Viking Economics: How the Scandinavians Got It Right – and How We Can Too

FEATURING GEORGE LAKEY – Americans are overworked, underpaid, stressed, and mostly non-unionized. They may lack healthcare, or pay too much for it. They may pay through the nose for childcare, and often live paycheck to paycheck, just one calamity away from total bankruptcy. That’s the story for most of us 99 percenters.

The one percenters on the other hand are swimming in millions and billions of dollars, get the best healthcare money can buy, own multiple homes and yachts, gold plated bathroom fixtures, send their kids to the best universities and get out of paying taxes.

But in other parts of the world such a depressing order has become a thing of the past. In Scandinavian countries like Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark, people are healthier, get paid more, work fewer hours, have paid vacations, affordable child care, and more. What do the Scandinavians get so right that we get so wrong here in the US? And how can we get what they have? My guest George Lakey is here to answer those crucial questions.

George Lakey, former Eugene M. Lang Visiting Professor for Issues in Social Change at Swarthmore College, has led more than a thousand workshops all over the world and been involved in activist projects at the local, national and international levels. His new book is called Viking Economics: How the Scandinavians Got It Right – and How We Can Too.