
Here's what Americans don't understand about Nordic countries - simonebrunozzi
http://www.businessinsider.com/what-americans-dont-understand-about-nordic-countries-2016-3
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V-2
Author really oversimplifies things when he chalks distinct Nordic mentality
up to "all Nordics sharing a sense of kinship and having fond feelings for
each other", and debunks it by pointing out they "dislike many of their fellow
citizens" etc.

Of course things aren't as caricaturally trivial as that, which makes it a
strawman argument, hard to take seriously.

Here's a more balanced take on Nordic mentality, from a British left-wing
newspaper:
[http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/aug/15/denmark...](http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/aug/15/denmark.norway)

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fovc
Summary of 2 of the linked-to articles:

Ease of doing business rankings:

    
    
      7) US
      8) Sweden
      9) Norway
      10) Finland
    

Interestingly, within the subcategories, the US only does better in ease of
getting credit and resolving bankruptcies.

Taxes on goods & services as % of GDP:

    
    
      US: ~4%
      Norway: ~ll%
      Sweden: ~12%
      Finland: ~14%

