[Tuco-bad]

The average American WORKER (as opposed to those who pretend to work while whining all the while about how much better then next guy has it--looked in the mirror lately?) has the highest standard of living BY FAR of any nation on earth.

How do you define "standard of living".

BTW - The typical European worker gets around 8 weeks vacation, not a bad "standard of living".

[sinclair]

BTW - The typical European worker gets around 8 weeks vacation, not a bad "standard of living".

"The average American WORKER (as opposed to those who pretend to work while whining..."

I believe Illbay defined his "Standard of Living" quite adequately.

[Slainte]

If you want 8 weeks of vacation, negotiate for it. If you're damn good at what you do, and unskilled labor in Mexico can't do it, and there aren't two dozen other people in line with the same qualifications who can do exactly what you do, but will do it for less than you're willing to do it for, you'll get your 8 weeks of vacation. It's all in what you bring to the table and how much extra that's worth to the employer.

Everyone wants the deal for themselves when they spend the money, whether it's on a car, a stereo, the toaster, a loaf of bread. But they can't seem understand why an employeer wants to pay as little for labor as possible. If the only thing you can do is shovel dirt, well there are a lot of people who can meet that minimum criteria, and they may just want the work more than you do.

[Mr. Jeeves]

BTW - The typical European worker gets around 8 weeks vacation, not a bad "standard of living".

In the United States, you can become an independent contractor and take as many weeks off as you want. The IRS may hate it, but it is still legal.

There is nothing holy about a "job" - it is simply a outdated custom, a pseudo-guarantee of security in return for loyalty. Put more simply, a job is just contract employment on terms exceptionally favorable to the employer.

[Lizavetta]

BTW - The typical European worker gets around 8 weeks vacation, not a bad "standard of living".

Reminds me of my mother's book on Iceland she was reading before she visited....These two sentences were one right after the other (I'm paraphrasing): "Iceland enjoys one of the highest standards of living in the world....has comprehensive welfare benefits..." and right after that said "The average citizen in Iceland works 2 jobs and sometimes overtime to pay the taxes."

All depends on what you want out of a country, I guess. I prefer freedom from servitude to the state, regardless of how much vacation there is.