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>a wasteful luxury that only countries with abundant resources can afford. Is there an important sense in which Sweden has more abundant resources than, say, t

>a wasteful luxury that only countries with abundant resources can afford. Is there an important sense in which Sweden has more abundant resources than, say, the US? The US outranks Sweden in both of these tables: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_average_wage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_average_w... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)_per_capita https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)...

lillecarl 4y ago
"Free" education comes to mind, along with greater wealth distribution generally. Averages don't say much.
- ShredKazoo 4y ago
  US handily outranks Sweden on median wage as well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_income https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_income
  - defrost 4y ago
    These are not apples to apples comparisons though, for the very reasons mentioned upthread. A median wage of $32K in Sweden might come with near zero expenses for health, education, additional security, daily transport, etc. A median US wage of $47K might incure additional expenses for health, education, etc. These are post tax "median disposable income per person" figures - and other countries get a great deal more direct benefit per citizen post tax than the US provides.
    - lillecarl 4y ago
      If this is after taxes then the numbers are indeed way different. I effectively pay 55% taxes on my income (some is nicely hidden behind an employers tax so that the population doesn't see how much they're actually paying). The employers tax isn't part of your income, but it's part of what companies pay for your time.
  - lillecarl 4y ago
    I'm not sure it's related to your question of "Is there an important sense in which Sweden has more abundant resources than, say, the US?". The answer is yes, in some cases. Because wealth is distributed so that everyone can afford things like education, healthcare, daycare. If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps that's different in an important sense from if 0 people have a superyacht and everyone gets access to education and food. You asked for an example about, I handed you one, it seems like you accidentally missed the example in a pursuit to prove the American superiority.
    - null_object 4y ago
      > Because wealth is distributed so that everyone can afford things like education, healthcare, daycare. If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps that's different in an important sense from if 0 people have a superyacht and everyone gets access to education and food. From your username I’m going to assume you can read Swedish, in which case I’ll recommend Andreas Cervanka’s latest book on the redistribution of wealth in Sweden in recent decades, in favor of the richest in society: https://www.adlibris.com/se/bok/girig-sverige-sa-blev-folkhemmet-ett-paradis-for-de-superrika-9789127176171 https://www.adlibris.com/se/bok/girig-sverige-sa-blev-folkhe...
      - lillecarl 4y ago
        Thanks for the tip, purchased! Even before reading, yes it's indeed changed over the years, though I'm relatively young so I haven't experienced the shift myself.
      - lillecarl 4y ago
        The book arrived today, I'll get back to you :)
    - ShredKazoo 4y ago
      >If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps In this hypothetical, the median income will be very low. I'm not trying to be combative, I just try to correct misconceptions when I see them. It seems like some people have the misconception that the US is a place of a few superyachts and mostly foodstamps. That's not really the case.

lillecarl 4y ago

"Free" education comes to mind, along with greater wealth distribution generally. Averages don't say much.

ShredKazoo 4y ago
US handily outranks Sweden on median wage as well: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_income https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median_income
- defrost 4y ago
  These are not apples to apples comparisons though, for the very reasons mentioned upthread. A median wage of $32K in Sweden might come with near zero expenses for health, education, additional security, daily transport, etc. A median US wage of $47K might incure additional expenses for health, education, etc. These are post tax "median disposable income per person" figures - and other countries get a great deal more direct benefit per citizen post tax than the US provides.
  - lillecarl 4y ago
    If this is after taxes then the numbers are indeed way different. I effectively pay 55% taxes on my income (some is nicely hidden behind an employers tax so that the population doesn't see how much they're actually paying). The employers tax isn't part of your income, but it's part of what companies pay for your time.
- lillecarl 4y ago
  I'm not sure it's related to your question of "Is there an important sense in which Sweden has more abundant resources than, say, the US?". The answer is yes, in some cases. Because wealth is distributed so that everyone can afford things like education, healthcare, daycare. If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps that's different in an important sense from if 0 people have a superyacht and everyone gets access to education and food. You asked for an example about, I handed you one, it seems like you accidentally missed the example in a pursuit to prove the American superiority.
  - null_object 4y ago
    > Because wealth is distributed so that everyone can afford things like education, healthcare, daycare. If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps that's different in an important sense from if 0 people have a superyacht and everyone gets access to education and food. From your username I’m going to assume you can read Swedish, in which case I’ll recommend Andreas Cervanka’s latest book on the redistribution of wealth in Sweden in recent decades, in favor of the richest in society: https://www.adlibris.com/se/bok/girig-sverige-sa-blev-folkhemmet-ett-paradis-for-de-superrika-9789127176171 https://www.adlibris.com/se/bok/girig-sverige-sa-blev-folkhe...
    - lillecarl 4y ago
      Thanks for the tip, purchased! Even before reading, yes it's indeed changed over the years, though I'm relatively young so I haven't experienced the shift myself.
    - lillecarl 4y ago
      The book arrived today, I'll get back to you :)
  - ShredKazoo 4y ago
    >If 1 out of a 100 has a superyacht and 99 live on foodstamps In this hypothetical, the median income will be very low. I'm not trying to be combative, I just try to correct misconceptions when I see them. It seems like some people have the misconception that the US is a place of a few superyachts and mostly foodstamps. That's not really the case.