7 ms·

Wow, that just goes to show how ignorant Milton Friedman is...

baddox 12y ago
What about that statement demonstrates ignorance?
adventured 12y ago
The data mostly backs up Friedman's quip. So where's the ignorance exactly? http://www.cato.org/blog/swedens-big-welfare-state-superior-americas-medium-welfare-state-then-why-do-swedes-america http://www.cato.org/blog/swedens-big-welfare-state-superior-... "The 4.4 million or so Americans with Swedish origins are considerably richer than average Americans, as are other immigrant groups from Scandinavia. If Americans with Swedish ancestry were to form their own country, their per capita GDP would be $56,900, more than $10,000 above the income of the average American. This is also far above Swedish GDP per capita, at $36,600. Swedes living in the USA are thus approximately 53 per cent more wealthy than Swedes (excluding immigrants) in their native country (OECD, 2009; US Census database). It should be noted that those Swedes who migrated to the USA, predominately in the nineteenth century, were anything but the elite. Rather, it was often those escaping poverty and famine. …A Scandinavian economist once said to Milton Friedman, ‘In Scandinavia, we have no poverty’. Milton Friedman replied, ‘That’s interesting, because in America, among Scandinavians, we have no poverty, either’. Indeed, the poverty rate for Americans with Swedish ancestry is only 6.7 per cent: half the US average (US Census)."
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- vacri 12y ago
  6.7% of people in poverty is not "no poverty".
  - _delirium 12y ago
    Especially considering the conditions that qualify as "no poverty" by the U.S.'s rather low standard. If you make $20k and live in a trailer park in Idaho with no medical coverage, you're not in poverty according to the US, but your quality of life is lower than that of a rural Swede. Sweden also has considerable inequality, but the lower bound on basic infrastructure is better. If you live in a rural area in the far north and make barely any money, you still generally have solid permanent housing and access to high-quality medical care (this wasn't always the case, but has mostly been achieved as a result of concerted effort). You may have nearly no light in the winter, but there's not much the state can do about the latitude.
    - thaumasiotes 12y ago
      > You may have nearly no light in the winter, but there's not much the state can do about the latitude Electricity? This is one of the first places I'd look for technology to improve things.
      - zaroth 12y ago
        Parent meant no sunlight, not no electricity!
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- zurn 12y ago
  That's picking data, switching to swedes from scandinavians generally.

What about that statement demonstrates ignorance?

The data mostly backs up Friedman's quip. So where's the ignorance exactly? http://www.cato.org/blog/swedens-big-welfare-state-superior-americas-medium-welfare-state-then-why-do-swedes-america http://www.cato.org/blog/swedens-big-welfare-state-superior-... "The 4.4 million or so Americans with Swedish origins are considerably richer than average Americans, as are other immigrant groups from Scandinavia. If Americans with Swedish ancestry were to form their own country, their per capita GDP would be $56,900, more than $10,000 above the income of the average American. This is also far above Swedish GDP per capita, at $36,600. Swedes living in the USA are thus approximately 53 per cent more wealthy than Swedes (excluding immigrants) in their native country (OECD, 2009; US Census database). It should be noted that those Swedes who migrated to the USA, predominately in the nineteenth century, were anything but the elite. Rather, it was often those escaping poverty and famine. …A Scandinavian economist once said to Milton Friedman, ‘In Scandinavia, we have no poverty’. Milton Friedman replied, ‘That’s interesting, because in America, among Scandinavians, we have no poverty, either’. Indeed, the poverty rate for Americans with Swedish ancestry is only 6.7 per cent: half the US average (US Census)."

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vacri 12y ago
6.7% of people in poverty is not "no poverty".
- _delirium 12y ago
  Especially considering the conditions that qualify as "no poverty" by the U.S.'s rather low standard. If you make $20k and live in a trailer park in Idaho with no medical coverage, you're not in poverty according to the US, but your quality of life is lower than that of a rural Swede. Sweden also has considerable inequality, but the lower bound on basic infrastructure is better. If you live in a rural area in the far north and make barely any money, you still generally have solid permanent housing and access to high-quality medical care (this wasn't always the case, but has mostly been achieved as a result of concerted effort). You may have nearly no light in the winter, but there's not much the state can do about the latitude.
  - thaumasiotes 12y ago
    > You may have nearly no light in the winter, but there's not much the state can do about the latitude Electricity? This is one of the first places I'd look for technology to improve things.
    - zaroth 12y ago
      Parent meant no sunlight, not no electricity!
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zurn 12y ago
That's picking data, switching to swedes from scandinavians generally.