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 Oprah on Location: The Happiest People on Earth

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matty471 Posted - Oct 22 2009 : 10:39:02 AM
Did anyone catch this show yesterday?

I did not watch it all but Oprah visited: 2 families in Copenhagen, Denmark (the happiest people on earth), a women in Dubai, a women and her maid in Rios, Brazil.

The portrayal was quite interesting.
15   L A T E S T    R E P L I E S    (Newest First)
fern Posted - Nov 09 2009 : 2:20:50 PM
I must be reacting weirdly to this Danish segment. I usually associate with happy people too, and lo and behold none of them are Danish.
Were they smug about it or was I just jealous of the blonde, thin, we are a perfect family and also a perfect people vibe, I am not sure. Maybe they are more satisfied, not necessarily happier than a lot of other nations,since let's face it life is really ordered and secure which is great.
Call me crazy but I would rather go to Brazil, I like their kind of expressive happiness without a touch of smug.
mm1970 Posted - Nov 08 2009 : 07:36:38 AM
quote:
Originally posted by fern

I have four kids, I'm not seeing the number of kids connection here since I have a small house, it was the sterile,step-fordishly perfection that annoyed me. I got the feeling the Danes were acting "perfectly happy and danish" for the camera of course maybe it's just me.


FYI most Danish apartments don't look like that. At least, none of the ones that I've seen! And most of the Danes that I know are that happy, but it might be just they are from happy families. You know, for example, I just try not to associate with unhappy people.
notaclam Posted - Nov 05 2009 : 05:22:08 AM


Space Odyssy 2001.
fern Posted - Nov 04 2009 : 7:17:12 PM
I have four kids, I'm not seeing the number of kids connection here since I have a small house, it was the sterile,step-fordishly perfection that annoyed me. I got the feeling the Danes were acting "perfectly happy and danish" for the camera of course maybe it's just me.
IshbelRobertson Posted - Nov 04 2009 : 2:55:51 PM
quote:
Originally posted by matty471

Kind of remind me of that Portuguese couple who daughter got kidnapped some years okay. The parents were in a separate room enjoying dinner while the kids were in their villa sleeping.



They were not Portugese - they were English, on holiday with a group of friends. Their daughter, Maddie was snatched from a bedroom in their villa. They were eating about 80 metres from the front door of the villa.

Her distraught parents are still doing everything they can to find Madeleine.

Here's the website http://www.findmadeleine.com/
hapathy Posted - Nov 04 2009 : 1:04:12 PM
I don't know that house is like a thousand times nicer than my apartment, so for sure I could live in it, and it would definitely be moving up in the world for me. It would be a bit cramped with 3 kids though! Then again I can't imagine ever wanting 3 kids either (too many)! I also do kind of like private bathrooms ... oh and baths, I like baths :).
matty471 Posted - Nov 04 2009 : 10:43:38 AM
Kind of remind me of that Portuguese couple who daughter got kidnapped some years okay. The parents were in a separate room enjoying dinner while the kids were in their villa sleeping.
rebecca31 Posted - Nov 03 2009 : 03:17:02 AM
We visited Legoland in Denmark six years ago. People did not worry about the safety of their children. The hotel had unsupervised play areas all around, the children were labeled with their room code in case they got lost in the hotel. Our daughter was fussed at by the front desk because she didn't put anything but her first name on a picture she did. It was posted in the lobby. I told the woman we would never identify in the US because of security reasons. The children were fed quickly in the hotel and mom and dad had a relaxing dinner while the children left to play.

Our other experience there was on an island. It was beautiful and energy independent. We were not allowed to run the water in the shower, leave even a night light on, or do anything else that would use a speck of extra energy because it is so expensive. They have mostly taxed there way to energy independence. I don't know about most Danes, but out landlady was not a happy person.
notaclam Posted - Nov 02 2009 : 09:20:36 AM
Way to large.
I mean the house.
However, I do not have 3 kids.
BTW isn't that way to many kids? ... Global warming producers!

Anyhow,Oprah's head would explode if she saw how minimal I live.
If Oprah had to live simple it would kill her.
She is use to going to Auctions in Pa and buying 130k in shaker furniture..she is so simplistic don't ya know.
Even with a personal trainer and nutritionist she can not maintain her weight? But,I digress.
Thats entertainment!

Ahyhow,I must be happier than the Danish...?
Although,I am quite contented.
Mostly because I don't watch Oprah.
I digress, again.

I know a lot of people who live in freakishly large houses, with junk everywhere, who are quite happy...? How can that be they must be insane..they can't be happy...?
Tenn Gal Posted - Oct 29 2009 : 10:47:44 AM
did not like the apartment, but do see some wisdom in paying higher taxes and not having the education, healthcare and retirement worries......I am afraid that corporate greed in this country will never allow this to happen for us in our lifetime.
fern Posted - Oct 28 2009 : 5:31:14 PM
Um no that Danish apartment looked like a hospital room.
Freein05 Posted - Oct 27 2009 : 08:04:44 AM
A small kids bedroom means no room for a TV. That is a very good thing. An article on the news today stated that US kids from the age of 2-5 watch something like 35 hours of TV a week. Most of the kids in this age group have the TV in their room.
Granola.girl Posted - Oct 27 2009 : 05:05:27 AM
The Danish apartment appeared to be a high-end, architect-designed space. While most apartments in Denmark are perhaps not that posh, it probably has typical elements in terms of square footage, number of bathrooms, kitchen appliances, and so on. There was another Danish apartment featured on the show, and it seemed more representative of what is truly typical.

I agree with Karen in Bisbee...the kids' cave looked fun. Do very young kids really need a lot of personal space? The apartment seemed to have ample floor space, and I imagine the kids are free to bring their toys out into the main areas.

sewmaven Posted - Oct 27 2009 : 05:02:21 AM
It's hard for many of us to think about 40 - 60% taxes perhaps because the way the money is spent or not spent. One thing one of the Danish women said when asked about the high tax rate is that they like what they get for their money - health care, college, year-off maternity leave, taking care of their elderly, etc. She couldn't understand why the U.S. didn't want a healthy, educated populace. I thought it was a good point, but not so simple here in the U.S. I don't know enough about Danish culture, politics, history to understand how it all works so well, but seems pretty nice to me.
sneedle Posted - Oct 27 2009 : 03:48:23 AM
Greenwitch, Dubai actually doesn't have much oil. It has natural gas, which isn't shipped to the United States. It's Abu Dhabi that has the oil. I know because I lived and worked there for 6 years.

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