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The happiest nations on Earth

Having fallen just short on our attempt to visit Norway during our last European vacation, several years ago, my wife and I had to settle for Denmark and Sweden, instead.

We were assured, however, and ambient observation seem to support the premise, that those two nations seemed to be on a par with Norway, in many of the respects that Signe Wilkinson’s editorial, “Dear Mr. President: Please, no Norwegians!” (Jan. 18) described. Those three nations have taken turns at being described as the “happiest nation on Earth” depending upon how we measure such things.

If Americans should not aspire to Norway’s enviable benefits, cited at the end of the editorial, except by omission, then perhaps we should be content to be assuaged by rhetoric, or to hope, at least, that ours is the nation that Norwegians should yearn for, whether or not we agree with the president’s assessment of immigrants from Norway?

Philip J. Mulligan

Spokane

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