
healthcare, wonderful climate, Mediterranean, central European
and Alpine, proximity to everywhere in Europe, etc.
You're a young person in Croatia, you can go to college and get
healthcare for $0.
Who can be happy with that?
It's the consequence of too much "Hollywood" so people feel
unhappy because they don't have a villa and a batler. Basically
that's it. Being spoiled and unaware of how things are elsewhere.
It's absurd that we're at #77, but I'm glad it is this way. It
keeps us bellow the radar during these invasions.
--
----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/
The Iceberg
Mar 22, 2017, 10:04:29 AM3/22/17
to
The Iceberg
Mar 22, 2017, 10:06:37 AM3/22/17
to
stephenJ
Mar 22, 2017, 10:24:58 AM3/22/17
to
> On 3/22/2017 5:43 AM, Pelle Svanslös wrote:
> Quick points:
> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland have the combined population of greater
> Quick points:
> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
Mexico City. They aren't a fair comparison with major population
countries. Scale up and then let's talk.
> - China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
> - The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
... the Obama administration.
---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus
Pelle Svanslös
Mar 22, 2017, 11:14:33 AM3/22/17
to
On 22.3.2017 16:24, stephenJ wrote:
> > On 3/22/2017 5:43 AM, Pelle Svanslös wrote:
>> Quick points:
>> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
>> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
>
> Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland have the combined population of greater
> Mexico City. They aren't a fair comparison with major population
> countries. Scale up and then let's talk.
If you think this is an issue, maybe email it to the guys doing this stuff?
> > On 3/22/2017 5:43 AM, Pelle Svanslös wrote:
>> Quick points:
>> - Norway, Switzerland and the rest of the Nordic countries lead. That's
>> why the deeply desolate Trump has to badmouth them.
>
> Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland have the combined population of greater
> Mexico City. They aren't a fair comparison with major population
> countries. Scale up and then let's talk.
>> - China, despite huge economic gains, does no better than 25 years ago.
>> - The USA is a story of reduced happiness. In 2007 the USA ranked 3rd
>> among the OECD countries; in 2016 it came 19th. The reasons are ...
>
> ... the Obama administration.
Federer Fanatic
Mar 25, 2017, 7:54:17 PM3/25/17
to
traveling there....any recommendations of must sees?
FF
*skriptis
Mar 25, 2017, 8:30:02 PM3/25/17
to
Federer Fanatic <TheRelen...@nospam.invalid> Wrote in message:
Something you noticed?
It's a small country, you can visit and see all. :)
It's a small country, you can visit and see all. :)
TT
Mar 26, 2017, 1:37:24 AM3/26/17
to
26.3.2017, 1:54, Federer Fanatic kirjoitti:
> I seen some really beautiful pictures of Croatia....I might consider
> traveling there....any recommendations of must sees?
The monument of eternal love.
> I seen some really beautiful pictures of Croatia....I might consider
> traveling there....any recommendations of must sees?
http://postcommunistmonuments.ca/wp/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Stalin-kiss-12-12.jpg
josh...@gmail.com
Mar 26, 2017, 4:30:44 AM3/26/17
to
Op woensdag 22 maart 2017 13:17:59 UTC+1 schreef soccerfan777:
Wiedergutmachung and all that.
> Just looking at the top 25, I would say it is surprising Americans are happier than the Brits and Germans
In Germany it's considered good mannekes to be unhappy.
Wiedergutmachung and all that.
Federer Fanatic
Mar 26, 2017, 5:02:33 AM3/26/17
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FF
Federer Fanatic
Mar 26, 2017, 5:03:15 AM3/26/17
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FF
*skriptis
Mar 26, 2017, 8:01:03 AM3/26/17
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Ivanisevic and Ancic come from, seeing Roman emperor's palace
from late antiquity where people still live in today is rather
unique, totally opposite from e.g. the dead city centre of
Venice. Only tourists and pigeons there. Also organic growth of
the city has mixing styles from antiquity, medieval period,
renaissance, modern period. Lots of ferrirs to numerous islands
from here.
And of course Dubrovnik, which was a medieval maritime republic
republic, very socially progressive in its heyday, free
healthcare, pharmacies, etc also allegedly first state-like
entity to de facto recognize independence of USA by sending
merchant ships in 1776. Later Napoleon put an end to that
republic. Female tennis player Ana Konjuh is from Dubrovnik. Also
walls were very, and still are, appreciated here. Walls are good.
Not only Dubrovnik is a fortress in itself, the tiny republic
had walls bordering Venetian possessions away and those walls
outside the city are second only to great walls of China. They
guarded salt pans.
Throughout history walls have been symbol of success and
progressivism as it means you've created something worth
preserving and protecting.
Aside must-haves, you should definitely get a look, a sense of
typical Mediterranean small place, the feeling you get when
watching Amarcord or Mediterraneo. Go to some island, if you can.
You do those must haves, and then relax.
Also birthplace and birthouses of Nikola Tesla or first lady
Melania (Slovenia) aren't that far either. :)
That can be interesting for a north American.
Our Chinese friends from rst would probably be more interested in
a birthplace of a famous traveler Marco Polo who travelled to
China and brought spaghetti and many things. That's an island as
well.
Sadly for TT, we have very little monuments honouring Russia, only
have a bust of Yuri Gagarin but you can find Russian whores
everywhere so he can like it as well.
joh
Mar 26, 2017, 8:22:41 AM3/26/17
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Op zondag 26 maart 2017 10:30:44 UTC+2 schreef joh:
> Op woensdag 22 maart 2017 13:17:59 UTC+1 schreef soccerfan777:
> > Just looking at the top 25, I would say it is surprising Americans are happier than the Brits and Germans
> In Germany it's considered good mannekes to be unhappy.
> Wiedergutmachung and all that.
>
mmh, autocorrect rears its ugly head: '...it's considered good manners'
> > Just looking at the top 25, I would say it is surprising Americans are happier than the Brits and Germans
> In Germany it's considered good mannekes to be unhappy.
> Wiedergutmachung and all that.
>
Guypers
Mar 26, 2017, 8:23:46 AM3/26/17
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Federer Fanatic
Mar 26, 2017, 5:38:23 PM3/26/17
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Thanks for the info.
FF
TT
Mar 27, 2017, 12:59:39 AM3/27/17
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