Day 4 — the Nordic Model and happiness
The Nordic countries consistently rank at the top of the word happiness rankings, while the UK barely squeezes to sixteenth and the US is at a measly 18th. Why is this, and do we need to be doing something about it?
A lot of people point to the ‘Nordic model’ as the key differentiating factor between us and them. It’s less of a concrete policy model and more of a general governmental and social ethos. A key part of it as balance, following in with the ancient Aristotelian concept of the golden mean — basically a happy middle ground. This is at the core of Nordic model thinking — money is important, but it shouldn’t be so important that it dwarfs everything else. Work is useful, but you should still find meaning outside of it. Social interactions are great, but you need some alone time too.
The whole system is a part of a desire to find contentedness, or the Danish ‘glad,’ where there’s space to have a meaningful life while acting in a productive economic manner. A lot of people, especially those in the UK and US, hold this as the solution, a final perfectly formed model that we should just pick up and import to our countries. And while I definitely agree that we should be adopting a lot more of the Nordic ethos such as a higher value on social programs and increased taxation, I don’t know whether it’s something that we can completely globally implement.
The main problem is that its a little bit too much. When I say ‘too much’ I don’t mean too high levels of taxation, or too well funded social programs — I mean that the standard of living it apparently gives in those countries (which we’ll get back to later) isn’t really possible on a global level without the mass enslavement of the third world and the burning of the planet. One of the likely reasons for the Nordic model’s success is that the jobs people work are generally pretty good. Rather than being a sweatshop T-shirt maker you work at the till. Rather than doing the grueling labour required for getting the coffee beans you’re a barrista in a warmly lit shop. Not to say that either of those Nordic jobs are in any way easy or cushy — jobs like being a barrista especially require huge amounts of emotional and social labour unexpected in other jobs, with the constant expectation of a smiling face, but they definitely allow for a more ‘hygge’ environment and a better work-life balance than sitting in a cramped sweaty cubicle constantly making mass market t-shirts at a starvation wage. Many of the Nordic jobs are much more service economy focused, creating the space and mental energy to allow for the high happiness and living conditions, but we still need grueling non service manufacturing jobs. Currently these are filled by the third world, but it seems hard to mesh these jobs and a Nordic life, let alone make western countries accept the sharp drop in living standards. Without massive leaps in automation, its impossible to maintain the high living standards of first world and especially Nordic countries without the third world living in abject poverty. While a Nordic model sounds nice, and a lot of its policies and aspirations are very good, Its fundamental reliance on international exploitation makes it an ineffective model for global freedom.
