Free spirits are like fine cognac ... they just get better with age

[steven meglitsch]

I'm an expatriot American that's been living in Europe since the paleolithic era at the end of the '60s. I flaked around Europe for a few very long years before I settled in Norway ... I met this girl, you see.
I work now in the Norwegian Government with migrations and minorities issues. I work closely with minority communities and organizations ... a very multilingual, multicultural context that I love.
Am looking forward to early retirement the coming year ... maybe I'll flake around again a decade or two before I depart this planet.

[steven meglitsch]

Norwegians are neither particularly good nor bad at the environmental thing. On the good side they have banned some bad stuff, and have some good environmental policies. On the down side the entire economy is dependent on pumping and selling oil to the world. On the good side they have done a wonderful job of protecting some endangered species like the osprey, the Atlantic puffin, the lynx, the polar bear, and the wolf. On the down side they cling to whale and seal hunting.

As to the socialism of Norway and New Zealand (I've lived in both those countries) If you want to build a society based on social decency and social responsibility these small, out-of-the-way counties work well on the democratic socialist welfare state. Getting socialism to work well in a society on the scale of the old USSR or China hasn't ever given the best possible results.

But looking around the world it's hard to say that we have any example of massive societies that are a good model for the future. The "west" has done some things right after WWII and people have benefitted from it. But the West and North have done so to absolute detriment of the East and South. Africa, most of Latin America and a vast chunk of Asia are an economic shambles.

Well, Jeanne, thanks for the note ... I can't claim to have become much wiser over the years but I still cling to the hope that some day I will discover I have become a wise old man.

[Jeanne]

I'm married to a New Zealand citizen whose ex-wife is Norwegian. Their daughter/my stepdaughter, has triple citizenship. There are many things to admire about the socialist systems of Norway and New Zealand, one being - their child and family services is so much more humane than America. ...and didn't Norway ban mercury? Bravo!

As for the flaking around... you'll likely be more productive and beneficial than before. Before you were gathering and searching, after... you will be reaping and sharing what you've gleaned; you'll be rid of the travails of youth, more concentrated and equanimous, rich with the wisdom of your experiences, confident in your purpose and too tired to care what others think. Good luck with that!