Us-eu GDP gap and life expectancy gap are widening so rapidly in opposite directions

[Anonymous]

We brought in some staff from France a few years back and all of them complained about how there was no hope for people under 30. It was sad. They convinced me to visit but not covet their way of life.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

And yet US cities never rank highly in the Economist Intelligence Unit's global liveability index.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2022/08/17/the-us-is-not-one-of-the-worlds-best-places-to-live-heres-why/?sh=79c6b5e0392d

Who wants to live in a crappy crime ridden US city? Many many many suburbs and smaller cities with higher quality of life, lower crime, and better schools than major US cities.

Have fun with your European prices and $40k salaries. At least you got your vacation time for it, lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We brought in some staff from France a few years back and all of them complained about how there was no hope for people under 30. It was sad. They convinced me to visit but not covet their way of life.

op here, this is also true I’m not saying France is the best

And I think that’s what the Wharton Economist is getting at

This divergenc is not sustainable or beneficial for the median person in either country

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

And yet US cities never rank highly in the Economist Intelligence Unit's global liveability index.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2022/08/17/the-us-is-not-one-of-the-worlds-best-places-to-live-heres-why/?sh=79c6b5e0392d

Who wants to live in a crappy crime ridden US city? Many many many suburbs and smaller cities with higher quality of life, lower crime, and better schools than major US cities.

Have fun with your European prices and $40k salaries. At least you got your vacation time for it, lol. [/quote

Why are some so determined to deny that people might like living in a European country more than in the US? I've lived on four continents and certainly loved my time in London more than here. Of course, the UK has changed and it was in a different phase of life so there's that to take into account. No doubt somebody here will now be determined to prove that I am 100% wrong, maybe using a random anecdote about a couple of French colleagues who had a moan about their life back home or a random cousin who bemoaned Italian bureaucracy. DCUM world is the antithesis of 'live and let live'. It's the place where people insist that other people are wrong in their perception of the world.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

And yet US cities never rank highly in the Economist Intelligence Unit's global liveability index.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurabegleybloom/2022/08/17/the-us-is-not-one-of-the-worlds-best-places-to-live-heres-why/?sh=79c6b5e0392d

Who wants to live in a crappy crime ridden US city? Many many many suburbs and smaller cities with higher quality of life, lower crime, and better schools than major US cities.

Have fun with your European prices and $40k salaries. At least you got your vacation time for it, lol. [/quote

Why are some so determined to deny that people might like living in a European country more than in the US? I've lived on four continents and certainly loved my time in London more than here. Of course, the UK has changed and it was in a different phase of life so there's that to take into account. No doubt somebody here will now be determined to prove that I am 100% wrong, maybe using a random anecdote about a couple of French colleagues who had a moan about their life back home or a random cousin who bemoaned Italian bureaucracy. DCUM world is the antithesis of 'live and let live'. It's the place where people insist that other people are wrong in their perception of the world.

Then go move to London for crappy salary. No one is stopping you if youike it so much.

Moaning?

London is virtually unaffordbale for nearly all normal people now. So much paradise:

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/12/31/uk/cladding-cost-of-living-crisis-grenfell-cmd-gbr-intl/index.html

But at least you go your swanky cafes in a country with trash salaries and double digit inflation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

+1 I mean.. I guess some people live to work, and others work to live.

I enjoy not working. I've had the past 10 days off. We didn't go anywhere. It was just nice to chill out, cook at home with the family and watch movies, and not feel hurried all the time.

DH and I have been taking at least 5 weeks of vacation in total every year for the past many many years. It's awesome. I love it.

^^PP is the type who will work till they die. That's fine if that is what you want for your life. But, IMO, that's not really living. That's working.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We brought in some staff from France a few years back and all of them complained about how there was no hope for people under 30. It was sad. They convinced me to visit but not covet their way of life.

The future of France is as a luxury tourist destination for wealthy Asians. It will be like a very, very large resort island.

Young should be getting into the leisure trade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

This nonsense was the argument 20 years ago and I've never seen anything concrete to justify it before or since. The US maternal mortality rate is atrocious, and even worse for black women.

The truth is that the US is a failing state in terms of first world infrastructure, health care, education, transportation, etc. There are a lot of different reasons why people don't want to accept that, but it's true.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I have friends who make 1-3 million a year in biglaw, finance, running various businesses etc but I’m not jealous of any of them .

Meanwhile I know people making 10-20% that amount in France, NL, and Switzerland and they have jealousy inducing lives

I don’t know if all the work and money made by my friends in dc/nyc translate into real QoL gains.

Europe has a lot of problems but there is a huge disconnect in the us

We have winners and losers here in the US, that's for sure. I figure as long as me and mine can stay on the right side of that divide, I'm fine with being in the USA. It's more vibrant and dynamic if you ask me, but it's definitely not fo everyone.

As a slight aside, do you remember the article awhile back about the large number of unemployed women in the Netherlands? And a commission there looked into it because they assumed it was due to discrimination, but they wound up concluding that, nope, huge numbers of women didn't want to work and were perfectly happy not working.

Yep! I remember that. Dutch women are some of the laziest in the developed world. Huge part-time culture.

But they are also taller, thinner, healthier than American women so I don’t think we are the ones #winning

It's a valid point, and thanks for commenting. So why are American women so delusional that they think they have to break through the glass ceiling and have it all, etc.? Maybe it's because we are just Americans and that's the way we are? So really you have to ask ... at the end of your days what will you reflect upon -- your achievements or how you were taller, thinner and healthier? I don't know, it's certainly worth thinking about.

Because in America you are wholly dependent on a man's ability to provide for you if you don't work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We brought in some staff from France a few years back and all of them complained about how there was no hope for people under 30. It was sad. They convinced me to visit but not covet their way of life.

The French have been saying that since the '90's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

Lol.

My European friends might live in somewhat smaller homes than most Americans (1800-2000 sq ft vs 2500) but you know what those lazy bums have that most Americans don’t? High quality building materials and fixtures. Real masonry. Solid walls and doors, not hollow. High end, better efficiency windows, not the crappy kind most American homes are built with. Sturdy, long-lasting door handles and locks that would only be found in high end custom built American home. Their bathrooms and kitchens have only high quality materials, not cheap plastic parts or low grade sinks and countertops. Their homes are built to last and are energy efficient. This is true even of friends who live in condos.

And they still get 6-8 weeks off a year. Plus they never worry about a medical crisis driving them to bankruptcy.

Poor lazy bums!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

Lol.

My European friends might live in somewhat smaller homes than most Americans (1800-2000 sq ft vs 2500) but you know what those lazy bums have that most Americans don’t? High quality building materials and fixtures. Real masonry. Solid walls and doors, not hollow. High end, better efficiency windows, not the crappy kind most American homes are built with. Sturdy, long-lasting door handles and locks that would only be found in high end custom built American home. Their bathrooms and kitchens have only high quality materials, not cheap plastic parts or low grade sinks and countertops. Their homes are built to last and are energy efficient. This is true even of friends who live in condos.

And they still get 6-8 weeks off a year. Plus they never worry about a medical crisis driving them to bankruptcy.

Poor lazy bums!

This is actually backwards. American houses have excellent insulation and people live through the winter. In Europe, houses lack insulation and people die every winter from cold.

http://globalag.igc.org/health/world/cold.htm

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/cold-weather-uk-winter-deaths-europe-polar-vortex-a8224276.html

https://jech.bmj.com/content/57/10/784

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

This nonsense was the argument 20 years ago and I've never seen anything concrete to justify it before or since. The US maternal mortality rate is atrocious, and even worse for black women.

The truth is that the US is a failing state in terms of first world infrastructure, health care, education, transportation, etc. There are a lot of different reasons why people don't want to accept that, but it's true.

I have lived in the US and three European countries. And I can honestly say that healthcare in the US is far superior.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

This nonsense was the argument 20 years ago and I've never seen anything concrete to justify it before or since. The US maternal mortality rate is atrocious, and even worse for black women.

The truth is that the US is a failing state in terms of first world infrastructure, health care, education, transportation, etc. There are a lot of different reasons why people don't want to accept that, but it's true.

I have lived in the US and three European countries. And I can honestly say that healthcare in the US is far superior.

... if you can afford it, which many can't.. millions, in fact.. almost 10% of the US population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Europe is poor. So many Americans are woefully unaware of how extremely low salaries are in Europe. Life expectancy is low in the US, but ours is also dragged down because the US deals with a lot more complicated births that'd be terminated in Europe. When kids die below 2 years old, it drags down the mean life expectancy by a lot.

Do you get 6-8 weeks vacation a year? How many of your friends and relatives do?

I currently have 400+ hours of vacation.

Why in the hell would I want 8 weeks vacation? That's why Europeans are poor. Their productivity is trash, they barely invent anything anymore, and life for them is about coasting by with your bare essentials met. Hey, if mediocrity appeals to you, move to Europe.

All of the vacation and time off in Europe is so overrated. The trade off are often salaries that are nearly half of what you'd get paid in the US. I don't want or need 8 weeks off. Pay me more money please, thanks.

You know you can’t take it with you, right? Everyone dies. No one brings their bank account to the afterworld.

This is how bums, non-inventors, and lazy people think. Living in the UK, for example, making $50k salary that you'd easily get paid $100k for in the US sucks. People in Europe constantly scrape by because of extremely low salaries, stagnant exonomies, and incomes thst just never grow. It's almost as if you missed the yellow vest protests in France. Buy hey, at least you got 8 weeks of vacation while you're poor.

Lol.

My European friends might live in somewhat smaller homes than most Americans (1800-2000 sq ft vs 2500) but you know what those lazy bums have that most Americans don’t? High quality building materials and fixtures. Real masonry. Solid walls and doors, not hollow. High end, better efficiency windows, not the crappy kind most American homes are built with. Sturdy, long-lasting door handles and locks that would only be found in high end custom built American home. Their bathrooms and kitchens have only high quality materials, not cheap plastic parts or low grade sinks and countertops. Their homes are built to last and are energy efficient. This is true even of friends who live in condos.

And they still get 6-8 weeks off a year. Plus they never worry about a medical crisis driving them to bankruptcy.

Poor lazy bums!

What good is a high quality building when you have a family of 4 living in a 600 sqft 2 bedroom 1 bath apartment. And driving an 80 hp Renault hatchback.