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Marini -> RE: Krugman on the Obama/Ryan proposals (4/17/2011 7:27:37 PM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Edwynn
Look up the econ stats on Sweden, Denmark, Germany, etc. for countries living in what you consider Bizzaro world.
The Swedish and Danish governments take 48% of aggregate output in revenue. Shocking, no? But more shocking news than that, residents of those countries pay far far less for health care than those in the US, whoever writes the check. They consistently have a positive current account balance, a positive private net savings figure, oftentimes a national budget surplus, have a far lower incarceration rate and much lower infant mortality rate than the third-world-level US, a much higher GINI index than the US, more often if not every year lower inflation and lower unemployment, actually know how to educate theirs kids, not a small consideration to that being much better parental leave laws, the workers are better paid and work a couple fewer hours per week, aside from more vacation time ...
Yes, Yes, Yes to everything Edwynn said!
We are supposed to do with much LESS, pay MORE, and still no health care?
WTF????
I could keep going.
Oh, except to say that Sweden ranks only a few slots behind the US and UK in the "ease of doing business" ratings, otherwise having the highest rating in Europe. And they somehow still have millionaires and even a few billionaires, if a few hundred less than the US. Contrary to popular opinion, those countries did not outlaw the ability to get rich in order to look out for their own people. They just insisted that they do it by their own talents, for something other than writing the country's laws to steal more tax money.
The difference is not that they have higher tax rates (OK, well actually part of it is), it's that they know how to collect taxes in the first place, and do not have corporations writing regulatory and tax laws, both of which the US is incapable of preventing. Their corporate tax rates are lower because they actually collect what the law says is to be collected, unlike with the farce in the US. Greece and Portugal etc. have intractable tax laws with loopholes galore. Which of all these does the US represent more?
Further, which direction do some people keep arguing that we should be moving towards? USPIGS here we come, were it up to them.
We've been on the deregulation and more tax money to corporations rail for 30 years now. And after being 8 million jobs in the hole and many thousands of foreclosed homes and shuttered schools, some fools are trying to tell us that we need more of the same.
Yes, yes, yes!Screw von Mises. Half of Europe kicks his butt on a daily basis, year after year.
Austria included.
Nice post Edwynn
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