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The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

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Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#132

Here’s a better comparison. The thing that really hurt the Eurozone was the 2011 - 2013 recession that the US did not experience. Plus there’s a slower growth rate even in the good times. https://freedomandprosperity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/... That said, these numbers are very misleading and do not show well what a person’s life looks like in the US. By my own anecdotal estimation, in the EU low and medium in…

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Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No one uses PPP for measuring growth, GDP PPP can increase whilst your economy contracts. PPP isn’t a good measure for population’s wealth or quality of life especially for developed economies either. The economy of the US is still twice that of the EU and its global purchasing power has also pretty much doubled.

We don't care about size of economy, we care about aspects of daily life of the average person.

We care about both, so we use different measurements for both.

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#135

Here’s a better comparison. The thing that really hurt the Eurozone was the 2011 - 2013 recession that the US did not experience. Plus there’s a slower growth rate even in the good times. https://freedomandprosperity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/... That said, these numbers are very misleading and do not show well what a person’s life looks like in the US. By my own anecdotal estimation, in the EU low and medium in…

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People in the South of France buy one espresso or one beer and nurse it for 2 hours while staring at these ocean.

Down voted for being ridiculous. The inequality in America is wild too.

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#136
post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it did US life expectancy wouldn't lower today than it was in 2008.

That’s mostly due to obesity, which is a consequence of the quantity and (flavor) quality of food getting better over time; a side effect of economic prosperity.

s/economic prosperity/lack of regulation/

Palm oil is in everything in the US, in France there's a lot more lighter oils and butter.

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#137
post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No one uses PPP for measuring growth, GDP PPP can increase whilst your economy contracts. PPP isn’t a good measure for population’s wealth or quality of life especially for developed economies either. The economy of the US is still twice that of the EU and its global purchasing power has also pretty much doubled.

" GDP PPP can increase whilst your economy contracts. " Still, if PPP GDP increases, with all else being equal (eg. stable population) it would imply the standard of living is increasing. That is why PPP GDP captures a more accurate measure of the real world. Said another way, what truly matters isn't "GDP growth", but changes in purchasing power/quality of life.

No it does not, PPP is calculated based on a basket of 3000 fungible goods and services as well as other costs such as major infrastructure construction projects.

It has zero account for quality or outcomes.

It doesn’t care if you have access to healthy foods, it just cares how much would X calories costs, it doesn’t care what is the quality of the housing stock or the outcomes of your healthcare system.

You can very much have a situation where your economy shrinks, the quality of life tanks and your GDP PPP stays the same or grows, communism is rather good example of just how a situation can be where things are on paper very cheap from food to infrastructure mega projects and where housing is free but no one would claim that life in 1970’s Soviet Union was particularly great.

In 1990 the USSR had the 2nd highest GDP PPP in the world, if you honestly think that it was a good place to live I’ll build you a time machine myself.

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#138

Here’s a better comparison. The thing that really hurt the Eurozone was the 2011 - 2013 recession that the US did not experience. Plus there’s a slower growth rate even in the good times. https://freedomandprosperity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/... That said, these numbers are very misleading and do not show well what a person’s life looks like in the US. By my own anecdotal estimation, in the EU low and medium in…

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I'd prefer to have access to free healthcare and social safety nets than having espresso.

You clearly haven't been to the US but there are a lot of poor people here.

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#139

Here’s a better comparison. The thing that really hurt the Eurozone was the 2011 - 2013 recession that the US did not experience. Plus there’s a slower growth rate even in the good times. https://freedomandprosperity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/... That said, these numbers are very misleading and do not show well what a person’s life looks like in the US. By my own anecdotal estimation, in the EU low and medium in…

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A lot of what you mention is related to energy useage: smaller cars/houses, keeping houses cold in winter, less consumption overall. Perhaps the Europeans are on the right track here and we in the US are on the wrong track when taking climate change into consideration?

Re: The US economy and the EU were the same size in 2008, the US is now nearly 2X

#140
post #5

All “growth” in gdp seems to go to rich people. Normal people have seen stagnant wages and increased costs from the owners. Why should I care if gdp isn’t increasing when I don’t see any gains whether it does or not?

Does all growth go to the same rich people, or do more people become rich?

Yes, but: in case of the latter, does the amount of people becoming rich outpace population growth? Is it even greater than the rate of growth in the sub-population of those already rich?
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