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Society & Culture
Happiness
Contentment
Human Nature

“…the research behind the World Happiness Report asks respondents to rate their lives on a scale of one to ten, with ten representing ‘the best possible life for you,’ and one representing the worst. …. the key, says Savolainen, is their low expectations. They don’t expect much, so they are highly satisfied, and, thus, very ‘happy.’” - Veith

Discussion

Fri, 05/14/21

I was prepared to say “what about their suicide rates?”, but then I looked them up, and lo and behold, they’re not that bad. All actually a bit better than the U.S. We might say that the secret Dr. Veith refers to here is, in fact, contentment. Given low churchgoing rates, OK, maybe not Godly contentment, but contentment nonetheless. We don’t need to, or want to„ copy the Norsemen in everything, but we might learn a bit here.

Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.