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> Most Western democracies are more safe and have a higher standard of living and score better on the Human Freedom Index More safe I'll grant you. As for hig
by jimbokun 2y ago
> Most Western democracies are more safe and have a higher standard of living and score better on the Human Freedom Index
More safe I'll grant you.
As for higher standard of living, US salaries and purchasing power are higher than almost anywhere else, so I would need to see some citations to be persuaded.
How is the Human Freedom Index computed? Is Freedom of Speech included?
- ModernMech 2y ago"purchasing power" and "standard of living" are two very different things. For instance, Americans have plentiful access to cheap televisions, but an ambulance ride costs thousands of dollars, even with good insurance. This leads to a situation where people have the purchasing power to own multiple TVs, but at the same time forego lifesaving medical treatment because the cost of access is too high. Is that a high standard of living, by your standards?
- jimbokun 2y agoIt becomes a question of whether the much higher salaries outweigh the higher costs for ambulance rides. The biggest categories of higher costs vs the rest of the world is education and health care. I’m sure someone has done the analysis of calculating purchasing power including those categories.
- makeitdouble 2y agoThat would be the Humans Development Index perhaps ? The US ranks around 20th, below a bunch of EU and SEA countries. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index
- jimbokun 2y agoYes, that certainly at least looks like a good attempt.