NationStates Jolt Archive

The Economist has in a study examined the state of democracy in 167 countries and rated those with an Economist Intelligence Unit Index of Democracy which focused on five general categories; free and fair election process, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation and political culture.

1 Sweden 9.88 Functioning democracy
2 Iceland 9.71 Functioning democracy
3 Netherlands 9.66 Functioning democracy
4 Norway 9.55 Functioning democracy
5 Denmark 9.52 Functioning democracy
6 Finland 9.25 Functioning democracy
7 Luxembourg 9.10 Functioning democracy
8 Australia 9.09 Functioning democracy
9 Canada 9.07 Functioning democracy
10 Switzerland 9.02 Functioning democracy
11 Ireland 9.01 Functioning democracy
11 New Zealand 9.01 Functioning democracy
13 Germany 8.82 Functioning democracy
14 Austria 8.69 Functioning democracy
15 Malta 8.39 Functioning democracy
16 Spain 8.34 Functioning democracy
17 United States 8.22 Functioning democracy
18 Czech Republic 8.17 Functioning democracy
19 Portugal 8.16 Functioning democracy
20 Belgium 8.15 Functioning democracy
20 Japan 8.15 Functioning democracy
22 Greece 8.13 Functioning democracy
23 United Kingdom 8.08 Functioning democracy
24 France 8.07 Functioning democracy
25 Mauritius 8.04 Functioning democracy
25 Costa Rica

Yes, the United States is 17th! In your face, Mauritius!

1 Sweden 9.88 Functioning democracy
...
25 Mauritius 8.04 Functioning democracy
25 Costa Rica

Costa Rica....has no government!?

Sweden is the freest country!

That's not news Fass could have told you that at any time ;)

Costa Rica....has no government!?

You have to admit, anarchy is very liberating.

The herdygerdyhive told all the Swedes to be free, thus, they became so without question nor second thought.

You have to admit, anarchy is very liberating.

But not as free as a Functioning Democracy.

And this news surprises no one at all.

It's hard to quantify some of these things. Subjectively, I'd put Germany lower on that list. In practice the elections in the various states keep governments in a constant election campaign, which makes it extremely hard to make good policy - especially at the moment with a coalition "government" in which both sides are just trying to set themselves up for the next federal election.

Unless the maximum score is way more than 10, like 100 or so, the scores all seem very inflated.

7 Luxembourg 9.10 Functioning democracy
8 Australia 9.09 Functioning democracy
9 Canada 9.07 Functioning democracy

Wow, 7-9 is a bit close ...

Wow, 7-9 is a bit close ...

They're all pretty close imo, I doubt if these numbers represent something real.

Haha! Australia beat Austria.

8 Australia 9.09 Functioning democracy
.
.
.
14 Austria 8.69 Functioning democracy

Now there will be no confusion! :p

It would have just been easier if no one had ever founded that penal colony. Anyway, rankings always remind me of those "psychological" self-tests you find in certain magazines, no one can resist to have a look at them but hopefully no one takes them seriously either.

Actually, I'm surprised the US scored higher than the likes of Belgium, France or the UK (two parties ftl).

Somehow methinks there was a bit of bias for the US, since the magazine is american...
Sweden surprises me: I would've thought Iceland would have beat it

Heh, and all of Scandinavia in the top 6 places. No surprises there, then ;)

Somehow methinks there was a bit of bias for the US, since the magazine is american...

Nope, The Economist is a British paper.

The Economist was pretty rude with this list. Sweden has specifically requested that it not be included in these kind of things. :p

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.

Oh no! High taxes! Evil Communist freedom-hating lefties!

(We've already had a thread about this very same list, a few weeks ago...)

In as loosly related as possible:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY_Yf4zz-yo

:)

In as loosly related as possible:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY_Yf4zz-yo

:)

I approve whole heartedly.

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.
Oh no! A democratic government levies taxes! Whatever next?

Wait...I still can't believe the U.S. made the list, let alone ahead of France, the UK, and Greece.

And what the hell does the Netherlands have to do to be ranked #1? Pot, porn, gay marriage...what do they have to do, make it legal to take a shit in the street?

Looks like they're working on changing that one. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7219802.stm)

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.

Yeah, this just shows that freedom is a very subjective term, and I doubt any country can be considdereed the "most free".

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.

Well obviously this is proof that The Economist is nothing but a socialist rag with a heavy bias towards those systems...

Wait...I still can't believe the U.S. made the list, let alone ahead of France, the UK, and Greece.

And what the hell does the Netherlands have to do to be ranked #1? Pot, porn, gay marriage...what do they have to do, make it legal to take a shit in the street?

Its an index of democracy, not freedom - although civil liberties are an element of it.

*puts on his capitalist hat*

Yes, but does Sweden have a free market? That's the only good kind of freedom!

*nods*

*puts on his capitalist hat*

Yes, but does Sweden have a free market? That's the only good kind of freedom!


Yes it does.

Yes it does.
Well, good!

Its an index of democracy, not freedom - although civil liberties are an element of it.

So it's strictly the Political Freedoms aspect of the three-pronged fork of freedom. In that case, why the hell does the U.S. make the list at all?

Holland is 3rd? Who'd thought that! :p

If you are interested in economic freedom, Sweden doesn't have a bad score in that as well:

http://www.heritage.org/research/features/index/country.cfm?id=Sweden

Although it does have a very high tax rate, which I think is not required if it went a little less over kill with its government spending. It is reducing however!

all this talk of freedom is making the monarchy nervous :p

Democracy =/= freedom. Democracy is a just a means of choosing a government, it makes no judgement on the nature of that government.

I wouldn't call any country that has 51.3% tax (in % of GDP) the "freest" country, civil liberties and "political culture" aside.Well, according to the survey, they are also the most able to vote those taxes away if they do not like them.

So it's strictly the Political Freedoms aspect of the three-pronged fork of freedom. In that case, why the hell does the U.S. make the list at all?

The United States makes the list because WE ARE USE A DEMOCRATIC SYSTEM TO ELECT OUR LEADERS! :upyours:

You are ignorant. Just because you don't like our leaders, doesn't mean they weren't put their democratically. Not just the President, but we vote for Senators, House Representatives, our state governor, our local mayors, county officals and town officials...that's what you call democracy.

yea the US election coming up has got me scared heshe hillary clinton and obama scare me
I like my second amendment and distrust all politician esp democrats

yea not sure what country would win if this was a freedoms only contest Id say the US would be top 10 in that arena for now....

Great! Now Fass has license to brag and make arrogant comments more than usual.

Democracy =/= freedom. Democracy is a just a means of choosing a government, it makes no judgement on the nature of that government.

Ar but see here.....http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=547737 a definition of freedom, in which many people thought freedom is an illusion.
So Democracy=/=Freedom= Illusion.
Sad but true.

Great! Now Fass has license to brag and make arrogant comments more than usual.

Like he needs any excuse to brag and act superior ;)

Wow I just noticed this is from the Economist and therefore is completely bogus and biased.

Wow I just noticed this is from the Economist and therefore is completely bogus and biased.

Whatever you resort to for comfort, bubbala.

Check out this definition of 'political culture' from the Economist.

A democratic political culture is also crucial for
the legitimacy, smooth functioning and ultimately the
sustainability of democracy. A culture of passivity and
apathy, an obedient and docile citizenry, are not consistent
with democracy. The electoral process periodically
divides the population into winners and losers. A successful
democratic political culture implies that the losing
parties and their supporters accept the judgment of
the voters, and allow for the peaceful transfer of power.

If that isn't the most vague and self-contradictory (you can't be obedient and docile, but you also have to be the majority's bitch) criteria ever, I don't know what is.

Sweden has had the same party win the largest share of the vote since 1914. This isn't "a culture of passivity and apathy, an obedient and docile citizenry"?

Sweden has had the same party win the largest share of the vote since 1914. This isn't "a culture of passivity and apathy, an obedient and docile citizenry"?

apart from 1976, 1979, 1991 and 2006

also only after 1932 did the Social Democrats have a leading role

yeah I just found this post whiny and so I thought it should be picked apart

How the heck did Germany rank higher then the United States. Germany bans anything related to the Nazis. If those laws were in the United State it would be ruled unconstitutional. I am a Nazi but I am left leaning when it comes to freedom of speech.

I wonder why.

How the heck did Germany rank higher then the United States. Germany bans anything related to the Nazis. If those laws were in the United State it would be ruled unconstitutional. I am a Nazi but I am left leaning when it comes to freedom of speech.

I am a Nazi but I am left leaning when it comes to freedom of speech.

Does that mean you'd like to conquer Poland but let them complain about the occupation?

How the heck did Germany rank higher then the United States. Germany bans anything related to the Nazis. If those laws were in the United State it would be ruled unconstitutional. I am a Nazi but I am left leaning when it comes to freedom of speech.

America has only two functioning political parties, both of them right wing. I trust you can see how this leads to it getting a low democracy rating.

Does that mean you'd like to conquer Poland but let them complain about the occupation?

he never said he was German

he just wants to be a Jewish baker :) (with more screams of course)

The Economist has in a study examined the state of democracy in 167 countries and rated those with an Economist Intelligence Unit Index of Democracy which focused on five general categories; free and fair election process, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation and political culture.

1 Sweden

Damn you!

Damn you all to Åmål!

Where ar NM, CoalitionOftheWilling, Kontor, and the like raving against a "clearly biased, evil, communist" test?


Hm.


I am however skeptical of sweden being #1. Dont know who should be. Id probably vote for Belgium or The Netherlands.

Id probably vote for Belgium or The Netherlands.
I dunno, Belgian democracy hasn't exactly been a shining beacon of success in '07.

I maintain that it's nigh-on impossible to measure some of the very subjective things that impact whether or not a democracy is working. Of course the EIU has to try because that's what they're there for, but I think on this they cut off more than anyone could chew.

Wait...I still can't believe the U.S. made the list, let alone ahead of France, the UK, and Greece.

And what the hell does the Netherlands have to do to be ranked #1? Pot, porn, gay marriage...what do they have to do, make it legal to take a shit in the street?

I'm not surprised the UK is near the bottom of the list. I'm more surprised that it made the list at all, given events in recent years.

Have a look here (http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=nRGZr2m4r7M). It's fun that someone can still get away with making a comedy documentary like this, but rest assured there are those who are working on stamping that out as well.

apart from 1976, 1979, 1991 and 2006

also only after 1932 did the Social Democrats have a leading role
The social democrats won the largest share of the vote (what I actually said) in all the years you mentioned, they just didn't get into government because the other parties formed coalitions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elections_in_Sweden#Riksdag_election_results_in_percent_1911-2006

Furthermore, in 1914 the soc. dems. were the second largest party (0.1 percentage points from largest). How can you claim they only took a leading role in 1932?

[CLOR="White"]yeah I just found this post whiny and so I thought it should be picked apart[/COLOR]
Try to do a better job next time, eh?

America has only two functioning political parties, both of them right wing. I trust you can see how this leads to it getting a low democracy rating.
And all the parties in Sweden are left wing. I don't see your point. Are you saying that in a "perfect democracy," the US ought to have major socialist parties even if very few people in the country are socialists, and Sweden should have major classical liberal or fascist parties?

It would have just been easier if no one had ever founded that penal colony.

That's an unfair and inaccurate generalisation, South Australia was founded as a free British settlement, no convicts. Western Australia eventually had to take some convict labourers because they weren't doing so well.

America has only two functioning political parties, both of them right wing. I trust you can see how this leads to it getting a low democracy rating.

Okay... Um, you do realize that's because the majority of people in America are significantly right of the world's center? See, that's the wonderful thing about democracy, that parties whose policies cater to a significant percentage of a population generally do well. Oh, and you would be interested to note that two of the candidates for one of those parties are considered uncomfortably leftist by most Americans (Obama more so than Clinton.)

Okay... Um, you do realize that's because the majority of people in America are significantly right of the world's center? See, that's the wonderful thing about democracy, that parties whose policies cater to a significant percentage of a population generally do well. Oh, and you would be interested to note that two of the candidates for one of those parties are considered uncomfortably leftist by most Americans (Obama more so than Clinton.)

That's bull, the politics cater to economic interests, not popular ones.

Okay... Um, you do realize that's because the majority of people in America are significantly right of the world's center? See, that's the wonderful thing about democracy, that parties whose policies cater to a significant percentage of a population generally do well.
Chicken or egg problem. Are the parties right wing because the people are, or are the people right wing because the only significant parties are?

And further, are the majority of Americans actually right wing? Or do they just vote right wing because anything else is perceived as a waste of a vote?
Oh, and you would be interested to note that two of the candidates for one of those parties are considered uncomfortably leftist by most Americans (Obama more so than Clinton.)

So I hear. Apparently some people actually think that Clinton is a communist. Shows just how far right American politics leans.

Also, for a second I thought someone had made another thread on this. There were at least 3 when it was new. Good old gravedigging.

I'd actually like to see all the American population on a poltical spectrum, I'd say most common working people would support leftist ideals, even if they didn't think of them that way, but I am sure you'd only find those at the real top who'd actively defend a system which promotes inequality and unjustice as a matter of course.

Awesome, Canada is in the top 10...

BTW, Link anyone?

I'd actually like to see all the American population on a poltical spectrum, I'd say most common working people would support leftist ideals, even if they didn't think of them that way, but I am sure you'd only find those at the real top who'd actively defend a system which promotes inequality and unjustice as a matter of course.

You would be wrong. Most "common working people" in America don't give a good goddamn about politics in general and especially where America stands relative to the rest of the world. However, most "common working people" don't much care to be paying more than 20% in taxes (which is generally how it works out after state and federal) and really despise having to pay taxes related to social security since most don't believe they'll see a dime of it when they retire.

And before you ask how I know this, it's because I'm one of those "common working people" and I work with the same.

I'd actually like to see all the American population on a poltical spectrum, I'd say most common working people would support leftist ideals, even if they didn't think of them that way, but I am sure you'd only find those at the real top who'd actively defend a system which promotes inequality and unjustice as a matter of course.

There is not a massive pressure from the workers on the government to increase welfare etc... the government already produces a significant amount of welfare.