3 ms·
Every salary in the US should be prefaced with "this sounds really high, but to compensate if anything goes wrong you will literally live in the streets forever
by krageon 7y ago
Every salary in the US should be prefaced with "this sounds really high, but to compensate if anything goes wrong you will literally live in the streets forever". Thus, comparing a US salary to another country's salary should be taken with a mountain of salt: In most other countries where you'd want to live the height of the salary is modulated by the necessity of providing the less fortunate a liveable existence, including potentially you.
- tptacek 7y agoThis is one of the special-est pleadings I've ever seen on HN. You might has well have said the privilege of living in the shadow of Big Ben compensates UK nurses. We are comparing financial transactions.
- dnadler 7y agoThe point (not very well communicated) is that the comparison is pre-tax when it should be post-tax.
- tptacek 7y agoDoesn't that make the difference even more stark?
- dnadler 7y agoYeah, I guess I should have said "post-tax and post-insurance/wellfare parity". Though you're right, the US salary would have lower taxes and the difference would look larger. I suppose the GP was weighting tail events quite heavily. Comparing the distribution of financial outcomes accross countries, given a certain salary would be very interesting.