WHY IT'S JUST GREAT TO BE A DANE

July 28, 2006 (Scotsman) - A study has found that the Scandinavian country [Denmark] is the happiest in the world. Britain could manage only 41st place, while the least happy country was Burundi in Africa.

Adrian White, an analytical social psychologist at Leicester University, looked at data from 178 countries and 100 studies compiled by the United Nations, World Health Organisation to produce the "first world map of happiness". [Click here for an interactive version of Mr. White's World Map of Happiness.]

Following Denmark came Switzerland, Austria and Iceland. At the bottom were Zimbabwe and Burundi. The United States came in 23rd, Germany 35th and France 62nd.

As befits a nation that aspires to the middle, France ranks in the survey's middle third.

The factors affecting happiness were health provision [scored by life expectancy], wealth [scored by GDP per capita] and education [scored by access].

Strangely France (62nd: 79.5 / 29.9 / 108.7) outscores a number of happier countries across all these determinative indices -- Bahama (5th: 69.7 / 20.2 / NA), Bhutan (8th: 62.9 / 1.4 / NA), Brunei Darussalam (9th: 76.4 / 23.6 / NA), Costa Rica (13th: 78.2 / 11.1 / 50.9), Malta (14th: 78.4 / 19.9 / 90.4), Antigua and Barbuda (16th: 73.9 / 11 / NA), Malaysia (17th: 73.2 / 12.1 / 98.8), Seychelles (20th: 72.7 / 7.8 / NA), St. Kitts and Nevis (21st: 70 / 8.8 / NA), Vanuate (24th: 68.6 / 2.9 / 28.5), Venezuala (25th: 72.9 / 6.1 / NA), Barbados (27th: 75 / 17 / 101.1), Dominica (29th: 75.6 / 5.5 / NA), Oman (30th: 74.1 / 13.2 / 67.8), Saudi Arabia (31st: 71.8 / 12.8 / 68.5), Suriname (32nd: 69.1 / 4.1 / 50.7), Bahrain (33rd: 74.3 /23 / 102), Columbia (34th: 72.4 / 7.9 / 70.9 ), Guyana (36th: 63.1 / 4.6 / 81), Honduras (37th:67.8 / 2.9 / NA), Kuwait (38th: 76.9 / 19.2 / 55.6), Panama (39th: 74.8 / 7.2 / 68.7), St. Vincent and the Grenadines (40th: 71.1 / 2.9 / NA), Dominican Republic (42: 67.2 / 7 / NA), Guatemala (43rd: 67.3 / 4.7 / 32.7), Jamaica (44th: 70.8 / 4.4 / 83.6), Qatar (45th: 72.8 / 27.4 / 92.4), St. Lucia (47th: 72.4 / 5.4 / 94.3), Belize (48th: 71.9 / 6.8 / 71.6), Cyprus (49th: 78.6 / 7.14 / NA), Mexico (51st: 75.1 / 10 / 73.4), Samoa Western (52nd: 70.2 / 5.8 / 76), Singapore (53rd: 78.7 / 28.1 / NA), Solomon Islands (54th: 62.3 / 1.7 / NA), Trinidad and Tobago (55th: 69.9 / 16.7 / 78.4), Argentina (56th: 74.5 / 13.1 / 93.7 ), Fiji (57th: 67.8 / 6 /NA), Mongolia (59th: 64 / 1.9 / 64.4), Sao Tome and Prinicpe (60th: 63 / 1.2 / NA), El Salvador (61st: 70.9 / 4.7 / 49.8 ) -- France, with all her abundance, all her advantages, is still outstripped in happiness.

Of the 61 happier countries, France outscores a whopping 40 (65.5%) in the basic indices. Even excluding those countries with incomplete entries, France still beats 22 (36%) happier countries in all indices. Of the remaining 21 happy countries with complete data, France outscores 8 (42%) in 2 out of the 3 indices.

Glorious, rich, privileged, pampered, gloomy, depressed France.

Perhaps France has lost the knack for happiness.

PFFT (What is this?): French unhappiness cultural exception 5 | Rayonnement français 0

...or perhaps this study is just nonsense?

M. Goldsoundz,

Can happiness be uniformly measured across cultures?

Japan ranked 90th and outscores France in both life expectancy (82) and per capita GDP (31.5). The Japanese are not unhappy in any gloomy sense. They are cultural fatalists. Prosperous India ranked 125th, prosperous South Korea ranked 103rd. Asian countries generally ranked low. This would suggest that the measures are not culturally universal, that Dr. White's map is an occidental map of happiness.

That said, the map does seem to correctly place France, tracking with various reports, polls, and opinions of the French themselves. It suggests a country with much to be happy about but middlingly unhappy/happy.

DGB

Right, the French are always willing to complain in polls and surveys about almost everything. But not letting them complain would make them very unhappy!

"Prosperous" India ranked 125th

That would depend who you ask... but then you've never been there either, have you?

Ah, M. Zmx chimes in with a stupid question.

India's ranking here is not a question of asking, it is the conclusion to a value survey by Dr. White. M. Zmx's second pointless question seems to require us to travel the world to report Dr. White's survey results. And "either"?

Here and elsewhere, M. Zmx likes to suggest that he has sampled the world in full and that he is expert on any place where he has visited a restroom. He frequently lectures on the workings of America, contrary to our personal knowledge and that of the vast majority of Americans, based on some long ago exile amongst us.

Here is a safe bet: We have traveled more frequently, more extensively, and longer in the orient than M. Zmx has spent time in the banlieues of Paris, which he has likened to "country clubs". Clearly a man who doesn't know his own backyard.

DGB

Here is a safe bet: We have traveled more frequently, more extensively, and longer in the orient than M. Zmx has spent time in the banlieues of Paris which he has likened to "country clubs". Clearly a man who doesn't know his own backyard.

Clearly one of the most asinine ever posted by Damian.

Here's another safe bet: Anyone who constently refers to himself in the third person has likely never set foot in any "hot spot", French or American, and therefore has a clue what he is talking about.

As much as I give him credit for his superior debating skills, Damian pitifully runs out of steam when he either purpously quotes me out of context, or insinuates I'm a liar.

Ah, and good morning to you, M. Zmx.

Nowhere in our comment above is it suggested you are a liar. Misinformed, uniformed, poorly informed, overconfident, confused, all these many things perhaps can be inferred. But not mendacity. If we thought you a liar, we wouldn't suggest it, we would say it plainly.

If you feel your quote is unfairly out of context, then provide the context that sets your meaning right. Don't keep the little world of Pave guessing.

Now, as for all the traveling you imagine I haven't done -- which you can't possibly know as it has never been vouchsafed you -- what possible bearing can it have on reporting the results of a survey. This is not our survey, these are not our conclusions. How you jump from our post to your fabulous claim about "any 'hotspot', French or American", where we have not set our feet (we have two, and they "set" in tandem), well, it is all beyond us.

M. Zmx, you are a very poor grammarian. We do not refer to ourselves in the third person (i.e., he, she, it, they), we refer to ourselves in the first person plural. As for why we use "we", a favorite point of mystification with you, we have revealed all here.

We freely admit to our little affectation. Now, M. Zmx, what sort of bet do you recommend on someone who doesn't sign his real name but fancifully styles himself "Zoomerx"? Hhmmm, Zoomerx...Zoomerx...where have we seen that before? Here? Times 10? Ho, what an imagination!

Have a super terrific day,
DGB

Bonjour,

C'est là encore un exemple des classements stupides issus de la mondialisation américaine….
On se demande alors pourquoi tant de retraités anglais , hollandais etc prennent leur retraite en France.Ou viennent passer leurs vacances en France .
"Alors Monsieur Richard Perle , les vacances sont bonnes dans votre mas de Provence ? ".
Si ce n'est pas un signe de la qualité de vie en France que Monsieur Richard Perle se taille tous les étés de son immense et ingrat pays pour venir passer ses vacances en France alors que dire ?
Que Monsieur Richard Perle est un masochiste ???
Ou surtout que les rédacteurs de "Pave" bavent de l 'envie de ne pouvoir en faire autant ???
Moi les USA , j y ai fait (il y a longtemps !) un long voyage et je n' ai vraiment pas envie d' y retourner: les Américains moyens sont d' une façon générale satisfaits d' eux même , incultes , grossiers et surtout extrêmement racistes (y compris contre les Français).
Je comprends bien que le multiculturalisme qu' ils nous servent aujourd'hui est un simple produit d' exportation de leur industrie TV mais qu 'en fait ils sont extrêmement racistes et nationalistes.
(Lire par exemple "America Right or Wrong" d' Anatol Lieven qui -même si ses thèses sont très contestables- donne des citations hallucinantes en ce sens).

And good luck to your country in Irak , dear Milton !!!!!!!!

Damian,

You've called me a liar before regarding Mr. Kempasky's "HATE THE FRENCH" slogan, it is therefore safe to assume you would have no scruples doing it again.

My "country club" reference was a humoristic analogy, not a direct description as you imply, and you know it. You are usually very quick in checking your archives for exact quotes, except when it is not convenient to do so (unable to decribe and compare places you've never set foot in, for instance).

As for the "zoomerx" name: I appreciated the joke on me but no, no association whatsoever.

I guess we know now where Mr Bennett spends much of his spare time, while he fondly recalls his "long and extensive" trips to Asia.

You've called me a liar before regarding Mr. Kempasky's "HATE THE FRENCH" slogan, it is therefore safe to assume you would have no scruples doing it again.
Posted by zoomerx at July 31, 2006 04:33 PM

Exactly our point. In that case you did lie and we said so plainly. In this thread we have plainly said we do not think you a liar as you imagined.

As for your quote, again we do your spadework:

Regarding French banlieues, you've obviously and wisely never ventured in the worse - dare I say "segregated" - neighborhoods of Miami, Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago etc.. that make French banlieues look like country clubs. People just don't die there everyday.
Posted by: zoomerx on May 23, 2006 06:33 PM

Our reference above does not distort your meaning. This sounds like the sneer it is not the chuckle you plead.

Our time at FHM was limited to researching this post. If FHM features Mlle. Royal in one of those almost-a-bathing-suit photo essays, well, we suppose we'll back.

DGB

AB/AY: c'est bien gentil les papys britons qui viennent s'installer dans le Sud-Ouest ou dans le Luberon, mais quid des très nombreux jeunes diplômés qui se barrent de France pour démarrer leur carrière, ou pour faire de la recherche? Est-ce que la France est un pays où il fait bon vivre lorsqu'on a la vie devant soi, ou est-ce qu'elle est seulement attirante pour des plus de 75 ans?

@ goldounrdz

Bonjour,

Assez de déclinologie libérale !
La France rivalise avec une certaine firme US dans le domaine de l 'aviation , ce qui explique les contributions récurrentes de "Pave" contre Airbus.
Nous avons fait l 'excellent choix du tout nucléaire au grand dam des ultralibéraux """français""" et nous sommes en tête dans ce domaine qui va être rapidement décisif.
etc ,etc
Et puis notre concurrent US est train de s' embourber dans sa stupide aventure irakienne ce qui va le calmer pour 30 ans comme dans le cas du Vietnam.....
Les choses sont loin d' être aussi noires que la camarilla libérale """française""" le prétend. , encore faut-il débarrasser la Droite française des lubies de la Droite américaine (ultralibéralisme etc ) et la Gauche française des phantasmes de la Gauche américaine (multiculturalisme etc ) que nos élites imbéciles croient malin d' adopter….

Good luck , dear Milton , to your country in Irak !!!!!!!

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Who's lying Damian?

Our time at FHM was limited...

There's no need for knee-jerk explainations Damian, we're all human ;-)