How They Do It Better
Tags: miscellaneous
By: wdporter
An interesting article in U.S. News & World Report about the lessons we can learn from the rest of the world. There’s some really interesting stuff.
My favorites: European urban planning, Dominican Baseball fanatics, German prostitutes as aides to the elderly. Least Favorites: Finnish charging rich people more for traffic tickets, French people have more meaningful conversations at dinner (?), UBER-Budget Airlines.
30 Valuable Lessons That Americans Can Learn From the Rest of the World:
Europe:
- Europe: Giving Drivers the Benefit of the Doubt–Less traffic lights, less accidents, go figure.
- Europe: Flying on the Cheap–charging for wheelchair usage could be considered extreme.
- Europe: Holes That Make for Better Roads–this seems so obviously a good idea.
- Europe: Cities With a Heart–cities that weren’t designed around car traffic are just cooler to hang out in.
- Germany, Netherlands: Making the Streets Safer for Cycling–biking is better.
- Germany: Novel Aides for the Aged–Prostitutes helping old people.
- Netherlands: Abuse as a Disease, Not a Crime–rehab as the focus for drug offenders.
- Netherlands: Below Sea Level? No Problem–New Orleans should be quite jealous.
- Finland: Sticking It to the Scofflaw–traffic fines assessed based on income
- Sweden: Straight Facts About the Birds and Bees
- Norway: Getting Paid for Parenting–we’re talking SERIOUS maternity leave.
- Denmark: Energy Efficiency From the Wind
- United Kingdom: Free Health Coverage for All–
- United Kingdom: Finding Yourself (and the World) in a Year
- Iceland: Pristine Reputation for Government
- France: Talking Is a World-Class Sport–the French are obviously smarter than we are.
- Italy: Food Not as Fuel but as a Way of Life
Carribean/Latin America:
- Dominican Republic: Where Ballplayers Are Born and Made–baseball gloves picked out while in the womb.
- Colombia: All Aboard South America’s Upper-Class Bus–public transportation not just for poor people.
South Asia:
- Japan, South Korea: Want a Drink? Pay With Your Phone–High tech
- Japan: Even the Toilet Is High-Tech–really high tech
- Japan: Skimpy Portions and Satisfied Stomachs–Americans are fat
- Japan: Communing Through Cleaning–
- Japan: More Stressed, but Still Safer
- Taiwan: The Afternoon Nap Attack
- Singapore: When You Litter, You Pay–$1000 fines and community service
- Bhutan: Smoke-Free at the Top of the World–First nation to completely ban smoking.
- Australia: Protection From the Sun
Central Asia:
April 26th, 2007 at 6:24 am
Hi, All,
In regards to the following:
Europe: Giving Drivers the Benefit of the Doubt–Less traffic lights, less accidents, go figure. “Round-Abouts” are a great idea!
Government France: Talking is a World-Class Sport–
Try finding a television program without talking French people on it… Agreed that French people like to argue (whether or not they are pro or con, they pick the opposite side just to have the chance to argue)…The only thing they like better than arguing is talking about food.
Original Article–Higher life expectancy in Costa Rica:
Reasons probably: They eat lots of beans and chicken and they have national health care. (Latest medical reports state that too much beef, pork, coffee, milk, etc., contribute to reducing the body’s ability to fight cancer cells; eating beans, vegetables, fish, and chicken reinforces the body’s ability to kill cancer cells)
Not Included in Report: Suriname’s Maroons don’t have cancer. (These are former slaves who escaped their masters, fled to the jungle and formed tribes there.) Their diet: taro, cassava, beans, and fish. (I won’t mention iguana and larvae.)
Japan: Even the Toilet is High-Tech–
The inventor of the “She-inal”, from Pensacola, Florida, sold the technology to Japan.