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The underlying problem seems to be similar all across the West. Aging societies need more money for social security and healthcare of the elderly than the thin
by inglor_cz 2y ago
The underlying problem seems to be similar all across the West.
Aging societies need more money for social security and healthcare of the elderly than the thinning 18-64 cohort can provide, and you can extract only so much taxes out of the working population before they revolt.
Against such massive secular trends, Sweden is as helpless as South Korea or the USA. You could probably expropriate the billionaires once, use the money for several months, then in a year be in the same pickle again.
No one can yet really run an economy when kids aren't born. A lack of humans is a fundamental shortage.
- bsaul 2y agoI thought us had no public pension funds, only private ones ? Same goes for healthcare, etc. I agree with your point when talking about europe, but i had the feeling US was much less dependant on population age to maintain its budget in check. No ?
- inglor_cz 2y agoAFAIK Medicare is already bigger than the military budget when it comes to federal finances. With an upward trend. In general, the US federal finance is less dependent on population age than Europe, but this may be offset by the insane healthcare costs over the pond. European doctors make peanuts compared to American ones.
- ianburrell 2y agoThe US has Social Security which is government pension fund for everyone. Social Security had a trust fund of US securities which it is now liquidating to pay for the retirement of the boomers. This is effectively converting Social Security debt to real debt. US has also Medicare and Medicaid which are healthcare for elderly and poor respectively.