By Eddie
June 17, 2018: Copenhagen, Denmark
After the posting on Denmark last week, I thought I should go there and see for myself. Ok, not completely true, but I am here in Copenhagen, passing through on a previously planned business trip. I spent a relaxing afternoon wandering around town, observing. This was not my first visit to Copenhagen and my personal impression is that the people here are freer than Americans, at least in some ways. So let’s see.
Denmark routinely ranks amongst the happiest countries in the world, ranking number three this year according to Forbes. It is also amongst the highest taxed countries in the world making it a poster child for social welfare. Go figure. Maybe they’re just drinking too much Carlsberg.
But are they free? That is what we were talking about. You know how these socialist countries run. They can’t really be free. For overall freedom, they do just fine pulling in numbers better than the USA overall (a little less on economic but a good bit more on personal). I wonder why we aren’t number 1 in both personal and economic freedom. I suspect if we fought for it, we would have it.
This difference in freedom is noticeable in Copenhagen as well as many other countries throughout Western Europe. So why do some Americans ridicule these countries or act as if they are our enemy? I’ve seen a popular right-wing news commentator ridicule Amsterdam for having more freedom than we do. Today some Americans act as if our friends are China and Russia and countries like Canada, France (remember ‘freedom’ fries) and Germany are not to be trusted.
Once on a family vacation to France, we played a little game: “Point out all of the things that would make a Republican’s head explode.” We found a lot and these were all freedoms derided by some Americans and many Republicans. I’ll leave you with this quote:
“I’m the enemy because I like to think. I like to read. I’m into freedom of speech and freedom of choice. I’m the kind of guy that could sit in a greasy spoon and wonder, gee, should I have the T-bone steak or the jumbo rack of barbecue ribs or the side order of gravy fries? I want high cholesterol. I would eat bacon and butter and buckets of cheese. Okay? I want to smoke Cuban cigars the size of Cincinnati in the nonsmoking section. I want to run through the streets naked with green Jell-O all over my body reading Playboy magazine. Why? Because I might suddenly feel the need to. Okay, pal?”
-Dennis Leary (Demolition Man)
