You might look over at

http://thetexasring.com/catego.....ny-demaio/

for similar articles. It’s too late for Thanksgiving, but Christmas is coming.

always,
tony

I enjoyed the article. Think I will print it up and leave it laying around for my socialist brother-in-law to read at Thanksgiving. The guy really believes we need to cap salaries and force “charitable” contributions (I call ‘em taxes) to make things “fair”.
The anal-retentives of the world need to loosen up….

~C

Many thx. Personally, i found the research I dug up on the Scandinavia countries to be more interesting than my original article.

Given what I found, I find it difficult that anyone would prefer that life style to that which we have in the U.S. Different strokes for different folks–I guess.

Also, in terms of describing their health care system as ‘excellent”, I guess I just don’t understand the criteria that is used.

Apparently Frommer’s estimates of costs were understated.

always,

tony

You may be interested in this:
http://www.brownsvilleherald.c.....taxes.html

August 23, 2009 11:51 AM

My wife and I just returned from a trip to Scandinavia. It is a land of beautiful scenery, castles, palaces and forts, medieval towns, fjords and waterfalls, extensive forests and densely cultivated areas, magnificent architecture and narrow roads.

…when a resident in Denmark has bought the everyday necessities, his tax has increased to some unknown level of more than 76 percent.

Home ownership is hereditary as nobody can afford to buy a new home. Good apartments are very scarce also, taking up to 20 years to find a good one. When a child is born, the parents sign him up for an apartment with the hope that he’ll get one when he becomes an adult.

A retired person who makes $1,000 a month usually stays home at all times, as he can’t afford to go to a restaurant or any other entertainment

Car ownership in Denmark and Sweden is very difficult, to say the least. A small car costs about $30,000 and is first taxed with the VAT of 25 percent. Then the car sales tax is 180 percent on top of that. So the car costs $91,500. Besides, there is another yearly fee, according to its weight, plus insurance. Gasoline is more than $9 a gallon,

They are somehow unhappy about their universal health care system. If a woman develops breast cancer, it will take her from 3 to 6 months to see a specialist; 3 to 6 months more to be operated and 3 to 6 months more to start chemotherapy treatments. The waiting time for a hip replacement depends on your age. The older the person, the more he has to wait and some never make it to the operating room.

In Denmark a soda costs $4 and a beer $6. In Norway the prices is $8 for a soda and $12 for a beer.

MY GAWD, it must be PARADISE,

As I sed, our POOR live better than those folks. I don’t really care what factors you attribute the situation to, I don’t want to live there–do YOU?

In terms of the Guilder, apparently you are correct. I made the mistake of taking the caller’s word for it. On Air America, that’s a mistake. I simply checked out “guilder” and determined that it had been replaced.

“In 2002 the guilder was replaced by the euro. Coins remained exchangeable for euros at branches of the Netherlands Central Bank until 1 January 2007. Banknotes valid at the time of conversion to the euro may still be exchanged there until 1 January 2032.” (from Wikipedia)

If you wish to argue with “Frommers”, permission granted. I did not use them as “standard of living”, but as an indication of “cost of living”–and an indication only. Many locals here in the U.S. don’t pay much rent either, but who wants to live under an overpass.

I don’t trust the UN to rate anything. They are a political organization with an axe to grind. By picking the appropriate metrics, you too can be #1. When they make the comment that we have 15 times the carbon footprint of China, you KNOW where they are coming from–particularly when:

“China has surpassed the United States in carbon emissions to become the world’s largest producer of carbon dioxide, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (NEAA) reported Tuesday” http://outside.away.com/outsid.....21_01.html

On the other hand, they may have a point with the statement:

“The goal is human freedom. And in pursuing capabilities and realizing rights, this freedom is vital. People must be free to exercise their choices and to participate in decision-making that affects their lives.”

We’ve certainly lost a lot of freedoms recently.

always,
tony

In terms of the Guilder, apparently you are correct. I made the mistake of taking the caller’s word for it. On Air America, that’s a mistake. I simply checked out “guilder” and determined that it had been replaced.

If you wish to argue with “Frommers”, permission granted. I did not use them as “standard of living”, but as an indication of “cost of living”–and an indication only.

I don’t trust the UN to rate anything. They are a political organization with an axe to grind. By picking the appropriate metrics, you too can be #1. When they make the comment that we have 15 times the carbon footprint of China, you KNOW where they are coming from–particularly when:

“China has surpassed the United States in carbon emissions to become the world’s largest producer of carbon dioxide, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (NEAA) reported Tuesday” http://outside.away.com/outsid.....21_01.html

On the other hand, they may have a point with the statement:

“The goal is human freedom. And in pursuing capabilities and realizing rights, this freedom is vital. People must be free to exercise their choices and to participate in decision-making that affects their lives.”

We’ve certainly lost a lot of freedoms recently.

always,
tony

Your response was not edited; the spam filter pulls out the long ones, to my frequent dismay, and waits for Gary Gibson to go release the e-mails from captivity, at which point they generally get posted. Tony is a big boy and can answer his own mail but I’m always up to thoughtful discussions and not above swiping my friend’s correspondents, so if you would like to discuss something other than Tony’s delightful reductio ad absurdum article you may write me at ranchLT4@gmail.com. We adore dissent allied with common sense and high principles around here, so inveigh away. I’m sure we’ll both enjoy it. Linda Brady Traynham