Quote:
Originally Posted by el_draco
.... and the measurement is always in $ Hardly valid. One just about every other measure, we're deep in it. I'd love to see a measure of GDH rather than GDP. In that regard, we all pretty much need Valium.  |
You can use lots of different measures to measure wealth, like GDP per person (which makes Lichtenstein the second richest country on the planet), or average wealth per person, which puts lots of other countries ahead of us.
But for the average person in the country, Credit Swisse's median measure is the most accurate and relevant.
Basically, the richest 10% of Australians own 50% of the wealth. In comparison, in America they own around 75%, and in the UK they own around 84%. And it get worse in other countries.
So it matters little to the average citizen if a country has the highest average wealth or highest average GDP per person, as that average is bumped up by billionaires who own most of it.
The median measure shows that governments in Australia of both persuasions have for the most part set things up to spread the wealth much more evenly among the population.
Regards,
Renato