The welfare states (“nanny states”) are better for business investors too.

Conservatives like to denounce the “nanny states” that take care of people’s health, invest in good education, and serve the broad public interest in other ways.

Conservatives instead prefer neoliberal “free-market” governments that do NOT invest in those, but rather keep governments small and weak so businesses can dominate those nations.

Actually, an article from the very “free-market” and “free-enterprise” business-oriented Forbes magazine (cited on page 15 of the Jan-Feb 2018 issue of the economically left Dollars & Sense magazine (www.dollarsandsense.org) reported some important economic findings.

“[I]n 2016 Forbes ranked Sweden number one on its list of the top countries in which to do business.  If we scroll down the same list, the top ten countries include Denmark, Holland, Finland, Norway, Ireland, England, and Canada.  On average, their states account for 30-45% of DDP.  Ironically, the very countries that are bastions of so-called welfare states (derogatorily called ‘nanny states’) are considered by the pro-capitalist press to be the best places for business investors.”

Those countries invest in their populations’ education, health and well-being, so these are better workers and more affluent consumers with more economic equality and social justice.  These make for a better “business climate” than the brutality and gross inequality and bad health and massive poverty in the U.S.

 

About GlenAnderson 1499 Articles
Since the late 1960s Glen Anderson has devoted his life to working as a volunteer for peace, nonviolence, social justice, and progressive political issues. He has worked through many existing organizations and started several. Over the years he has worked especially for such wide-ranging goals as making peace with Vietnam, eliminating nuclear weapons, converting from a military economy to a peacetime economy, abolishing the death penalty, promoting nonviolence at all levels throughout society, and helping people organize and strategize for grassroots movements to solve many kinds of problems. He writes, speaks, and conducts training workshops on a wide variety of topics. Since 1987 he has produced and hosted a one-hour cable TV interview program on many kinds of issues. Since 2017 he has blogged at https://parallaxperspectives.org He lives in Lacey near Olympia WA. You can reach him at (360) 491-9093 glen@parallaxperspectives.org