by both the Right and the Left. Socialism is an economic system in which all means of production and distribution are owned collectively rather than by private owners. "Collectively" is generally taken to mean by the government, which in a democratic socialist country, would mean one elected by the people, and therefore the production and distribution of all income-producing goods and services would be owned by the government for the benefit of the people. The only way in which Norway comes even close to this description is with respect to Equinor (formerly Statoil), its oil production/distribution corporation, 70% of whose stock is owned by the Norwegian government and a government pension fund. The remaining 30% of its stock is publicly traded. Equinor owns the North Sea oil production facilities as well as the gas stations (production and distribution).
The Government Pension Fund Global, also known as the Oil Fund, was established in 1990 to invest the surplus revenues of the Norwegian petroleum sector. It has over US$1 trillion in assets, including 1.3% of global stocks and shares, making it the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund. In May 2018 it was worth about $195,000 per Norwegian citizen. It also holds portfolios of real estate and fixed-income investments. Many companies are excluded by the fund on ethical grounds.
The Government Pension Fund Norway is smaller and was established in 1967 as a type of national insurance fund. It is managed separately from the Oil Fund and is limited to domestic and Scandinavian investments and is therefore a key stock holder in many large Norwegian companies, predominantly via the Oslo Stock Exchange.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_Pension_Fund_of_Norway
Income from pension fund investments as well as regular taxes support the country's social safety net. Norwegians are taxed on their assets, so the tax figure in the OP isn't really comparable to US income taxes, and it's not clear whether that number also includes the high value-added taxes or the special taxes on things like cars. I have a shirttail relative in Bergen who rolls her own cigarettes, which is a fairly common practice there because the tax on pre-made cigarettes is so high. But, as DFW pointed out, social services like "free" college and "free" health care are not free; they merely come from a different source. And apart from Equinor, corporations are not government-owned, but are owned and operated by private individuals. There is even a stock exchange in which stock is publicly traded, just like in the US. It has an enviable social welfare system, made possible at least in part by investment in the income derived from its most important natural resource. But it is not a socialist country. If we're going to deal with right-wing accusations about socialism we are going to have to understand what it means.
= new reply since forum marked as read
