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Comment by jbarham | Hacker News Reader

When daddy eventually goes back to work he probably won't feel so blissful about paying Swedish taxes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxation_in_Sweden

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The real effective tax rate in the U.S., while nowhere near Swedish taxes, is much higher than you might suspect.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Taxes/Advice/YourRealTa...

When I roll my family's healthcare and education costs into my tax burden, I'm not seeing anything for a Swedish father to be all that upset about.

I guess you get what you pay for - higher taxes, great welfare state. Seems a fair trade to me.

I would also say that the grandparent does little to convince anyone that this policy causes the high taxation in Sweden. It might be, but a snarky comment is not a good argument.

> I guess you get what you pay for - higher taxes, great welfare state. Seems a fair trade to me.

Actually, the taxes paid per person isn't significantly higher in sweden than the US. The US just delivers fewer services, and no, the military isn't the reason. At the same time, US income is higher.

Sweden can do certain things because it's dominated by Swedes. It does about as well as US states with comparable demographics. Other US states aren't as lucky.

Having just moved from New York to Minneapolis, I second your 2nd point.

I've never heard any of my colleagues in Sweden complain about their tax levels. I've been to Sweden a number of times and it seems like a rather civilized place to me.

I heard my Swedish cousin complain plenty about her tax rates when she came to California (!) for a shopping spree.

I'd be very surprised if nobody in Sweden complained about their tax levels - I was just commenting that in the cases where I have been in Sweden (talking to senior well educated people in good jobs) they emphasize the good things, like paternity leave, rather than complaining about tax levels.

I complain about it all the time, but then again I'm not a employee and I see what I pay in taxes. Which is roughly double what employees "think" they pay in taxes. To use a swedish phrase, it's so "fiffigt ordnat" that half the taxes you pay doesn't show up on the income declaration.

I'm fully aware of the total amount my employer pays every month, and I don't mind it one bit because I know how much it helps others.

The US is approaching this level (state + municipal + federal) with arguably less to show for it.

If you have high taxes, wouldn't you like to receive a benefit?

> with arguably less to show for it

We have lots of roads...

Mainly because of our excessive military spending, and our health care system that brilliantly combines the drawbacks of capitalism and socialism while avoiding nearly all of the benefits of either.

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