I think her stances on all important political and economic issues were better than Trump’s. The American people want unpredictable tariffs, authoritarianism, and an end to the rules-based international order that the US established in the wake of the second world war. She offered a reasonable alternative, and it was rejected by the American people. I don’t think she should need to be ashamed about that.

The author claims that Norway is the only Nordic country that isn’t in the EU. This is false. Iceland might be small, but it’s still a country.

In the current economic climate an EU membership seems appealing, but I’m not sure it’s the right choice in the medium-term. Norway has a very different, natural-resource heavy economy than the rest of the EU, and monetary policy would not alway align. I also think it’s important to try to maintain control over fisheries to a larger degree than the EU allows, and I already think the country is making too many concessions in this area.

Like a lot of European countries, Norway is a member of NATO. Even though the US can’t be relied upon anymore, I would still consider it a more credible defensive alliance than the EU. That’s why Finland and Sweden joined last year.

The author says that “…the EU [is] the only organisation for collective European agency in world affairs, and there is safety in numbers.” But the EU does not agree on anything. A third of the European parliament consists of Eurosceptics, and because of internal disagreements between member states, any shared foreign policy ends up completely milquetoast.

No other Scandinavian country has a wealth tax. In the EU, Spain is the only country that officially has a wealth tax. In Spain it only kicks in if your assets are worth more than 3 million Euro (around 35 million NOK). In Norway, you start paying a yearly 1% wealth tax on all your assets, once your net worth reaches 140k Euro.

I am working class. I make basically an average wage here in Norway and I am strongly opposed to the wealth tax in its current form. The retirement age is raised constantly. (It’s been raised to 72 years starting next year for full benefits.) The publicly financed pension scheme is unsustainable, and already inadequate to live a decent life. If you’re lucky, your employer has a good pension scheme. If you don’t, you have to invest money yourself.

It is said that a sustainable withdrawal rate for retirement savings is around 3%. But if you live in Norway, capital gains are taxed at 40%. (The second highest rate in Europe.) Additionally you have to pay a wealth tax equivalent to 1% of all your assets every year. So you basically need to save twice as much as you would in most countries to achieve a sustainable withdrawal rate in retirement. This is not beneficial for the working class. It makes it more difficult to retire, and keeps the working class working.

They could increase the minimum deduction to 40 million NOK or something similar to what Spain does, and people could save for a decent retirement without incurring a wealth tax. Revenue wouldn’t even be affected that much, because most of the revenue from the wealth tax comes from the top anyway. Not to mention that our neighboring Scandinavian countries can deliver very similar public services without any wealth tax at all.

An “arms race” for who has the biggest vehicle

This is already the case everywhere. The average car is still quite a bit heavier in the US, but the average weight of a car in the EU has also increased by several hundred kg these past years. The people want big, heavy, inefficient SUVs. https://www.sustainabilitybynumbers.com/p/global-car-economy

“It’s safer for me.”

“I have space for my things.”

“I sit high up and can see really far.”

I did not use ChatGPT. I wrote and formatted all of that myself. I used Bjørn Nyland’s banana box test (google docs link) and ADAC’s measurements where they were available. The only number I could find on Tesla’s website was “2138 L”, which seemed unrealistic to me, and I assumed ADAC would have more objective data.

I stand corrected about the indicator stalk. I still don’t believe it has a shift stalk. The website only mentions the touch screen and overhead buttons, and Top Gear says that it doesn’t have one.

VW was founded by nazis, sure. But they are not actively supporting nazis currently. Tesla is supporting authoritarianism, immigration detention centres, and one-sided and unpredictable trade barriers that impose an unfair disadvantage on European manufacturers. And the company’s CEO actually performs nazi salutes at rallies. Surely you can see the difference? I wouldn’t suggest that you buy a German car in the thirties.

I think this should be a big part of your purchasing decision. By collectively not supporting Tesla, we can make them change their policies. You don’t make a lot of concessions when buying a Hyundai or Skoda instead. And if you like competition so much, maybe you shouldn’t buy from the company that supports massive tariffs on European, Japanese, and Korean cars?

Tesla Model Y AWD LR

• Boot space: 9 + 1 banana boxes/420 L (ADAC)
• Power: 384 hp
• Range: 568 km
• Price: 535 813 NOK

KIA EV6 AWD LR

• Boot space: 9 banana boxes
• Power: 325 hp
• Range: 546 km
• Price: 519 900 NOK

VW ID.4 GTX Businessline

• Boot space: 9 banana boxes /455 L (ADAC)
• Power: 340 hp
• Range: 563 km
• Price: 524 272 NOK

Skoda Elroq RS

• Boot space: 8 banana boxes/470 L (manufacturer says so)
• Power: 335 hp
• Range: 547 km
• Price: 486 700 NOK

BMW i4 xDrive40

• Boot space: 5 banana boxes/470 L (manufacturer says so)
• Power: 400 hp
• Range: 533 km
• Price: 617 000 NOK

Software is subjective, I guess. But in my opinion always-on heavy regenerative braking, no indicator stalk, shift buttons in the ceiling, and a complete lack of other buttons, are pretty glaring issues. The Tesla is in no way leaps and bounds ahead of the competition.

By buying a Tesla, you are choosing to support a company that actively works against the rules-based international order, and against the interests of the country you live in. You are supporting them with hundreds of thousands of kroner. Our position as consumers is the only way we can effect change in today’s world, and by supporting Tesla you are wasting it.

Which model Mercedes did you drive? I’ve heard good things about the iX, but haven’t driven it. Unfortunately I don’t have money for a car. But if I did, I’d be tempted to get a new CLA.

I haven’t driven any EVs by BMW or Mercedes, but I assume that they’ve improved since they started making them. The new CLA does not look like it’s completely outclassed by the Hyundais: 800 Volt architecture, 320 kW DC charging, highly efficient, decently serviceable drivetrain, comes as an estate. The only advantage the Koreans have is price, and simulated gear shifts on the N models. But in return your car will be ethically produced in Europe, and not made by a company that refuses to withdraw from the Russian market.

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In Norway e-bikes are extremely strictly regulated: They need to have a power output of 250 W or less, motor output has to be linked to your pedaling movements, and the motor has to shut off completely when you reach 25 km/h. Anything more than that and you need to register it as a scooter/motorcycle. At which point you need a drivers licence, insurance, and can no longer ride it on bike paths. I was under the impression that this was an EU requirement. But maybe S-Pedelecs are treated like normal bicycles in the rest of Europe?

Wie in den Vereinigten Staaten?

French and UK nukes

You can’t rely on another country starting a nuclear war to protect your country’s territorial integrity. And would you really want to use nuclear weapons in response to a conventional attack? It would in effect render the planet uninhabitable for humans for a long while.

…very little showed for absurd amount of spending

Spending inefficiencies are an issue that would need to be addressed, and spending and industrial capacity would need to be increased gradually.

Which countries specifically at which times?

I was wrong. Sweden was at 4% for a little while in the sixties.

If you think we should mimic Russia, whose resources should pay for our armies?

I don’t think we should mimic Russia. I think we should help the Ukraine defend itself, so that Russia’s way of doing things doesn’t pay off. I also think that we should have a credible conventional defense for when they’re done in the Ukraine and start invading the Baltic countries. In order to do this, spending has to increase.

To defend against a possible Russian threat requires more EU unity and integration, rather than more individual military spending.

Ideally, spending, R&D, and manufacturing should be coordinated across the EU. This is however not realistic. The EU can’t even agree on increasing sanctions. Euro sceptics are the largest party in Germany, France, and Italy. And they’re becoming more and more popular everywhere. A credible defense seems difficult without European integration, but I don’t think it’s something we can rely upon.

We live in a world where governments don’t care about human rights, the rules of war, or rules-based trade. Without a credible defence and a strong economy, you will all be at the mercy of the US, China, and Russia. If the war in Ukraine wasn’t enough to convince you, the Trump administration should be. It’s also not wasted money if you invest in the domestic defense industry. And we’ve spent at this level before without invading people. But if you think it always leads to invasions, you should be even more worried about increased military spending and military industrial capacity in Russia.

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In Sweden it’s also legal to sell heroin, but buying it is against the law. /s

Will aus ideologischen Gründen nicht in die USA. Ist auch sehr umständlich, weil ich eine amerikanische Akkreditierung bräuchte. Wie viel mehr verdient man in der Scweiz oder Österreich? Und wie sind die Lebenshaltungskosten im Vergleich? Ich stelle mir vor, das Immobilien und Lebensmittel in der Schweiz sehr viel teurer sind als in Deutschland.

In welchen Ländern ist der Gehalt doppelt so hoch wie in Deutschland, und wie kriegt man dort ein Stellenangebot?

Ich hatte bis vor kurzem ein negatives Nettovermögen. Das ist niedriger als die Durschnittsperson auf Haiti, dem ärmsten Land der Welt. Liege jetzt etwas höher, aber keineswegs in den oberen 10%.

Hab leider zu wenig Geld dafür. Und ich mag es neue Orte mit dem Motorrad zu kundschaften.

Ich denke, doch. Kurvige Straßen zu fahren macht Spaß.