World's Happiest Countries Named

[onehandle]

Source: RTT News

A survey by an initiative under the United Nations found that Switzerland, the land of clocks and chocolates, is the world's happiest country. The 2015 World Happiness Report, seeking to quantify happiness as a means of influencing government policy, was produced by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).

When compared to World Happiness Report 2013, the country rankings in the 2015 Report shows a combination of consistency and change. Nine of the top 10 countries in 2015 were also in the top 10 of 2013, out of which seven are small or medium-sized countries in Western Europe. But the ranking has changed, with Switzerland now at the top. It is followed closely by Iceland, the land of warm springs; Denmark, where one can enjoy the great jazz and rock music; and Norway, where the sun never sets in some parts in summer.

The rest of the top 10 are Canada, Finland, Netherlands, Sweden, New Zealand and Australia. Jeffrey Sachs, Special Advisor to UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon and one of the editors, said at a media conference that the top countries combined affluence with strong social support, and relatively honest and accountable governments.

The United States trails in the 15th place, behind Israel and Mexico. Surprisingly, Iraq, a country suffering from relentless terrorist attacks, was ranked ahead of South Africa, India, Kenya and Bulgaria.

Read more: http://www.rttnews.com/2487270/world-s-happiest-countries-named.aspx

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We're Number 15! We're Number 15! We're Number 15!...

[DoBotherMe]

1. I guess "the pursuit of happiness" is all we'll ever get

[Beauregard]

2. I believe this, even though Jeffery Sachs said it.

More on Sachs here: http://www.leftbusinessobserver.com/Sachs.html

[bulloney]

3. That can't be right 'cause we're Murka.

Those countries ranked ahead of Murka in that survey are a bunch of pinko socialist countries and they can't be happier because we're Murka.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. "Don't be so gloomy. After all it's not that awful."

Don't be so gloomy. After all it's not that awful.

[erronis]

8. Oh, I was sure you were going to link to "Life Is Beautiful"

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118799/?ref_=nv_sr_1

[appalachiablue]

10. One of the greatest speeches in film history by a superb actor, Orson Welles.

Saw 'The Third Man' (1949) again on TCM last week. What I remember of Switzerland years ago was very pleasant going by train and stopping in Geneva and Bolzano Italy on the Tyrol Italy border. Breathtaking Alpine scenery. Once when Joseph Cotten and his mother were shopping in a store c. 1950 they commented to a beautiful lady with a little boy how cute her son was. The beautiful lady was my mother, a native of Richmond and the young boy is my older brother. Cotten was originally from Petersburg, VA and a friend of Welles who he acted for in the Mercury Theater and in movies, 'Citizen Cane', 'The Magnificent Ambersons' and others. Just remembered this meeting recently.

[Ford_Prefect]

5. An interesting comparison would be a survey of Alcoholism ranking the same counties.

You don't need to kill brain cells if they aren't recalling pain.

[mpcamb]

6. Interesting that they see Switzerland as the land of clocks and chocolates-

Laundered money and hidden bank accounts come to mind first for me.

[tularetom]

7. Maybe it's something in the DNA

My grandmother was born in Switzerland. She came to the US before 1900 so she didn't have much of a chance to live in the old country. She was the happiest, most positive person I've ever met. Her four younger sisters were the same way.

She was over one hundred years old when she died, and though she never had a lot of money, I never heard her express any resentment or envy toward any other individual or group.

Oddly enough, another branch of her family came from Denmark.

[snooper2]

9. I guess RT couldn't muster up the guts to admit Russia is like 68

[okaawhatever]

12. In their rankings Russia is number one, two and three. nt

[metalbot]

11. All but three of the top nations has a higher median age than the US

Not correlation means causation, but I was curious about this having just read a couple of studies that look at happiness relative to aging.