World is happier, but baby boomers bummed out?


		World is happier, but baby boomers bummed out? (Top Posts - Social/Legal - 063008) - - - June 30, 2008 Study: World Gets Happier http://www.livescience.com/health/080630-world-happiness.html - - - Excerpts: ... happiness has been on the rise around the world in recent years, a new survey finds. The upbeat outlook is attributed to o economic growth in previously poor countries, o democratization of others, and o rising social tolerance for women and minority groups. ... Denmark is the happiest nation and Zimbabwe the most glum, he found. ... The United States ranks 16th. ... Researchers have asked the same two questions over the years: "Taking all things together, would you say you are very happy, rather happy, not very happy, not at all happy?" And, "All things considered, how satisfied are you with your life as a whole these days?" ... "The results clearly show that the happiest societies are those that allow people the freedom to choose how to live their lives," Inglehart said. A survey released last week found one reason Amer- ica doesn't top the list: Baby Boomers are generally miserable compared to other generations. ... - - - Gloom and Doom Rule the Baby Boom By LiveScience Staff posted: 25 June 2008 05:26 pm ET http://www.livescience.com/health/080625-baby-boomers.html - - - Excerpts: Boomers are tired, overworked, strapped, bummed out and don't expect to get a break. More than young people or seniors, Baby Boomers (aged 44 to 62 now) are gloomy about their lives and the prospects for improvement, a new survey finds. The Pew Research Center Social and Demographic Trends survey, released today, finds 55 percent of Boomers think their income won't keep up with the cost of living, compared to 44 percent and 43 percent respectively for younger and older adults. Boomers also say it's harder to get ahead now than it was 10 years ago. The reality may be a bit differ- ent than impressions, however. The Boomers were found to be less strained financially then younger adults and less likely to have been laid off in the past year. But they were also less likely than younger adults to have gotten a raise. Asked to rate their present life on a scale of zero to 10, Boomers came in with an average rating of 6.2. Those over 62 averaged out at 6.7, and adults aged 18 to 41 came in at 6.5. Just 26 percent of the Boomers expect to live very comfortably in retirement, compared to 37 percent for younger adults and 33 percent for older adults. ... The results mirror a similar survey released in April that also found Boomers to be the most miserable group and less happy than their age group in decades past. ... - - - end excerpts - - - In reply to someone who wrote: > That's not surprising at all. > I have been there and everything seems to work. > I met a Danish couple on the subway (they asked me for > directions) and while we were riding, they told me they > get six weeks of vacation a year (the government mandates > five but companies, in order to compete, offer more), their > sons were in college studying for free (when they get out > they don't have massive student loans to contend with) and > they don't have to worry about retirement or health care. > They live longer than we do and their standard of living is > comparable. > And by the way, Denmark is a democracy with vast personal > freedom. Some more details regarding the aspect of the Declaration of Independence which refers to happiness ... "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Cre- ator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Wonder if Denmark can serve as the ideal model by which the U.S. could work to maximize the pursuit of happiness: - - - July 28, 2006 Denmark 'happiest place on earth' http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5224306.stm - - - Excerpt: ... A nation's level of happiness was most closely associated with health levels. Prosperity and education were the next strongest determinants of national happiness. ... - - - Comments: Needless to say, maximizing the prosperity and education and health of the elite, something the Bushies have excelled at in the past 8 years, does nothing to satisfy the prosperity and education and health needs of the vast majority in the U.S., most of whom which have stumbled amidst mas- sive layoffs, inflated prices, shifting of massive numbers of jobs (both blue collar -and- white collar) overseas, and health plans designed to screw most working Americans. - - - January 8, 2007 Denmark: The Happiest Place on Earth http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=4086092&page=1 - - - Excerpts: ... The happiest people in the world pay some of the highest taxes in the world -- between 50 percent and 70 percent of their incomes. In exchange, the government covers all health care and education, and spends more on children and the elderly than any country in the world per capita. With just 5.5 million people, the system is effi- cient, and people feel "tryghed" -- the Danish word for "tucked in" -- like a snug child. Those high taxes have another effect. Since a banker can end up taking home as much money as an artist, people don't chose careers based on income or status. "They have this thing called 'Jante-lov,' which essentially says, 'You're no better then anybody else,'" said Buettner. "A gar- bage man can live in a middle-class neighbor- hood and hold his head high." Indeed, garbage man Jan Dion says he's an eight out of 10 in terms of happiness. He said he doesn't mind collecting garbage for a living, because he works just five hours in the morning and then can spend the rest of the day at home with family or coaching his daughter's handball team. Dion says no one judges his choice of career, and he actually loves what he does because he has many friends along his route. It makes him happy when he sees the children who wave to him and the old ladies who bring him cups of coffee. ... Hanging out with other Danes just may be their happiness secret. Ninety-two percent of Danes belong to some kind of social club, dancing, singing, even practicing laughing with other Danes. Get a few people together who enjoy model train building, for example, and the gov- ernment will pay for it. In Denmark, even friend- ship is subsidized. And Denmark is what is called a "post consum- erist" society. People have nice things, but shop- ping and consuming is not a top priority. Even the advertising is often understated. Along with less emphasis on "stuff," and a strong social fabric, Danes also display an amazing level of trust in each other, and their government. A Uni- versity of Cambridge happiness study found that both kinds of trust were higher in happier places. In Denmark, you can see trust in action all around you. Vegetable stands run on the honor system, mothers leave babies unattended in strollers out- side cafés, and most bicycles are left unlocked. And perhaps the bicycle is the best symbol of Danish happiness. Danes can all afford cars, but they choose bikes, simple, economical, nonpollut- ing machines that show no status and help keep people fit. - - - Comments: It appears that the pursuit of happiness in Den- mark is purchased with high taxation and with the most marked consequence being widespread happiness. Would that we in America stop buy- ing into the myth that lusting for inequality (i.e., trying to step on others in an effort to become rich, trying to join the tiny group of Americans who swim in pools of money) makes one happy, when instead, it results in the overwhelming majority being, well, reference the report on baby boomers. - - - April 17, 2007 What can the Danes teach us about happiness? http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6563639.stm - - - Excerpts: ... Something is markedly unrotten in the state of Denmark. Asked to rate both their happiness and long-term life satisfaction, Danish people trounce their European cousins. Many in Denmark put this regularly-surveyed contentedness down to a dynamic economy and a pleasant work-life balance, with people leaving the office on time, jumping on effective public transport and heading off to pick up their delight- ful children from a shiny, well-run kindergarten. ... "Denmark is very consumer-oriented and very family-oriented. People are sure to leave work at 4.30pm. They work their eight hours and go home. Pressure to work overtime doesn't exist." Denmark has a 37-hour week. Parents get 52 weeks of maternity/paternity leave to be shared between them - 24 weeks is usually at full pay, with the rest often at as much as 90% pay. Much of it can be spread over the first nine years of the child's life. Childcare is subsidised with no parent being asked to pay more than 25% of the cost. ... "We have high taxes but we have generous un- employment benefits, a lot of life-long learning. We feel secure and we feel that we have oppor- tunities. "We have a lot of faith in government as an insti- tution. The authorities are normally competent, uncorrupt and approachable." ... - - - In response to someone who wrote: > [...] they are heavily taxed, they are happy, > ergo we will be happy if we are heavily taxed. > In fact, I can guarantee you this will make > Americans extremely UNHAPPY. > Dutch model does not fit the United States > in the least. Too different. You neglected to pay much attention to the consequences of heavy taxation in Denmark, notably o A much more egalitarian society o A much freer society, with people encouraged to choose the career that makes them happy, based on personal interests rather than lever- aging their lives off of slavery to businesses whose primary goal is to maximize profit (and reinforce economic disparity) regardless of the adverse impact to individual lives, freedom, and liberty o A much more pro-human and pro- family society o Much less crime o Much less economic disparity o Much more happiness o Far less stress o Healthier - - - Surely, most can see the advantages of the Denmark model. Unfortunately, most in America have been propagandized (thus far) into believing that the American way (rich get richer, middle class gets screwed, but at least they have a theoretical chance at getting rich [if they're not laid off, if their jobs aren't shipped overseas, if their health benefits aren't cut/overpriced/insufficient], even though the vast majority don't/won't, and the overwhelming majority of the poor get the shaft) is best. - - -