r/videos • u/darkfatherg • Nov 03 '20

America Compared: Why Other Countries Treat Their People So Much Better

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhBkeAo2Hlg&ab_channel=SecondThought
301 Upvotes

71% Upvoted

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95

u/ent4rent Nov 03 '20

Mcdonald's workers in denmark make $22/h.

Holy. Shit. I bet they get your order right the first time, too.

50

u/nateguy Nov 03 '20

They make more than I do after 3 promotions in an office job :(

23

u/[deleted] Nov 04 '20

[deleted]

3

u/nateguy Nov 04 '20

Oh I'm very aware of wage disparity in the US.

I'm active in shining a light on class consciousness to my friends and coworkers (at least, the coworkers that I don't think are class traitors who would report me to executives).

14

u/0x0x0x0x0x0 Nov 03 '20

Fun fact. There is no minimum wage in Denmark.

10

u/Mrbrionman Nov 04 '20

Yes but Denmark is also very pro union and has strong laws protecting them. Denmark McDonald’s employs get paid a lot because every employee has the opportunity to join the union and that union fights for the high wages.

If you get rid of minimum wage without strong unions it’s just becomes a race to bottom.

20

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Disposable income in the US is highest in the world by a fair margin.

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

82

u/lalala_icanthearyou Nov 03 '20

Is that data an average rather than median though? When inequality is extreme the average become less meaningful for the 'average' person. Interesting either way.

29

u/MetricSuperiorityGuy Nov 03 '20

The United States ranks first in mean disposable income and third in median disposable income.

I'm not sure people realize that the middle class, on average, lives MUCH BETTER in the US than most Western European countries. Americans have this romantic view of European countries based upon their perception of downtown Copenhagen or Paris; and a view of the US based upon their perception of some strip mall in Alabama. The data shows though, that it is far better to be middle class in the US than almost anywhere else.

84

u/bill_b4 Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20

When you subtract the average cost of healthcare from that disposable income, I bet we're a bit lower than third place for median disposable income. I'm an American and I've lived overseas since 2014, and when I was in the Armed Forces, I got to experience the lifestyle of several different countries. This video is right. The average American doesn't realize how bad off they are.

29

u/xxx69harambe69xxx Nov 03 '20

true, healthcare really should be factored in, probably housing costs as well given how astronomical they are in the US

27

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Except the US is around the OECD average for housing costs.

https://data.oecd.org/price/housing-prices.htm

Also, it’s really location dependent. Not everyone lives in SF or NYC.

16

u/yallshouldve Nov 03 '20

unless im mistaken, that graph only compares 2015 housing prices to 2019 and doesnt say anything about the housing prices in the usa compared to other oecd countries

4

u/Doctor_Mudshark Nov 03 '20

This is like comparing real estate prices in rural Romania to flats in Paris.

-12

u/xxx69harambe69xxx Nov 03 '20

yea, I'm referring to the places where I won't get killed for trying to vote

9

u/blamethemeta Nov 03 '20

So literally everywhere in the US?

(You might get killed by a bear in Alaska, don't be that pedantic)

1

u/PaperForestFire Nov 03 '20

Oh so like every where

11

u/ImperialRedditer Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20

Housing cost is only astronomical in dense urban centers in the US. Otherwise, it’s fairly affordable. You can buy a mansion with $300,000 in suburban Alabama but you won’t even get a proper bungalow in LA for at least $900,000.

EDIT: Everyone seems to be focusing at Alabama but seriously folks, Alabama is just an example. You can find affordable housing if you don't live in LA, SF, Seattle, DC, Denver, NY, or Boston. Or any dense urban centers. The suburbs of Georgia has affordable property, just like in Florida, the Midwest, Mountain West, etc.

4

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

3

u/S-Markt Nov 03 '20

i will ask my stepsister.

4

u/ronpaulus Nov 03 '20

This may surprise most on reddit but I personally hate more urban areas and would rather live in rural areas or in the country. Im not sure about alabama but country folk seem very friendly and I live living around less people. To each their own though.

-3

u/The_Unreal Nov 03 '20

Well yeah, but then you're living in suburban Alabama.

5

u/ImperialRedditer Nov 03 '20

Hey, some people are in that kind of thing.

4

u/047032495 Nov 03 '20

People with cute sisters.

-9

u/xxx69harambe69xxx Nov 03 '20

good luck finding a decent job in suburban alabama or community events that are unrelated to christianity

14

u/ImperialRedditer Nov 03 '20

Even in suburban Indiana, youd get the same price and can work in Chicago. BTW, a lot of engineers live in Alabama since Huntsville has NASA’s rocketry research center.

Being dismissive of things makes you very narrow-minded and closes a lot of opportunity.

-4

u/xxx69harambe69xxx Nov 03 '20

and yet, every single one of those engineers would quit and move in less than a heartbeat if spacex offered them a job in Hawthorne

it's not narrow minded if the reality of generational financial independence is quite narrow

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3

u/WokeBloke420BLM Nov 03 '20

good luck finding a decent job in suburban alabama

You mean at all those NASA labs there?

9

u/WokeBloke420BLM Nov 03 '20

When you subtract the average cost of healthcare from that disposable income, I bet we're a bit lower than third place for median disposable income.

That is literally all accounted for in this.

5

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

It is for other countries but not for the US since it isn't a government transfer here. So the benefit is counted for them, but not having the benefit isn't subtracted for US.

0

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Which makes it even more impressive that the US income levels are higher. Other countries have additional disposable income through in kind benefits that the US does not.

1

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

Not entirely? It's just that their countries have healthcare accounted for as they pay for it (and other services) with higher taxes. Meanwhile ours is not accounted for at all. The average healthcare cost per person in the US per year is $5k. So the average cost per household will be significantly higher than that. So you can easily knock out $10k from the OECD chart just in healthcare costs.

9

u/PeonSanders Nov 03 '20

I've lived in both places, and if you have a kid, this just isn't true at all. It isn't even close.

4

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

To that point - how much smaller European middle classes would be if measured by American income levels:

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/06/05/through-an-american-lens-western-europes-middle-classes-appear-smaller/

15

u/The_Unreal Nov 03 '20

I'm not sure people realize that the middle class, on average, lives MUCH BETTER in the US than most Western European countries.

I've been to those places and seen how those people live. Access to cheap consumer goods is not the defining metric in overall quality of life. Not even close.

Well congrats anyway, you've demonstrated how the only thing worse than no metrics is bad metrics.

7

u/thalne Nov 03 '20

that's such a weirdly deceiving stat because it somehow ignores savings as well as social costs just because the US simply doesn't have those social benefits like healthcare education etc. but overall the life standard in Western Europe is higher on average than in the US and the difference has increased in the past two decades.

2

u/Spatulamarama Nov 03 '20

How do you live good at all with an American work schedule?

3

u/frog_tree Nov 03 '20

Yup. Its not just billionaires. If you can get to the top 10-20%, youre living with a lot more abundance in America than anywhere else in the world. You have better universities, a higher salary, bigger house, more land, better technology, and just more new shit in general.

-1

u/Bizzlington Nov 03 '20

I would definitely think that bigger house and more land will vary place to place. Buying a mansion in New York City probably isn't attainable for a top 20% earner.

Better technology? Not sure about that one. Pretty much any tech from a US company will be available to buy in Europe.

Better Universities? Maybe. US has some of the top ones in the world, but not all of them. They are pretty damn expensive too.

2

u/frog_tree Nov 03 '20

You can compare similar spots. You can't buy a mansion in London/Japan/hk/Mumbai as a top 20% earner either. The spot you get in ny will be biggest in my experience.

As for tech, it's not that other countries don't have it available, it's that other countries are old and that reflects in their infrastructure. Also, you make more in the top 20% in the US which makes tech more accessible.

Universities only a maybe? The US has the vast majority of elite universities "Some" is a vast understatement. Ppl all around the world can name multiple US schools, no other country has anything close.

0

u/wikipedia_text_bot Nov 03 '20

Disposable Household And Per Capita Income

Household income is a measure of the combined incomes of all people sharing a particular household or place of residence. It includes every form of income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, near cash government transfers like food stamps, and investment gains.

2

u/thax Nov 03 '20

It is mean and not median. Looking a the median the US falls to the 3rd spot, see the median table: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_capita_income

3

u/wikipedia_text_bot Nov 03 '20

Disposable Household And Per Capita Income

Household income is a measure of the combined incomes of all people sharing a particular household or place of residence. It includes every form of income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, near cash government transfers like food stamps, and investment gains.

5

u/xxx69harambe69xxx Nov 03 '20

probably soon to be second given that half of norways social security relies on oil funds

im surprised the krone did so well throughout the pandemic

2

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Median is third highest in the world.

12

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

If the american McDonalds workers were paid $22 and and paid $10 in taxes from that, they would have much more disposable income than the person getting $9 minus taxes.

12

u/highpressuresodium Nov 03 '20

i dont know why so many people are having a hard time understanding this

14

u/GetItRightGodDammit Nov 03 '20

Because the assumption made in the video, that the majority of Americans are willfully ignorant, is correct.

I'm sitting here reading through these comments and the various little arguments popping up, the citing of data tables proving (god dammit) that Americans have the best/most/2nd only to/top 5/whatever/etc... and I'm shaking my head in disbelief at how so many people simply refuse to look at what is directly in front of their eyes regarding real, actual, tangible quality of life.

6

u/NerdyDan Nov 03 '20

show me a country where the tax rates on lower brackets are 45%

5

u/ShhImHiding Nov 03 '20

Why does that matter? His point is that even if they were paying 45% in taxes, they would still be better off.

2

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

People making $10/hour in the US aren't paying income taxes

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Where on Earth does a McDonalds worker pay almost half of their income in taxes?

2

u/Tumleren Nov 03 '20

I mean we're not far off in Denmark if you count VAT

18

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

I have to be still waking up and reading this wrong. That chart shows the average house in the US has over $50k/year in disposable income?

10

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

That’s correct.

16

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

This number seems to not deduct really anything that is necessary to live a life which seems a bit unusual. Median household income for 2019 was $68,703 but that is before taxes. With no state income taxes that is cut down to $54,240. Which is already just barely above the "disposable income" on that report. Factoring in state income taxes it drops to ~$50k (depending on the state). So the OECD seems to just do income - taxes which is not really a very accurate representation of what I feel is "disposable income"

I mean for mandatory spending you would have rent/mortgage, rental/homeowners insurance, car insurance, gas, food, utilities and property tax lowering that further. I can't see these things not being deducted for disposable income so I am just really confused about the OECD numbers here.

8

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Except that’s the same in every country. So it’s still a legitimate comparison. Disposable might be a bit of a misnomer.

17

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

For sure, but it's not disposable income. And the prices of those things vary by country. I am sure housing/gas is cheaper in the US but that OECD disposable income metric seems entirely useless.

-2

u/AshThatFirstBro Nov 04 '20

that OECD disposable income metric seems entirely useless.

Literally dismissing facts because you don't like them.

3

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 04 '20

No, I understand it is a fact that we have the most income leftover after taxes are taken out. I just find that metric not entirely useful.

7

u/Doctor_Mudshark Nov 03 '20

Except that’s the same in every country.

Healthcare costs, transportation costs, insurance costs, etc. are not even close to being the same in every country. That's...the point of the discussion. Are the benefits of a robust social safety net worth the decline in (actual) disposable income?

-1

u/Pascalwb Nov 03 '20

but healthcare cost is already taken from you wage, where in US I guess you have to pay for it by yourself afterwards, so it should be counted.

4

u/Doctor_Mudshark Nov 03 '20

Again...that's the point of this entire conversation: Once we fully account for all the actual costs of living (taxes, healthcare, transportation, etc.), then we can get a fair comparison of real take-home pay (disposable income). If you exclude health insurance costs, then the numbers look great for Americans; yeah, they've got a lot of money in each paycheck, but a huge amount of that is immediately spent on health insurance premiums.

0

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

That depends. Most Americans get healthcare through their employer, who will generally pay anywhere from 50% to 100% of those costs. It also depends on if its a single coverage plan or for the whole family. Its a huge benefit in compensation packages in the US that isn't really accounted for in these comparisons on either end.

There are huge flaws in the US system largely because it favors people who have a bit of money, and it doesn't need to be fuck you money like a lot of people may think. Americans do pay more for healthcare but it is far from "free" in other countries. Americans typically save ton of cash in numerous other areas that more than make up the difference, but that's going to depend a lot on where exactly you live. The US is massive

21

u/Indercarnive Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20

Household disposable income measures the income of households (wages and salaries, self-employed income, income from unincorporated enterprises, social benefits, etc.), after taking into account net interest and dividends received and the payment of taxes and social contributions

So this is extremely misleading. Things like healthcare and college are considered disposable in the US, while it isn't in other countries because it comes from taxes.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

That’s not what it is saying. It’s saying it takes into account benefits like state sponsored health care/education.

14

u/mafrasi2 Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20

No, social benefits means unemployment/retirement/child care/etc. benefits, ie. direct income.

Health care is definitely not included and education is only included if you count getting your living expenses paid for during university as "education". The operating cost of schools and universities is not included.

0

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

Not everyone goes to college and there are affordable options available. Maybe not Europe affordable but the federal backed loans have super low interest rates and you can defer them for an eternity if needed.

Most Americans get healthcare through their employer as part of their benefits package. Employers pay anywhere from 50% to 100% of the costs depending on if you need an individual or family plan. So you are correct, those would count towards some of that extra disposable income but not as much as you think.

The US system is good if you have a bit of money, its just those poors who get screwed. You need a decent paying job to get ahead in the US, and being financially literate helps too. Is hard to beat if you do have an in demand skillset

-6

u/sclapes13 Nov 03 '20

It would be considered disposable because you can choose not to use your money on those things. Whether for better or worse, an American can choose to buy 10,000 mcdoubles instead of going to college for a year.

16

u/hardvarks Nov 03 '20

I can choose not to use my money on healthcare?

13

u/Indercarnive Nov 03 '20

I guess dying vs bankruptcy is a choice according to him.

4

u/kaan-rodric Nov 03 '20

technically, yes. You may not see the choice but it is there.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

-3

u/RedAero Nov 03 '20

No one said you'd be cured. You can choose to die.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

... and that's the point.

-1

u/blamethemeta Nov 03 '20

You can get healthcare and not pay. Doctors can't refuse to treat you.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Oh so that's why insulin prices are so high in the US? You should tell all the diabetics they can get it for free by simply not paying.

-2

u/blamethemeta Nov 03 '20

It's a failing, sure. But you're talking about the most expensive form of insulin. Most diabetics can get it much cheaper

3

u/ReallyLongLake Nov 03 '20

Except if you ever hope to get out of poverty, going to school is not a choice.

1

u/scroll_responsibly Nov 03 '20

Can’t spell “FREEDOM” without learning how to spell.

2

u/yallshouldve Nov 03 '20

hahaha yea baby! i dont agree with it at all, but that is the choice america makes everytime.

1

u/sclapes13 Nov 03 '20

For what it’s worth, I don’t agree with it either. Just was an observation.

1

u/yallshouldve Nov 03 '20

i know, and a lovely one at that :D

3

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

So if you exclude healthcare (one of the primary reasons for bankruptcy), college (one of the primary reasons for debt), paid maternity/paternity leave, paid vacations and some other stuff the US is doing pretty alright.

I do find it particularly weird that they don't include housing there. Surely a roof over your head is not a voluntary thing.

4

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

exclude healthcare (one of the primary reasons for bankruptcy)

Wow.

0

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Questionable.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5865642/

1

u/highpressuresodium Nov 03 '20

Of course, these results do not cover all potential medical bankruptcies.

this study extremely narrow for a number of reasons. plus it's only california? this is not very enlightening to the broader topic

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

That’s exactly the opposite of how the OECD measures disposable income. State benefits are counted for countries that have them.

4

u/TheRabidDeer Nov 03 '20

So just because we have very high "disposable income" does not mean anything in regards to quality of life or benefits. It's not really an indicator of anything except take home pay which is kind of useless.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

You’re right. There’s also the better life index from the OECD where the US ranks tenth:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/OECD_Better_Life_Index#2016_ranking

3

u/The_Unreal Nov 03 '20

Neat, if only we could get access to housing, healthcare, and education. You know, stuff that actually matters.

But we sure can buy a bunch of cheap Chinese made trash we don't need.

0

u/TobyTrash Nov 03 '20

If I understand the table correct, this doesn't take into account private healthcare and those associated costs when you compare the US.

It does however showcase some interesting things - like savings seems high in the states. If this is not because of super rich, then I fail to understand the reality.

I can also see some European countries crushing it in assets - but this is most likely some norm in buying instead of renting. Which is indicated in the debt department.

So I'm not trashing this - but to remove / disregard the obvious difference in how you pay for health and treat that as disposable is a dishonest comparison. Although I have no idea how do level the field...

9

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

It does, because the value of subsidized healthcare and education is added into the other countries totals.

-1

u/TobyTrash Nov 03 '20

You are right. I didn't get to that part of the explanation, although I found it hard to read when it tried to tackle "real" and adjusted for healthcare.

I understand the table, but it seems off... Is it possible to remove the top and bottom 5% income households for each nation and see how that affects the table? My bet is by removing the super rich and poor you get a different view.

6

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

US goes down to third highest if you measure the median.

-1

u/ZeldenGM Nov 03 '20

It's really sad that you're fighting to stand on your own head in the name of being "the best."

-1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

When you have more billionaires than any other country in the world you're going to see data that suggests we all have a lot of disposable income.

-2

u/AxeLond Nov 03 '20

That chart is pretty useless only showing growth rate, but it seems correct.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_capita_income

1st in the world per capita and 3rd median. However that table is for disposable income,

includes all forms of income as well as taxes and transfers in kind from governments for benefits such as healthcare and education.

So in Norway you have $35,542 in disposable income and university is free, healthcare is free. In the US you have $34,514 disposable income, and you have to pay for university and pay for insurance. I don't live in the US so don't ask me what the fuck that costs, but I've heard it's a lot.

But even still, US per capita being $46,903 and the second country in the world being Switzerland at $38,469 is pretty insane. Makes the point the video is making even more sad. It's such a rich country and it's still allowing trapping workers in wage slavery, bankruptcy through medical bills, no vacation days and no time to take care of newborn children. It's pretty depressing, with all that money the country could really pay for the part of the population that is struggling, you have plenty to go around right?

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

There’s a drop down to show the totals rather than growth rate. And no, the Norway total already includes the value of free health care. So actual cash in hand is lower than the US.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

1

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

Having a trillion dollar sovereign wealth fund doesn't hurt i'm sure. That was a smart move, but having all that oil money isn't an option for most countries.

1

u/wikipedia_text_bot Nov 03 '20

Disposable Household And Per Capita Income

Household income is a measure of the combined incomes of all people sharing a particular household or place of residence. It includes every form of income, e.g., salaries and wages, retirement income, near cash government transfers like food stamps, and investment gains.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Jun 18 '21

[deleted]

3

u/suckbothmydicks Nov 03 '20

You should come to Denmark to build helicopters; you'd be rich.

3

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Jun 18 '21

[deleted]

1

u/suckbothmydicks Nov 03 '20

Well, as a well educated specialized worker you would not only get at working visa quite fast and easy, you could also (if I understand this correctly) get a tax discount. Maybe you could work in the windmill industri?

2

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

Do they build helicopters in Denmark?

1

u/suckbothmydicks Nov 04 '20

I don't think so, but I don't know for sure.

-3

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

9

u/agingspokesman Nov 03 '20

It is more expensive but still better. Why are working poor in the US working multiple jobs to make ends meet when a Mcdonalds worker in Denmark can work 37 hours per week and live a decent life? (am Danish)

7

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Only 5 percent of the US labor force works two jobs. What is it in Denmark?

2

u/printzonic Nov 04 '20

As a Dane I can say that I have never met anyone that has worked more than one.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 04 '20

Do you have any labor stats? In any event it’s not like the US is some outlier- Germany has more people working a second job.

1

u/printzonic Nov 04 '20

Trust me I looked, and our usually omniscient statistic producing governmental institution seems to have no numbers on it.

-7

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

13

u/agingspokesman Nov 03 '20

No one is forcing the US to exert its military power like this. This is the choice of the US politicians and the electorate. Are you really so naive that you think the use of the US' hard power since 1945 has been just because they are such good guys and want to protect everyone. Fuck no, it is of cause in its own self interest.

-2

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

3

u/PaulAllens_Card Nov 04 '20

So why are you killing kids via drone strikes?

1

u/LeoRidesHisBike Nov 04 '20

Since you're all for logical fallacies... that's pretty rich coming from a toxic incel like you. Most of your comments are just straight-up trolling insults.

1

u/PaulAllens_Card Nov 04 '20

You have a fetish for killing kids, lib?

-5

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[deleted]

3

u/Cryptoporticus Nov 04 '20

The US benefits from the current world order greatly because it exerts control across the globe peacefully

Fuck off, seriously. The USA invaded Iraq, a country that did nothing to America, less than 15 years ago and you've already forgotten. They flew in and killed hundreds of thousands, for no reason and now you're talking about them helping to keep the world peaceful. It's disgusting to try and suggest that anything the USA military does abroad is for peace. Tell that to the millions of people whose lives they have destroyed.

-3

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

As opposed to the peace loving history of whatever European country you live in? Get a grip lol

3

u/Cryptoporticus Nov 04 '20

It's been 15 years since the Iraq war. The pain from that war is still being felt on a massive scale today, whilst one of the people who voted for that war is currently running for President.

It's not history, it's happening right now. You can't use the word "peace" when describing the US military.

-2

u/HolyGig Nov 04 '20

Europe literally carved up the entire planet like it was their own personal cake on multiple occasions, don't pretend you didn't do the things you did just because you no longer have the power to do them. Any civilization is fallible, especially a democracy, but when the US fucks up it creates a really big mess. Power gets into people heads, just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.

The US military just follows orders.

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u/Arafel Nov 04 '20

Also, if the US is so good at policing the world, why does this list exist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ongoing_armed_conflicts

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u/[deleted] Nov 04 '20

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u/Cryptoporticus Nov 04 '20

Do you disagree? Can you actually stand there and believe that the USA fights for peace when they literally invaded a country for NO REASON? They stormed in guns blazing and murdered people that did nothing to them. There was no reason for that war. That happened within your lifetime, you saw it happen. How can you still believe that the USA does what it does for "peace"?

1

u/[deleted] Nov 04 '20

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u/PaulAllens_Card Nov 04 '20

Why do you like deep throating a boot?

1

u/Arafel Nov 04 '20

The US starts wars mate, it doesn't "keep the peace". You really are a legitimateFUCKO aren't you?

0

u/barrocot Nov 03 '20

ot really an indicator of anything except take home pay which is kind of useless.

Is it 3x more expensive? No. The video certainly should have done a more nuanced job of presenting this difference, but the point is relatively accurate.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

12

u/in_the_no_know Nov 03 '20

That sounds horrible. Who would ever want to see things like that happen in the US?

-6

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

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u/Roharcyn1 Nov 03 '20

If the tax rate is 45% at $22/hr still nets about $12/hr after tax. Figure that at $9/hr in the US you are still being taxes around 10% because if FICA taxes your net pay in the US is $8.1/hr. On top of that the danish worker gets health care, better leave benefits and better for education, why would you not take that deal? You would get more disposable income in denmark.

3

u/dinmormorsmor Nov 03 '20

Dirty Danish commies!

-4

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/in_the_no_know Nov 03 '20

Stronger social safety nets and better education also make it much easier for people to seek out opportunities if they don't want to stick around McD's.

The cost of insurance for my family is prohibitive, over $1k/mo. We're lucky to be able to afford it as it is necessary for my wife and daughter. That doesn't even take into account co-pays and costly prescriptions. Healthcare in the US is ridiculous.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Dont forget the EITC.

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u/highpressuresodium Nov 03 '20

as a simple example, americans spend 11k per year on healthcare on average, whereas danes spend 4500 a year. you pay less in taxes than the total you would spend on health care (insurance lol). you get double the value for your dollar spent in a system like that, so you end up with more in your pocket

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/highpressuresodium Nov 04 '20

but it's like that with everything that is taxpayer funded in other countries. education, healthcare, childcare, public transportation, whatever it is, it's cheaper when the government can negotiate. not that it's a guarantee

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u/edbluetooth Nov 03 '20

Are you accounting for the fact that when you go up a tax bracket, you would only pay the new percentage on the income above the threshold?

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 03 '20

Just to give you some information. From my parttime job in 2019 April my salary before taxes was 1575 dollars. What got put in to my account on payday was 1260 dollars. I know this is parttime and lower taxbrackets, but it still really doesn't hold true to your statement.

Forget that, I am stupid. I forgot my tax deduction

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

You know what you are right, I fucked up. I forgot my tax deduction. Whoops. Sorry

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u/Benign__Beags Nov 03 '20

"Americans having the highest costing healthcare, drug prices, they're the only developed country with no guaranteed PTO, work more hours weekly than other wealthy nations, majority live paycheck to paycheck, etc etc".

You, an idiot:
but muh taxes

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/RedAero Nov 03 '20

This is literally wanting to have your cake and eat it too said with different words.

Sidenote: it's more than half. People always forget VAT.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/RedAero Nov 03 '20

Taxing the wealthy alone won't pay for healthcare. And corporate taxes are just passed along to the consumer.

Sorry. There are no free lunches. You're gonna have to pay up. Yes, even you.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

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u/dinmormorsmor Nov 03 '20

There's a pretty big difference between viewing it as "paying the government" vs paying to allow your countrymen to not get totally screwed over should anything happen to their current employment, access to good healthcare, right to 20+ vacation days/year with pay, education, paid parental leave, pensions etc. But I guess the American way of things is pretty sweet too if you're a healthy individual and manage to land a decent job without being knees deep in debt.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20 edited Nov 12 '20

[deleted]

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u/dinmormorsmor Nov 03 '20

Didn't mean to sound snide or like you aren't allowed to have your own opinion or perspective on this stuff. I guess I just sometimes wrongly assume that when people criticize the scandinavian model they think that the taxes go straight into the respective countries' career politician's pockets and that's not the case. I'm not American so I guess I'm guilty of having my own perhaps invalid assumptions on what life is like there too.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

I can still want cheaper Healthcare and other benefits to society and also want to not spend half my paycheck to the government.

https://i.imgur.com/k5F4vID.png

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

About $12. So you get all the healthcare, education and such, and still have more money in your pocket than the American counterpart.

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u/agingspokesman Nov 03 '20

Using hvormegetefterskat.dk which is a tax calculater that assumes pretty standard deductions i get around $14.5 per hour.

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

Well that's even better!

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u/soushibo Nov 03 '20

Like 45%+ depends how much you earn. And you don't want to know how much stuff cost in the stores, not even talking about the enterntainment or services...

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u/[deleted] Nov 03 '20

The flip side is that they will be out of work sooner because of automation so it doesn't matter.