Bullshit. PPP is the adjustment for currency exchange rate. Cuba doesn't have have an income tax, they just have an average monthly salary of about 15 dollars (which is set by the government). And yes, they get to keep ALL 15 dollars!!!
In fact, as you can see, as per PPP Scandinavia have some of the most expensive prices for goods in the world! Even then PPP only tells part of the story...
Also, PPP was based on the following false belief: "The concept is founded on the law of one price; the idea that in absence of transaction costs, identical goods will have the same price in different markets."
Of course NOW we know that this isn't the case. But we still use PPP to normalize for exchange rates. No one, except maybe you, thinks that PPP normalizes for the cost of living and cost of goods.
Per capita GNI is the best measure of material standard of living in my opinion. You said pick any you like, so I did. Besides like I said, it doesn't factor in income taxes or cost of living. There was a per capita GNI which did normalize for those variables, that would be a more accurate standard of living.
You don't need to be trading at all. You don't even know what PPP means or how per capita GNI relates to per capita GDP. You need to be saving your money for marriage counseling.
Norway beats the US if you don't take cost of living and income taxes into account. If you do, it doesn't beat the usa by a long shot. Norwegians live fairly modest lives compared to Americans, on average of course. They do seem better off than Swedes though. What does Norway have to do with this conversation? This is the first time you have mentioned it (after I posted the chart ) LOL!!
"How good people live" is very subjective. How good people live materially is easier to measure.
You just contradicted yourself. You said friedman didn't talk to Chilean govt personnel, but to private individuals. Then you said he didn't criticize Pinochet. How could he if he didn't talk to government personnel? LOL!!! It's funny to watch you squirm and flop about desperately trying to defend your argument.
Of course he spoke with numerous government personnel. Pinochet included. They invited him to advise them. He accepted and spent some time there advising them on how to restructure their economy. It has since blossomed into the the most robust economy of latin america. He didn't criticize Pino's social liberty infractions because he wasn't asked to come as a social commentator, he was asked to come as an economic advisor. That's what he did.
I never said it was it was "pretty important". I just offered it as one example of how communist nations are almost always shit holes. In fact, I haven't seen any evidence that electricity penetration is any better now that it was then! Cuba never had a laissez faire system, it had a bannana republic cronyism system. I'd hope that it's residential electricity penetration is better than it was in the 60s. Technology has developed quite a bit and become ALOT cheaper since then, and most of them still don't have it... ROFLMAO!!! They sure haven't developed at the pace of the laissez faire nations though, not even close. All the laissez faire nations have run laps around them as far as technological development goes. Even the people in Cuba who DO have electricity have it going out constantly for 12 hrs at a time. Cuba is a shit hole. People live in squalor, and in fear of the government. People aren't free to speak out against the government without fear of going to jail. I know that it would wet your panties to have that be the condition in America, but as of yet, it is not... Anyhow, Cuba hasn't developed technologically anywhere near the rate of the rest of the world.... Thanks for once again confirming my point that Cuba is underdeveloped compared to nations with laissez faire policies.
You check the definition. You are the one who has consistently demonstrated the informational deficiency, so the fact that you don't know that laissez faire economies are mixed economies shouldn't surprise us...
Quote from bigdavediode:
Sigh. PPP IS the adjustment for local pricing, and it IS factored into HDI. Plus, regarding adjustment for taxes, Cuba DOESN'T HAVE an income tax except on hard currency earners.
Seriously, do you guys trade? And what do you trade? Because I want to be on the other side of you!
GNI is not a measure of standard of living. And even then, per capita, adjusted for PPP, Norway beats the US.
Standard of living measures aren't "How much does the country make" -- it's "How good do the people live."
Bull. He gave private talks to non-government people, sponsored by right-wing think tanks. Then his followers started claiming that he was an advisor to the government, which was beyond exaggeration. Then when people started pointing out that he never even criticized Pinochet for murdering thousands he gave some weak, mild, criticism after the fact. Not his finest moment.
Well Cuba electrical penetration seemed pretty important when it was brought up in this thread just a few posts ago. Now suddenly it doesn't seem so important when Cuba under a laissez-faire system did worse than under their current (and bad) mixed socialist/private system.
Also false. Go check the definition and get back to us.
I think you need to understand the meaning of the words "self-deprecating humor."