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Non Gaming Discussions => Off-Topic => Topic started by: ##RaCeR## on July 08, 2003, 04:20:27 PM
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UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Australia and the Netherlands ranked as the best countries in which to live in the 2003 U.N. Human Development report on Tuesday but Canadians were miffed.
The United States ranked seventh and Canada was eighth in the report that seeks to go beyond per capita income and include such factors as educational levels, health care and life expectancy in measuring a nation\'s well-being.
The report also gives a separate index for women\'s participation in political and economic fields, with surprising results. It says that women fare better in Botswana, Costa Rica and Namibia than they do in Greece, Italy and Japan.
But Canada, which had been in first place in the overall index of 175 countries for seven years until 2001, conducted its own poll, apparently timed to the U.N. report.
Canadian media reported that 89 percent of the country had an "absolute conviction that we have a better quality of life than the United States."
Canada\'s seven years of first place ratings had prompted Ontario province and others to use the U.N. index in its advertisements. Last year, Canada slipped to the third place.
Mark Malloch Brown, head of the U.N. Development Program that produces the index, said there was little difference among the top 10 rated nations. The change in Canada\'s status was due to new methods of calculating educational standards.
The overall index shows a decline in 21 nations in the 1990s while in 1980 only four countries among the 175 tracked by UNDP showed similar decade-long decline. South Africa, now in 111th place, fell 28 ranks from 1990 because more people died younger from AIDS (news - web sites)-related illnesses.
Roughly half the countries in Latin America and the Caribbean recorded either a decline or stagnation in income during the 1990s. In Eastern Europe and Central Asia per capita income also fell, with steep drops in Russia, Moldova, Tajikistan and Ukraine.
The top ranked nations were: Norway, Iceland, Sweden, Australia, Netherlands, Belgium, United States, Canada, Japan, Switzerland, Denmark, Ireland, Britain, Finland, Luxembourg, Austria, France, Germany, Spain and New Zealand.
Those with low development rankings, from 156th to 175th place, were: Senegal, Guinea, Rwanda, Benin, Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Zambia, Angola, Chad, Guinea-Bissau, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Burundi, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Sierra Leone.
Top Ten Nations To Live In
1. Norway
2. Iceland
3. Sweden
4. Australia
5. Netherlands
6. Belgium
7. United States
8. Canada
9. Japan
10. Switzerland
Whats with all the cold European countries?
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looks like (as mm puts it) the mud huts and wood chip cash is payin off ;)
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Go Iceland wOOOOOt
The diffirence in points between Iceland and Norway was like 0,5 or something. Not bad for a tiny place like this.
Scandinavian countries in the top 3, it\'s the viking heritige I tell ya.
:p
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I\'d love to live in Australia, it just looks so beautiful from all the pictures I see even though I\'ve never been there. I\'m just too Americanized to live anywhere but here. :) Those small, safe Euro countries also look appealing but Euros are always so weird!! :thumb:
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Bahrain is ranked #37 in that list i beleive, its also according to the UN the most developed Arab nation.
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Originally posted by THX
I\'d love to live in Australia, it just looks so beautiful from all the pictures I see even though I\'ve never been there. I\'m just too Americanized to live anywhere but here. :) Those small, safe Euro countries also look appealing but Euros are always so weird!! :thumb:
If you wanting to escape America, then Australia is not the place for you. It is extremely Americanised (which is not necessarily a bad thing...). Australia is nice, its the only place I could actually live other then the US, Canada or maybe New Zealand (though NZ is alittle too under-developed in the business/city side of things).
I would love to visit Sweden, though probably couldn\'t live there
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I like canada a lot. Montreal is great. I could live in many places but leaving chicago would be so damn hard. I love it here. We also get the hottest summers and coldest winters man (an exaggeration). One day it will snow and the next day will be 78 degrees and rising. Crazy stuff.
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You guys in Iceland don\'t pay for your heat, do you?
That would be pretty hokey if you did :p
Eric Jacob
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Originally posted by THX
Those small, safe Euro countries also look appealing but Euros are always so weird!! :thumb:
So are Aussies!! :p
Nah, i\'m kidding. Yea Aussie is too Americanized and so is New Zealand. Well the major cities anyway. Go live somewhere like Egypt. Thats where i want to go after I get out of NZ. Or maybe Japan
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Americanized... BAH
we\'re not that Americanized. We are quite a bit different from the yanks. Although there is a lot of amercing crap around. Our culture is different, our attitude is different, our education system is different, and Laws are different, we drive on the left side of the road, hell we\'re even on the metric system. There are things that are the same, but even they have there differences. Although we are surely but slowly moving closer to a American type culture. :( Not that i hate ameicans, just i love being a aussie. :)
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Originally posted by AlteredBeast
You guys in Iceland don\'t pay for your heat, do you?
That would be pretty hokey if you did :p
Eric Jacob
did you know there\'s no ice in Iceland?
btw. no offence, but what the hell is Belgium doing directly below my country. When I drive over the boarder I imediately notice the difference in wealth :eek:
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Originally posted by THX
I\'d love to live in Australia, it just looks so beautiful from all the pictures I see even though I\'ve never been there.
Ever gone to a city and taken a picture of crap? You see nice pictures from Australia because who would take pictures of slums, bums, etc. Australia probably looks a lot like the states in most regards. They just have more sharks.:iono:
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Spain among the best countries? :laughing: Who did this research? Videoholic?
:banghead:
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Yeah it was me. I always like the breast of spanish women.:boink:
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If I had to live in a country according to chicks, it would be Sweden.
fastson pretty bastard :rpissed:
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Originally posted by videoholic
Ever gone to a city and taken a picture of crap? You see nice pictures from Australia because who would take pictures of slums, bums, etc. Australia probably looks a lot like the states in most regards. They just have more sharks.:iono:
Vid, that is so true. No one takes photos of something they don\'t want to remember.
Souly, get real. Australia is THE MOST Americanised country on the planet other than America itself. Sure, there are aspects that are different, but things such as government policy, lifestyle, food, media, economy etc are all incredibly similar.
Australia, being very multicultural (as the US is) has many different types of people, and I think its hard to say that all Australians are \'nice and friendly and laidback\'. I know of many people, young and old, who do not fit the classic \'Aussie\' description, and I think its just a sign of the times that the baby boomer generation is slowly on its way out.
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I live in the UK and it\'s a dump basically...
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Ah not bad!
:worship: (https://psx5central.com/community/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fw1.480.telia.com%2F%7Eu48019256%2Friksvapen.jpg&hash=51caf859f0b395e7036dacd9b76ad62e105de791) :worship:
Originally posted by nO-One
Scandinavian countries in the top 3, it\'s the viking heritige I tell ya.
:p
We rock ;)
If I had to live in a country according to chicks, it would be Sweden.
fastson pretty bastard
hihi, you should come here.. "They" like Spaniards ;)
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Originally posted by fastson
hihi, you should come here.. "They" like Spaniards ;)
I need your address. What are you going to do next week? :D
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Nope, heat is free here, as much hot water as we want.
Actually there is Ice in Iceland, pretty damned big glaciers and lot\'s of ice during the winter.
:bounce:
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In that case, I need to reconsider my sources ;)
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You get free hot water???
I could have as many shower wrestles as I want!
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How the hell is Japan 9? Anyone ever heard of SARS? Also you\'re ****ed on population per sq. mile. O well, I guess the hot girls put them there.
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Originally posted by ViVi
How the hell is Japan 9? Anyone ever heard of SARS? Also you\'re ****ed on population per sq. mile. O well, I guess the hot girls put them there.
Japan and SARS? :rolleyes:
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Originally posted by ViVi
How the hell is Japan 9? Anyone ever heard of SARS?
Um... yeah. :jack:
But even if Japan was infected with SARS it doesn\'t really affect the general education system, average income level etc.
BTW, how can Canada be 8? Anyone ever heard of SARS?
:laughing:
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:laughing:
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I\'m upset the UK wasn\'t in the top 10...well top 10 of crime that is!
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yeah, you brits are a shifty bunch. All nice and proper with your "cup o\' tea, fish n chips" shit and then - "BAM!" stealing my wallet! ;)
I like criminals to be nice & scary like they are here. I know who to stay the f*ck away from.