Phantasmix Stock Market Blog

Source: School of Psychology, University of Leicester

My comments are italicized:

The 20 happiest nations in the World are:

1. Denmark
2. Switzerland – figures
3. Austria
4. Iceland
5. The Bahamas - I can see that (pretty much any island except maybe Haiti)
6. Finland – really? Finland is leading in suicides
7. Sweden – same here: they’re happy despite not even getting enough sunlight?
8. Bhutan
9. Brunei – no surprise there: sun and money
10. Canada – ooookay
11. Ireland
12. Luxembourg
13. Costa Rica
14. Malta
15. The Netherlands
16. Antigua and Barbuda
17. Malaysia
18. New Zealand
19. Norway
20. The Seychelles

Other notable results include:

23. USA
35. Germany
41. UK
62. France
82. China
90. Japan
125. India
167. Russia

The three least happy countries were:

176. Democratic Republic of the Congo
177. Zimbabwe
178. Burundi

Finding total happiness is the ultimate goal for many people — but should it be? New research suggests that if wealth and success are also at the top of your list, the two goals may be somewhat incompatible.

Diener and his colleagues used data from the World Values Survey, which measures the happiness of respondents on a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 the happiest). They found that income did indeed increase along with happiness but not at the very top. The 10s earned significantly less than the 8s and the 9s. The latter were also more likely to have gone to college, have engaged in the political process and have saved money.

Why is it better to be happy but not euphoric? Diener’s take is that happy – but not too happy – people are strivers. They’re interested in making the sorts of changes necessary to get ahead in life, including engaging in competition (not always a happy pursuit), obtaining more education and changing their behavior when what they’re doing now isn’t working. The 10s, on the other hand, are too complacent to adjust enough…

Extreme optimists (those who overestimated their own life spans by 20 years or more), additional research shows, also behaved in other ways that weren’t good for their future. They accumulated debt and didn’t save. Moderate optimists, recognizing that their luck could run out, saved more than the extreme optimists did.

Source: CNN

In other words, happiness makes you complacent and lazy.

Airlines May Start Treating Passengers “Like Freight”
Finally, being in shape may become lucrative for regular people, not just celebrities

Dow Jones Industrial Average P/E ratio stills stands at a lofty 27.22 (including dividends), it was around 28.2 on June 8 when I checked last. Something’s gotta give: earnings must rise (unlikely judging from the latest announcements) or the market goes down some more.

A High Price for Healthy Food
As of Dec, 2007 “energy-dense munchies cost on average $1.76 per 1,000 calories, compared with $18.16 per 1,000 calories for low-energy but nutritious foods.” Since then healthy food went up in price even more, and more than the junk in percentage terms.

We’re doing our part in staying out of hospitals by eating well, shouldn’t we be able to deduct some of our grocery bills? or at least pay less in medical taxes?

Corn

Some corn uses are: feed for livestock, heating, plastics, fabrics, high fructose corn syrup.

This year corn crop is ruined by rains and floods. Prepare for much higher food prices next year, and possibly shortages. I’ll be looking for some corn stocks or funds, don’t want to try futures since I haven’t really figured out the stock part of the market yet. If you have any ideas on how to play this situation, let me know.

Corn field under water (this is Pennsylvania, Iowa has been flooded much worse).
Photo credit – courane01