The Human Development Index (HDI), published annually by the UN, ranks nations according to their citizens' quality of life rather than strictly by a nation's traditional economic figures. The criteria for calculating rankings include life expectancy, educational attainment, and adjusted real income.

1. Norway
2. Sweden
3. Australia
4. Canada
5. Netherlands
6. Belgium
7. Iceland
8. United States
9. Japan
10. Ireland
11. Switzerland
12. United Kingdom
13. Finland
14. Austria
15. Luxembourg

16. france
17. denmark
18. new zealand
19. germany
20. spain
21. italy
22. israel
23. greece
24. singapore
25. portugal
26. slovenia
27. south korea
28. barbados
29. cyprus
30. malta

Interesting

where is scotland ?

blackbob said:

Suck on that, U.S. and UK!

The Netherlands are 5th
(should be first tho )

Mach said:

Mach said:

...
...
part of the uk i am surprized that the uk is not in the top ten..still too many brits drinking and smoking themselves to death, i suppose and the americians will be eating themselves to death, of course.....those scandinavian countries have always been too goody goody for my liking....all that sex and saunas in the snow keep the old heart ticking away

They are too strict and tidy
[Edited 7/6/05 7:28am]

10. Ireland ...

How the hell is canada that far up the list

blackbob said:

I guess you have to grow up in those sort of conditions to really appreciate them. Six months of snow every year and short winter days sounds like punishment to me. But then so does constant sunshine. I need constant rain to survive.

ella731 said:

Easy: Because we fucking rock.

the U.S...I don't think so


England-yep

unlucky7 said:

Whoa - UK! I just noticed you got smoked by the States.

How come Switserland is behind the US , btw ?
They're much more wealthy and also healthier there
[Edited 7/6/05 7:52am]

Nikki23 said:

Are you suggesting that Ireland is placed too high or too low on the list ?

Or does it amuse you that it appears on the list at all ?

I'd put Ireland above Norway or Sweden any day, but then, what do I know, I've never lived in either of them.

Dewrede said:

Apparently health and wealth are negated by neutrality.

AsylumUtopia said:

I'm happy its above the UK ,and it should be higher then 10...i'm Irish btw.
[Edited 7/6/05 7:59am]

Ace said:

Nikki23 said:

It was to rank higher, but then they remembered that Bono was a resident.

Ace said:

Hey leave Bono alone

Nikki23 said:

Well, that's alright then.

Greetings fellow Irish person. There appear to be very few of us around here. An bhfuil aon gaeilge agat ?
[Edited 7/6/05 8:03am]

Nikki23 said:

I'm just kidding. Bono has serious man-love for Bruce, so he's alright in my books.

I love Norway

Reincarnate said:

I quite like it too, I just wouldn't ever want to live there.

AsylumUtopia said:

... I can't make up my mind about it. It's a pretty place to visit though.

blackbob said:

Well, number 2 is my home country, my family has a country place in number 1 and I just came back from having lived for two years in number 4...

I'm not sure I would rank Norway as number 1 though. They are cultural fascists. If you're not an outdoorsy type that loves cross-country skiing and healthy living they'll sneer at you. And if you like urban life you're out of luck; even Oslo feels like a small town. I still love it though for many other reasons and usually go there at least once every year.

(Note: I know they're basing their list on other factors but I don't care. )

blackbob said:

.....yikes what happened to New Zealand lol

blackbob said:

glasgow alone fucks up the UK with fags and booze. Its part of our national dress, a fag a pint and an old shell suit with egg yolk.

I stayed in Sweden (well thats a lie, I went for 8 days) for a while and it seemed great, so I'dsay there