Thoughts

4 comments

1. What does GDP per capita have to do with “future threats”?

   As far as GDP per capita goes, and whatever reason you may have for asking, do not assume it’s a good approximation of average or median personal income (though it might be for some countries depending on the level of taxes and public expenditure). The number you see here is currently about twice the median income.

2. I’m glad my tax payers money goes towards us being high on pretty lists.

   I’m glad they’re using that money to build a fancy office block in Oslo for government workers, even has pretty gardens on top.

   Meanwhile my local hospital, which my samboer works at, the break room on the kids department would put a building site to shame.

   Whilst the cost of living explodes, the majority of politicians get most things completely free. Here in Norway, they’re so bare faced and transparent about it, you can’t even argue with them.

   They get away with murder here due to public apathy.

   My kommune looks like a bombsite, they’re using public money to redesign every single road in the nation apparently, it’s just the same roads with a bus lane, more speed bumps, more round abouts, more lights and it’s still gone a year over schedule and a few million over budget.

   To say I am displeased with the performance of the state we employ is an understatement.

3. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/gdp-is-the-wrong-tool-for-measuring-what-matters/

4. Norway, along with the other countries at the top of the right column, is a good example of why GDP per capita (even after adjustments) sometimes isn’t a good means of how wealthy ordinary people are.

   Norway has a very profitable offshore sector but much of that wealth isn’t directly experienced by the population on a day to day basis (but it does make a big difference to government spending).

   The statistic which better captures ordinary people’s standard of living is household disposable income. There Norway is at a similar level to other Western European countries like the Netherlands or Belgium. This is what people will notice if they visit. Average Norwegians aren’t driving Bentleys, they have a pretty similar lifestyle to that found in other developed countries.

   One difference that the oil money makes is that Norwegian pensions are much more secure. This is worth a lot but it’s not something that is obvious most of the time.

   Source for household income: https://data.oecd.org/hha/household-disposable-income.htm