All children are impoverished.

As are the vast majority of young adults.

"Capitalist Social Democracies spend a lot in taxes... until your realize all the yuge list of benefits for THEIR PEOPLE."

Yeah. Taxes on median household income earnings in western europe would be somewhere around double of that of the same in the US. And that's before you factor in the value-added tax, which for a Flahridah gringo like yourself is best viewed as a ~20%ish sales tax.

Are you suggesting that the US follow that tried, proven, and often repeated model?

"Most even have less property taxes than most Americans..."

In Germany, on a house valued at $500 EURO, property tax is around $200-$400 dollars. Per year.

You do pay 10% of the value of the house upfront at the time of purchase though.

"Would Boaz rather poor people were miserable? Is it making Boaz miserable that poor people are being made happier?"

To assess the actual value, you would need to also take into account the dissatisfaction of those whose money was taken to give to the poor.

In this case, the money was donated by a handful of wealthy supporters. We can rationally assume that they gained more satisfaction from donating the money than they would have from spending it themselves, so in this case there is no dissatisfaction.

But if it were government policy where money would be taken from higher income earners and given to the poor, particularly in the amounts listed, the dissatisfaction (or unhappiness) by those whose money was taken may outweigh, or at least negate the happiness of those to whom the money was given.

"Some countries even enshrine this in their tax systems and their mores. Scandinavian countries are a great example."

"In 2019 a single parent of two children earning two-thirds of average pay (in the US) faced total net labour taxes of only 10%, according to analysis by the oecd, a club of mostly rich countries. In egalitarian Sweden the rate was nearly 33%."

"This is about meeting level 1 of Maslow's 5 level hierarchy of needs."

Money is Level one?

"Almost everything that improves the life of the poor can be scoffed at with "They just want Free Money" as Eberly has done above."

Tehcnically, this is about happiness. And if you're being objective, you care just as much about the happiness of the rich as you do the poor. And everyone in-between for that matter.

"I was stating why there was a significant feeling of relief and happiness that occurred as a result of this experiment."

It wasn't a valid expirement. Not if it was intended to quantify net gains or losses in happiness.

If the money given to the poor was in the form of willing donations, it would always result in a net happiness gain. If it were taken from someone who was forced to give it up, that would be a loss in overall happiness.

Of course you might also need to take into account the hapiness resulting from increased confiscation of wealth from those who support it, even if they don't benefit from the money themselves.

"The one in Sweden is happier healthier and safer."

Then the evidence, as provided by you, would suggest that a 330% increase in taxes for a single parent of two children earning two-thirds of average pay in the US would result in increasded happiness for that individual?

"Equating survival with buying a fifth vacation mansion is not a good equivalence."

I guess I missed the part in the article where it stated that, without the donation, these individuals would have died.

And if they were that bad off, it would have been better to just give them Maslow level-one stuff like food and shelter.

#42

Your statement suggests that US citizens would achieve a happier outcome in Sweden because Swedish CEOs make less money.

Not sure about you, but a decrease in someone else's remuneration isn't going to have any effect on my happiness. And if it did, it would be because I was a mean-spirited -------.

I feel like Trump (and you, I guess) would be one of those people who would take pleasure in people making less money...

"...But when United Health reaches into your pocketbook, which never happens in Sweden? Well that's perfectly fine."

United Health can't just "reach in."

The owner of the pocketbook must take the money out of the pocketbook and give it to them.

And what do you have against health insurance, anyway? If you don't like it, don't get it.

#45

Yet the governments in those countries take far more money from the taxpayers than the US does.

#46

That's probably true.

I don't know that anyone has ever assessed the Dani tribe of Papua New Guinea to see how happy they are.

Even then, it would be "white" people likely establishing the criteria for what constituted being happy.

#59

I don't know. I lived on handouts for the first eighteen years of my life. I feel like my self-esteem was relatively high.