What if the playing fields were level?
August 10, 2012 in Investment
What if the playing fields were level in the olympic games? Say all the countries had equal sized populations? This is the question the Wall Street Journal asked yesterday. Today they adjusted for GDP.
So what are the outcomes?
If we measure medal per number of inhabitants itsy teeny weeny Grandada with one gold medal tops the tables!
New Zealand comes into the number two spot, and of the heavy weights Britain tops the rest, every 1.3 million Brits working towards a medal. The US comes in at number 40 and the China behemot languishes inefficiently at #59, needing 18.2 million citizens to produce a medal! India bottoms the table. If they had thepopulation of the US they would have brought home a single medal! As the WSJ comments that would have resulted in a congressional inquiry!
This morning the WSJ calculated the cost of medals adjusted for GDP. Once again the giants languish near the bottom, China at #55 and the US at #59. On this ranking the best heavy weight is Russia with the UK closely second. Once again India grovels in utter shame at the bottom.
So host UK really was a top performer and big may be best but not always most efficient.
Ike Jakson said on August 10, 2012
Bertie
I doubt whether our old World is ready for truths the way you spell them out. Make no mistake; it is good to be alive and we have many good points too. But truth is not our strongest suite.
Keep well.
IkeJ
Bertie said on August 13, 2012
Thanks for the visit, Ike.