Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m in the UK right now. Dental care is poor, really poor. I see 40 year olds with missing front teeth.

Do they not have cheap dentures in the UK?

Dental is not covered by the NHS. You are on your own. There are dental insurance providers that according to Google AI cost between 70 to 300 pounds a year. Maybe because dental is not covered by the NHS people don't see it or insurance for it as a necessity?

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I don’t want to watch that stupid YouTube video — can someone summarize?

A guy doing man in the street interviews in London. One American, the rest British. All expressing surprise as most thought the UK would be in the top ten if it were a state. One women guessed the bottom 25% and said Americans like working more than the British.

The average European is fed anti-American news stories nonstop. Even if it is better here, they will never come to that conclusion.

I had six month maternity leave but European friends don’t believe me. It simply isn’t possible. Same with me going on a long vacation.

I told them my salary (around $300k) when they weirdly asked me, and their response was that healthcare is surely making up the difference. As if a healthy 40 year old woman pays $150k per year in healthcare. They had never even known someone making that much money and these are people with advanced degrees.

Fantastic! So glad to hear lots of American workers now get six months maternity leave.

It's not paid, usually, but it does happen.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.

This. Even low wage earners pay almost 50% in taxes.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t want to watch that stupid YouTube video — can someone summarize?

A guy doing man in the street interviews in London. One American, the rest British. All expressing surprise as most thought the UK would be in the top ten if it were a state. One women guessed the bottom 25% and said Americans like working more than the British.

The average European is fed anti-American news stories nonstop. Even if it is better here, they will never come to that conclusion.

I had six month maternity leave but European friends don’t believe me. It simply isn’t possible. Same with me going on a long vacation.

I told them my salary (around $300k) when they weirdly asked me, and their response was that healthcare is surely making up the difference. As if a healthy 40 year old woman pays $150k per year in healthcare. They had never even known someone making that much money and these are people with advanced degrees.

Fantastic! So glad to hear lots of American workers now get six months maternity leave.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.

This. Even low wage earners pay almost 50% in taxes.

And what do they get for their taxes that Americans have to pay for out of pocket?

Do the math before you make silly claims.

I’m over here right now. It is hard to see how their lives are better.

Anonymous wrote:I’m in the UK right now. Dental care is poor, really poor. I see 40 year olds with missing front teeth.

Do they not have cheap dentures in the UK?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.

This. Even low wage earners pay almost 50% in taxes.

And what do they get for their taxes that Americans have to pay for out of pocket?

Do the math before you make silly claims.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.

This. Even low wage earners pay almost 50% in taxes.

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.

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Anonymous wrote:
You have to look at the wealth gap as well. The distribution of wealth matters.

This is correct. I am not going to look up the stats for EU member states, Canada has a similar issue compared to the U.S.

The top 20% of Americans has an higher average income than the top 20% of Canadians. But the bottom 80% of Canadians has a higher average income than the bottom 80% of Americans. Plus the govt services and work culture are far more generous to Canadian workers than American workers. I think you will find EU countries often have a similar situation.

On the whole it is much hard being in the bottom 80% of Americans than the bottom 80% of the countries shown in the video.

I'm familiar enough with these creative "stats." Whoever came up with this one is playing a game by jumping one demographic that is definitely poor in the US, the poor, with fewer benefits etc compared to most western countries, and excluding the rich to make it seem like the middle class is richer in Canada. It's not quite the truthful picture. Median salary (meaning 50% make more, 50% make less) in the US is $64,000. In Canada it is $46,000. This gives you a more accurate picture.

As for Euros, outside places like Switzerland, most people do have lower incomes compared to American peers. Material wealth is higher in the US. Quality of life is subjective. I love Europe, but most people do live modest lives in small apartments. It's not all historic urban centers but plenty of grimy suburbs and tower blocks.

As the middle class in America is stretched more and more Europe looks better and better. If education, housing, and healthcare are unaffordable to the median income person making $64k, that “extra” 18k in income matters less and less, doesn’t it? Would you rather make 46k with health insurance or 64k without it?

64k without. I'd rather live a shorter life spending my money the way I want to. Health insurance will let me live longer, but why would I want to?

Anonymous wrote:The taxation has killed the economies. Too many socialist at the voting booths. The same trend the US in on.