3 ms·

With the exception of Denmark, social mobility is low in Scandinavian countries, but wealth inequality is also low, so the idea of getting screwed back to squar

With the exception of Denmark, social mobility is low in Scandinavian countries, but wealth inequality is also low, so the idea of getting screwed back to square one is very American. Breaking the law should hurt equally for the rich and poor - unless you think the poor are inherently worth less.

fulafel 8y ago
Fact check - Mobility is actually high in nordic countries: https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobility/ https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobi... shows that sweden, finland, norway also have good mobility (behind denmark though). edit: see also https://www.oecd.org/centrodemexico/medios/44582910.pdf https://www.oecd.org/centrodemexico/medios/44582910.pdf - it's in the 1st page abstract.
- grasshopperpurp 8y ago
  Will check these out, but I was basing my comment on this. https://gavinkellyblog.com/where-has-income-mobility-been-rising-fastest-britain-179e168189be https://gavinkellyblog.com/where-has-income-mobility-been-ri...
  - fulafel 8y ago
    So this picks the short term income mobility, the picture is titled "Share of people remaining in the bottom fifth of incomes after four years". It's interesting for sure, but it takes some thinking to interpret in relation to usual intergenerational mobility measure. For example: UK is known for its thin social safety net, so income drops and hikes are hard and steep, and Denmark is known for its short but generous unemployment compensation - again leading to steep short term income changes. (Also, the OECD's own press release on the article's source publication doesn't raise the same points and points at the Nordic countries as good models: https://www.oecd.org/newsroom/action-needed-to-tackle-stalled-social-mobility.htm https://www.oecd.org/newsroom/action-needed-to-tackle-stalle... - maybe economists, or OECD economists in particular, think that inter-generational mobility is a better measure?)

fulafel 8y ago

Fact check - Mobility is actually high in nordic countries: https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobility/ https://www.epi.org/publication/usa-lags-peer-countries-mobi... shows that sweden, finland, norway also have good mobility (behind denmark though). edit: see also https://www.oecd.org/centrodemexico/medios/44582910.pdf https://www.oecd.org/centrodemexico/medios/44582910.pdf - it's in the 1st page abstract.

grasshopperpurp 8y ago
Will check these out, but I was basing my comment on this. https://gavinkellyblog.com/where-has-income-mobility-been-rising-fastest-britain-179e168189be https://gavinkellyblog.com/where-has-income-mobility-been-ri...
- fulafel 8y ago
  So this picks the short term income mobility, the picture is titled "Share of people remaining in the bottom fifth of incomes after four years". It's interesting for sure, but it takes some thinking to interpret in relation to usual intergenerational mobility measure. For example: UK is known for its thin social safety net, so income drops and hikes are hard and steep, and Denmark is known for its short but generous unemployment compensation - again leading to steep short term income changes. (Also, the OECD's own press release on the article's source publication doesn't raise the same points and points at the Nordic countries as good models: https://www.oecd.org/newsroom/action-needed-to-tackle-stalled-social-mobility.htm https://www.oecd.org/newsroom/action-needed-to-tackle-stalle... - maybe economists, or OECD economists in particular, think that inter-generational mobility is a better measure?)