Comments for The Happiest And Greenest Nation On Earth »
Posted By Mikunited 5 months, 4 weeks ago in Political OpinionIs it the USA,the UK perhaps,France,Sweden--You'll have to look and see.The" New Economic Foundation"(NEF),using a device called "Happy Planet Index",has calculated how happy each nation is.
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RookieYogi5 months, 3 weeks ago
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I don't know if the US is one of the happiest, but as an expatriate that lives in Europe, I believe it is one of the greenest. I know of a lot of businessess such as http://CNRenovation.com that have been focusing on developing more exploring reneable energy, and green building solutions. After learning of the 5 Significant Benefits of a Commerical Green Roof from http://cnrenovation.com/BlogRetrieve.aspx?BlogID=2... I wonder why I haven't been able to find one in Spain.
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Natureboy5 months, 3 weeks ago
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FTA
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"Costa Ricans top the list because they report the highest life satisfaction in the world, they live slightly longer than Americans, yet have an ecological footprint that is less than a quarter the size. The country only narrowly fails to achieve the goal of what NEF calls "one-planet living": consuming its fair share of the Earth's natural resources."
Americans like to think they are at the top of the heap. And yet it appears that many other countries live longer, happier lives and consume much less in doing so. This suggests that the US actually lags behind, technologically, or at the minimum, that the US misuses its technology to overconsume resources instead of finding ways to do more with less. -
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Mikunited5 months, 3 weeks ago
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I think it is about values.Many so called "advanced"nations,think life is about profit and materialistic satisfaction.Whereas Costa Rica and similar nations,want to be happy and live well.That doesn't mean I would want to have zero money,but remember what I want money for.
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One of the things that causes so much dis-harmony in the World,is the disparity between rich and poor.I believe that is why there is so much depression and unhappiness in western nations.
As for living a "greener"life,it is something we must learn to live with.The USA and nations like my own,The UK,have taken so much more of the Worlds resources,than is proportionately fair.What have we done with it?,messed up the atmosphere and threaten fragile ecosystems.Yet still in any major city,people move about with long faces.We are messing up nature's balance and that isn't a thing to smile about I guess.-
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fempatriot5 months, 3 weeks ago
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How true. I was a child during the 30s and 40s, and lived on a farm. We had a pump that pumped cold water into the house and thought that was great! We had an Aladdin lamp and it was so bright, it was almost like having electricity. (I was 6 when my family moved us from St. Louis, MO to a farm in Illinois.) We adjusted to not having a toaster, to not having running water and a hot water heater--my mother even washed clothes on a wash board and ran them through a wringer that you turned with a crank. But hey--we ate well from a garden, chickens, and killing a pig once a year. We were nearly self sufficient except for staples like sugar, flour, coffee...and we were poor, but we didn't act like it, and I didn't know we were poor. My mother could sew very well, and she made my clothes, even cutting down her old muskrat fur coat into a fur "chubbie" for me. I was the best dressed kid in the 8th grade with my little fur jacket. (No matter that it was much older than I was...and my slacks were a pair of my father's wool pants.) Now we have running water, electricity, satellite TV--high speed internet connections, and I don't think I'm one bit happier now than I was then. In fact, I miss much of the simplicity of life; the slower pace, the fact that we saw much more of our neighbors than we do now. Now everyone is insulated, busy, in their own homes, including me. And I wouldn't wear fur now because I know the terrible price animals pay for womens' adornment.
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Wolfie20075 months, 3 weeks ago
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Costa Rica is absolutely a lovely place. I spent a lot of time traveling around their country in the 80's and early 90's. Although, comparing a tiny non-industrial country like Costa Rica to the US or China is really disingenuous. Costa Rica is basically an agrarian society. The country was founded on the principles of a Jeffersonian Democracy. Costa Rica is an easy place to visit but if you want to live there you have to prove you have the income to support yourself. Any public dole, like health care, in Costa Rica is for citizens only and they don't let just anyone become a citizen.
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simonsez5 months, 3 weeks ago
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There are many similar areas in the world where the life style and native characteristics result in a happy meaningful life with few worries.
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The American pastime is blaming ourselves for the world problems and feeling guilty about our successes. As a country, we do have responsibilities and commitments that have to be met.
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