# Non Religious countries do better



## johnsweeting (Apr 6, 2012)

I have in many forums and polls read that Atheists are looked upon as the worst thing ever. I will argue here that living in a democratic country with many atheists  is actually a good thing.

Here are the richest countries in the world in GDP (gross domestic product) per person for 2011:

Country 	        US$
1 	 Luxembourg 	122,272
2 	 Qatar 	97,967
3 	 Norway 	96,591
4 	 Switzerland 	84,983
5 	 Australia 	66,984
6 	 United Arab Emirates 	66,625
7 	 Denmark 	63,003
8 	 Sweden 	61,098
9 	 Netherlands 	51,410
10 	 Canada 	51,147
11 	 Singapore 	50,714
12 	 Austria 	50,504
13 	 Finland 	50,090
14 	 Ireland 	48,517
15 	 United States 	48,147
16 	 Belgium 	48,110
17 	 Kuwait 	46,461
18 	 Japan 	45,774
19 	 Germany 	44,558
20 	 France 	44,401


1. Out of the top 20 countries in  the list above, 14 belong to the top 25 atheists countries in the world. 

Here are the top 4 non religious countries in the world:

1. Sweden -  up to 85% atheists - Sweden is leading the world in aid to "poor" countries when looking at giving aid in percent of GDP, Sweden is ranked number one in the world in IT technology, has the most women in the equivalent to the Unites States congress plus many other positive ranks.

2. Denmark - 80% atheist or agnostics. Basically has the same numbers as Sweden with the most aid to poor countries in percentage of GDP. Leader in "happiest country" in the world.

3. Norway - 72% Atheists or agnostics. Once again Norway is really similar to Sweden and Denmark in all the stats about freedom, technology and that the people 
are satisfied with their life.

4. Finland - Has the highest school results of the western world in test results for math, reading (The test is called PISA)

Other countries in the top 25 most atheistic countries include:

Japan 65% atheists - Good economy histrionically and has created many high tech things

South Korea - 52% Atheists  This country is growing and growing and will soon have the same GDP per capita as most western nations

Switzerland - One of the richest and best countries to live in the world.

Poorest countries in the world: All of these except Nepal is over 98% religious meaning less than 2% atheists or agnostics:

164 	 Timor-Leste 	649
165 	 Nepal 	644
166 	 Gambia, The 	620
167 	 Guinea-Bissau 	585
168 	 Rwanda 	585
169 	 Afghanistan 	575
170 	 Mozambique 	551
171 	 Tanzania 	550
172 	 Togo 	511
173 	 Central African Republic 	483
174 	 Eritrea 	473
175 	 Uganda 	453
176 	 Guinea 	438
177 	 Madagascar 	428
178 	 Niger 	        428
179 	 Ethiopia 	351
180 	 Malawi 	350
181 	 Sierra Leone 	347
182 	 Liberia 	258
183 	 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 	211
184 	 Burundi


You can also look at the most religious christian countries:

Honduras - Over 90% religious - Has the most murders in the world
El Salvador - Over 90% religious - Same problems as Honduras

In Europe the worst performing countries economically as of 2012 are - Greece, Spain, Portugal, Ireland - Guess what these have in common when it comes to religion..They 
are very religious.

The best performing countries in Europe are - Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Netherlands - Take a wild guess if the have more atheist. They are all in the top 25 most atheists countries.

Some interesting facts:

This shows the most "happy" countries in the world in which Denmark (80% atheists) is on top. The religious countries are way down below. Of the top 10, 7 are in top 25 most atheistic countries. 

1. Denmark
2. Switzerland
3. Austria
4. Iceland
5. The Bahamas
6. Finland
7 Sweden
8. Bhutan
9. Brunei
10. Canada
_
Participants in the various studies were asked questions related to happiness and satisfaction with life. The meta-analysis is based on the findings of over 100 different studies around the world, which questioned 80,000 people worldwide. For this study data has also been analyzed in relation to health, wealth and access to education. _

Press Freedom Index 2010- All top countries are from top 25 most atheistic countries except Ireland. USA is in place 22. 
1 	Finland 	
- 	Iceland 	
- 	Norway 	
- 	Netherlands 	
- 	Sweden 	
- 	Switzerland 
7 	Austria 	
8 	New Zealand 	
9 	Estonia 	
- 	Ireland 	 	
11 	Denmark 
- 	Japan 	

Least corrupt countries in the world from Transparency International. The most Atheistic countries on top (9 out of these 10 countries are on top 25 most atheistic)

1. 	New Zealand 	
1. 	Denmark 	
1.  	Finland 	
4. 	Sweden 	
5. 	Singapore 	
6. 	Norway 	
7. 	Netherlands 	
8. 	Australia 	
8.  	Switzerland 	
10. 	Canada

Global Information Technology report 2011. Most advanced with IT Technology (8 out of top 10 are most atheistic in the world):

1. Sweden 
Singapore 
Finland 
Switzerland 
United States 
Taiwan, China 
Denmark 
Canada 
Norway 
Korea, Rep.
10. Netherlands 

Most generous countries when it comes to giving aid to poor countries (percent of GDP) - 8 out of top 10 are the most Atheistic :

 Sweden &#8211; 1.12%
 Norway &#8211; 1.06%
 Luxembourg &#8211; 1.04%
 Denmark &#8211; 0.88%
 Netherlands &#8211; 0.82%
 Belgium &#8211; 0.55%
 Finland &#8211; 0.54%
 Ireland &#8211; 0.54%
 United Kingdom &#8211; 0.52%
 France- 0.47%

To sum it up....Atheistic countries in general give more aid to poor countries, have more press freedom, more advanced in technology, have more women in top government positions, are less corrupt and are wealthy.....

My main point is that the facts show that being more non-religious is not that bad which all the statistic show. I wonder how the economy and everything else would be in the USA if they for example would have a non-religious number as for example Sweden. At least it is an interesting question.....


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## amrchaos (Apr 6, 2012)

What was the dominate religion in those nations before the rise of Atheism?


I bet that would produce some very interesting results.  Note:  A good portion of those countries are not in the WEST.  A little History about Singapore or Japan may help explain something about the drop in religious beliefs in some nations


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## FuelRod (Apr 6, 2012)

Are your aid statistics donations by citizens or the governments of these nations?


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## johnsweeting (Apr 6, 2012)

FuelRod said:


> Are your aid statistics donations by citizens or the governments of these nations?



To provide an alternative perspective, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also lists countries by the amount of money they give as a percentage of their gross national income. The list includes international giving through official channels that qualify as Official Development Assistance, and national charitable giving. This list is as follows:

As percent of a county's GDP (Gross Domestic Product):

     Sweden &#8211; 1.12%
     Norway &#8211; 1.06%
     Luxembourg &#8211; 1.04%
     Denmark &#8211; 0.88%
     Netherlands &#8211; 0.82%
     Belgium &#8211; 0.55%
     Finland &#8211; 0.54%
     Ireland &#8211; 0.54%
     United Kingdom &#8211; 0.52%
     France- 0.47%
     Spain &#8211; 0.46%
     Switzerland &#8211; 0.45%
     Germany &#8211; 0.35%
     Canada &#8211; 0.30%
     Austria &#8211; 0.30%
     Australia &#8211; 0.29%
     New Zealand &#8211; 0.28%
     Portugal &#8211; 0.23%
     United States &#8211; 0.21%
     Greece &#8211; 0.19%
     Japan &#8211; 0.18%
     Italy &#8211; 0.16%
     South Korea &#8211; 0.10%


In the Republican debates they argue that USA gives to much aid but they give much less than other rich countries. Remember that USA is placed 15 when counting the wealth of a country (GDP per capita)


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## FuelRod (Apr 6, 2012)

I'm wondering where the US ranks in giving by individuals are compared to the other Atheist nations you list.


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## johnsweeting (Apr 6, 2012)

FuelRod said:


> I'm wondering where the US ranks in giving by individuals are compared to the other Atheist nations you list.



FuelRod..I don't know that statistics. Here is another interesting fact:

Most Religious US states:

Mississippi: 59 percent are very religious
Utah: 57 percent
Alabama: 56 percent
Louisiana: 54 percent 

Least Religious:

Maine: 25 percent
Vermont: 23 percent are very religious
New Hampshire: 23 percent
Massachusetts: 28 percent

Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana are among the poorest with  low high school graduation rates and Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts are among the wealthiest and among the top when it comes to high school graduation rates.


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## Artevelde (Apr 7, 2012)

johnsweeting said:


> I have in many forums and polls read that Atheists are looked upon as the worst thing ever. I will argue here that living in a democratic country with many atheists  is actually a good thing.
> 
> Here are the richest countries in the world in GDP (gross domestic product) per person for 2011:
> 
> ...



Your figures are fairly ludicrous.

And I guess atheism is why the Soviet Union was such a succes?


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## editec (Apr 7, 2012)

If you want to play the which religion or NON religion is gbetter for the economy game?

Try comparing prdominately historically Protestant nations v Catholic nations game sometime.

Using that misleading METRIC you'll discover that PROTS are more productive than CATHOLICS too.

I don't suppose you've ever heard the phrase:

*coorelation doesn't necessarily mean cuasation.*​


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## whitehall (Apr 7, 2012)

Freedom you dummies. It has nothing to do with religion.


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## Katzndogz (Apr 7, 2012)

It's a crock!  Non religious countries do better is a complete and total piece of leftist BS.

Qatar and Kuwait are both islamic theocracies so they are hardly non religous.  I won't look up all the listed countries to see if they shit stink too so let's just take Denmark.  The claim is 83% atheist.   Really.  No proof for that so let's look at the facts.

Denmark has an OFFICIAL religion written right into their Constitution.  They are Evangelical Lutheran.   Other religions are TOLERATED but Demark itself appears to be very religious indeed.   What percentage of the population is Evangelical Lutheran?  80.7%.   Islam is the second largest religion at 3.6%.

Although religious freedom is guaranteed, the *state-supported Evangelical Lutheran Church *has a membership of *80.7% of the population*. Several other Christian denominations, as well as other major religions, find adherents in Denmark. Islam is now the second-largest religion in Denmark, with the number of Muslims in Denmark estimated at 3.6% of the population.

If the Happiest Country in the world is this religious, maybe we should amend our Constitution to establish Christianity as the official state supported religion.  Rather than 83% atheist, Demark seems to be just over 83% VERY religious.

Denmark


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## Katzndogz (Apr 7, 2012)

I just had to look up one other.  Luxemborg.   Is Luxemborg really athiest?

Well No.

It is, in fact, 87% Roman Catholic.   The balance being Christians of other practices with non believers too small to count.

What is the religion in Luxembourg

I hate liberal lies.   They just can't tell the truth.   The most successful countries are those with a strong religious belief system.    Didn't that list include Japan?  The Japanese remain divided between Shinto and Buddhism.  Or don't these count as religions.

Before anyone believes a liberal pile, look it up.


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## TakeAStepBack (Apr 7, 2012)

> I don't suppose you've ever heard the phrase:
> 
> coorelation doesn't necessarily mean cuasation.


Agreed. Except it's correlation does not imply causation.

You're comparing wildly varying economic policies juxtaposed into religious affiliation. Economics do not deal  in religion on a national bases. As GDP, in today's international economic climate, is a result of trade variations between other nations mainly. Unless the countries are autarkic. Which none of those are at this point or have been in any recent times.


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## Peach (Apr 7, 2012)

TakeAStepBack said:


> > I don't suppose you've ever heard the phrase:
> >
> > coorelation doesn't necessarily mean cuasation.
> 
> ...



Good point, and leftist does not equal "atheist"; I know one atheist, very right wing American.


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## Gadawg73 (Apr 7, 2012)

Most all the atheists I know are Republican.

Religion and party affiliation mean nothing.
Most of the Republicans I know despise Rick Santorum and the religous right.


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## California Girl (Apr 7, 2012)

Ireland one of the wealthiest countries? Is that before or after they received a massive bailout from the EU? 

Clearly, that is one fucked up list.


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## Peach (Apr 7, 2012)

California Girl said:


> Ireland one of the wealthiest countries? Is that before or after they received a massive bailout from the EU?
> 
> Clearly, that is one fucked up list.



And the states listed as NON religious appears to be a fabrication.


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## Katzndogz (Apr 7, 2012)

California Girl said:


> Ireland one of the wealthiest countries? Is that before or after they received a massive bailout from the EU?
> 
> Clearly, that is one fucked up list.



It came off the Huffington Post, what do you expect?


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## Unkotare (Aug 29, 2014)

johnsweeting said:


> Other countries in the top 25 most atheistic countries include:
> 
> Japan 65% atheists - Good economy histrionically and has created many high tech things
> 
> South Korea - 52% Atheists  This country is growing and growing and will soon have the same GDP per capita as most western nations....




Misleading, and highly dubious categorization.


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