Great news, but could we have a higher GDP per capita, please? That's the most important part, isn't it?
Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
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Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#12They deserve it.
I'm in the UK. The smartest developers I worked with in my ~20 year career were all Polish.
The hardest-working and most skilled tradespeople that worked on my houses were Polish.
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#13I spent some time in Poland three years ago and have not stopped talking about it ever since. It stood out from the other Eastern European countries that I visited on that trip.
Had a lunch in Warsaw with a German friend who had relocated there. He said it was more Conservative than Germany and there was more freedom of expression.
Over forty years of Communist rule and they were never able to pull them away from their commitment to the Catholic church. Also lots of excellent museums and large parks.
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#14[flagged]
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#15Lol Switzerland isn’t in the EU.
Technically correct. However, it's so closely aligned with and integrated into the EU that it's quite convenient to include it in comparisons.
Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein (EEA), and Switzerland ("Special Relationship") are basically EU in all but final official membership. They even contribute to the EU financially.
But it does look that they probably meant Sweden (according to the text of the article)
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#16I saw an interesting stat recently that the poorest USA state, Mississippi, has a larger economy and GDP than 1/3rd of all EU members. It just seems like the EU is too top-heavy and I wonder if that's where a lot of the discontent comes from. It seems like there a lot of micro-nations in eastern Europe that have outsized influence over the union as a whole.
That example is a good reason nominal GDP has limits on what it can measure, as a drive thru Mississippi would show a poor state with small pockets of wealth
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#17I saw an interesting stat recently that the poorest USA state, Mississippi, has a larger economy and GDP than 1/3rd of all EU members. It just seems like the EU is too top-heavy and I wonder if that's where a lot of the discontent comes from. It seems like there a lot of micro-nations in eastern Europe that have outsized influence over the union as a whole.
> there a lot of micro-nations in eastern Europe that have outsized influence over the union as a whole
Would you give an example of when that has happened?
> It just seems like the EU is too top-heavy
The EU intentionally admitted many poorer countries, to promote freedom, security and stability in Europe in the long term. Without EU membership, they would be under pressure from Russia and others.
> discontent
What discontent do you mean? There's always something, of course.
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#18I saw an interesting stat recently that the poorest USA state, Mississippi, has a larger economy and GDP than 1/3rd of all EU members. It just seems like the EU is too top-heavy and I wonder if that's where a lot of the discontent comes from. It seems like there a lot of micro-nations in eastern Europe that have outsized influence over the union as a whole.
The US is a great example of why GDP is a largely meaningless metric.
Yes, the States' GDP is ginormous, and yet it's basically a third-world country masquerading as a first-world one on most metrics that actually matter to people.
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#19I spent some time in Poland three years ago and have not stopped talking about it ever since. It stood out from the other Eastern European countries that I visited on that trip. Had a lunch in Warsaw with a German friend who had relocated there. He said it was more Conservative than Germany and there was more freedom of expression. Over forty years of Communist rule and they were never able to pull them away from the…
There’s a reason the solidarity movement arose in Poland
Remarkable culture
Re: Poland now 6th-largest EU economy, ahead of Switzerland and Belgium
#20I saw an interesting stat recently that the poorest USA state, Mississippi, has a larger economy and GDP than 1/3rd of all EU members. It just seems like the EU is too top-heavy and I wonder if that's where a lot of the discontent comes from. It seems like there a lot of micro-nations in eastern Europe that have outsized influence over the union as a whole.
Poorest is a function of per-capita income and larger economy is a function of population. You're comparing different things.