The Gordo Blogga

Formerly known as "Untying the Gordian Knot"

Thursday, September 08, 2005

Norway - a paradise on Earth?

Well, he forgot about the freezing cold weather and next to no sun throughout the year, but other than that the place does sound pretty awesome. Imagine a country where it didn't matter what you did as you could always make a good living. And with the wealth race out of the way camaraderie and leisure could be explored. Doesn't sound too bad. Not at all.

posted by z @ 2:52 PM  

6 Comments:

  • At 3:09 PM, Blogger Rama said…

    don't get me wrong... I love Norway (proud Norsk blood in me...) but I just can't say I'd be happy living somewhere where everyone was "equal". I like knowing that 'that person' over there makes more... it keeps me motivated to do a great job.

    Also, when my brother lived in Norway, he got into a cycling accident and went to the hospital (mention of health care problems in article). He had a torn ligament in his knee, but had to wait in line behind a guy with a cold, and a child with a splinter because they were there first. Not the way I want to see health care running.

    However, you never hear about Norway being in any controversial political debate and such either. Which is nice. It's a very chill and laidback country. A place I love to visit, but I doubt I'd want to live there.

     

  • At 5:32 PM, Blogger z said…

    ok, i'm with you on healthcare. it's important to provide decent care and have priorities depending on severity and urgency.

    i hear what you're saying about the US. the endless opportunities for success are one of the big things that attracted me to this country. what i found though is that life itself becomes a fierce competition. the rat race is a cultural phenomenon. quality of life takes a back seat to success and wealth. everyone is so busy trying to "be all that you can be" that life itself loses all meaning. everyone just runs around trying to keep their "perfect" lives together.

    it's hard to get away from it because it is such a cultural phenomenon. one is compelled to participate by sheer forces of invisible social pressure to fit in. ultimately though one has to ask - is all this doing bringing us happiness? or is it just distracting us from our inherent unhappiness?

    that's one of the reasons i liked this article. it was a chance to reflect on what life might be like if no one was in a rush to get somewhere. if people just were. also, how would a classless society impact people's attitudes toward one another? would there be more social cohesiveness? would camaraderie flourish? would people relate to each other on a different level?

     

  • At 6:00 PM, Blogger nell said…

    Sounds awesome, but I could never live there because I hate fish >_>

    Glad to be of some Norwegian descent ^^

     

  • At 6:22 PM, Blogger z said…

    i think the weather would kill me. i mean talk about depressing.

    still, it is fascinating to consider a different type of life and society.

     

  • At 8:35 AM, Blogger Rama said…

    the weather's beautiful, what are you talking about?!

    maybe it's because I was raised in a society that thrives on competition... I bet if I were raised in Norway, I'd have different thoughts on the issue. But I believe I've found a good balance between the fight for wealth and happiness. I'm lucky in that working really hard makes me happy. Sure I get burnt out, but that's due to too much of a good thing. :)

     

  • At 8:54 AM, Blogger nell said…

    hehe, if you say so ^^

     

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