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Main => Everything Else => Topic started by: Bones on August 07, 2005, 03:19:16 am

Title: McRich Americans.
Post by: Bones on August 07, 2005, 03:19:16 am
http://www.apesma.asn.au/students_graduates/common/big_mac_index.htm

No wonder you all drive big cars and can afford guns and all your kids go to schools in Beverly Hills.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Goz on August 07, 2005, 03:28:03 am
http://www.apesma.asn.au/students_graduates/common/big_mac_index.htm

No wonder you all drive big cars and can afford guns and all your kids go to schools in Beverly Hills.

On your chart the graduate column is that graduate of high school or college? 45K / year inst enough to get by California.

Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: knuttz on August 07, 2005, 03:43:38 am
On your chart the graduate column is that graduate of high school or college? 45K / year inst enough to get by California.

Quote
APESMA has established the APESMA Big Mac Index to compare graduate engineer salaries internationally.
  :o

I'm guessing recent college BSEE/ME/CE graduate.  Here in North Carolina we can live like kings for 45k/year ... j/k.


Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Bones on August 07, 2005, 03:49:18 am
On your chart the graduate column is that graduate of high school or college? 45K / year inst enough to get by California.

I don't know for sure but we don't really use the term "graduate" for high school. I would assume this is after a university education.

Graduation from high school here is known as Schoolies Week. This is where everybody goes to the Gold Coast for a weekend and gets totally blind and there are people having sex on the beach everywhere.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Zakk on August 07, 2005, 04:02:19 am
That buys a lotta bacon!
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: missioncontrol on August 07, 2005, 11:38:27 am
Here in North Carolina we can live like kings for 45k/year

Don't let the secret out, now everybody will want to move here...........
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: shmokes on August 07, 2005, 12:12:37 pm
Totally blind.  I'm so appropriating that.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: quarterback on August 07, 2005, 02:18:42 pm
On your chart the graduate column is that graduate of high school or college?

I don't know for sure but we don't really use the term "graduate" for high school. I would assume this is after a university education.

University.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Bones on August 07, 2005, 05:13:28 pm
Totally blind. I'm so appropriating that.
C'mon shmokes.... You know you want to.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Goz on August 08, 2005, 12:54:22 am
I asked because I know people who work at Home Depot with nothing more than a High School diploma who make more than 45K a year.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: danny_galaga on August 08, 2005, 01:25:46 am
wow! only 7 minutes to earn a big mac. no wonder americans all drive big cars. its so they can fit their fat arses in! hehe. i did read somewhere that using a big mac as a standard was as relevant and accurate as using gold!
australia doesnt fair very well in that list. part of that is a lot of graduates move oveerseas (including the US and UK) to earn more. still, working a full 3.1 minutes longer to earn a big mac is bad  >:( . well never get big fat arses at this rate!
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: pointdablame on August 08, 2005, 01:31:31 am
45k here in NJ won't get you very far either... you certainly won't have a ton of expendable cash for Big Macs unless you don't need creature comforts like food and a house  :P
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Dexter on August 08, 2005, 06:08:02 am
No wonder you all drive big cars and can afford guns and all your kids go to schools in Beverly Hills.

Theres also no obesity problem, not from what I see on american TV shows.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: TOK on August 08, 2005, 06:46:33 am
wow! only 7 minutes to earn a big mac. no wonder americans all drive big cars. its so they can fit their fat arses in! hehe. i did read somewhere that using a big mac as a standard was as relevant and accurate as using gold!
australia doesnt fair very well in that list. part of that is a lot of graduates move oveerseas (including the US and UK) to earn more. still, working a full 3.1 minutes longer to earn a big mac is bad  >:( . well never get big fat arses at this rate!

Seems it doesn't affect your ability to BE a big ass though!  ;)
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: danny_galaga on August 08, 2005, 10:00:35 pm
wow! only 7 minutes to earn a big mac. no wonder americans all drive big cars. its so they can fit their fat arses in! hehe. i did read somewhere that using a big mac as a standard was as relevant and accurate as using gold!
australia doesnt fair very well in that list. part of that is a lot of graduates move oveerseas (including the US and UK) to earn more. still, working a full 3.1 minutes longer to earn a big mac is bad
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Havok on August 08, 2005, 11:26:22 pm
Mad Cow!
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: cdbrown on August 08, 2005, 11:29:10 pm
It would be nice if they upated that site with current exchange rates.  $1AU = $0.76US at the moment, not the $0.53 as shown on the site.

Danny - I'm planning on moving to the UK at the start of next year and work there. 360 pounds a day is very inviting.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: GameOver on August 09, 2005, 12:20:00 am
That explains why US is offshoring to India - that thar iz sum cheap labor!

Does India even have a McDonalds?  Do they eat burgers?  Or maybe it's a veggie Mc burger?
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: paigeoliver on August 09, 2005, 01:21:27 am
$45,000 allows you an awesome lifestyle in MOST parts of america!!! I make like half that and do just fine.

Not sure if the Big Mac cost in India would be relevant to the study, as I am pretty sure they don't eat beef there (so it isn't the same product to begin with), and I would imagine McD's would be more of a rare novelty type higher priced place in India as opposed to food for the masses.

Of course I am not sure where those Big Mac prices are even coming from, as they vary wildly from location to location WITHIN THE SAME TOWN. My local McD's charges like $2.09 for them, not $3.xx
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: Bones on August 09, 2005, 05:04:42 am
I actually have some real issues when it comes to monetary comparisons between countries.

For example. I went to the Cook Islands awhile back (very nice place BTW), this country uses NZ$ which are so close to AU$, the difference is not worth worrying about. It was like five cents difference in every dollar.

So I go and buy a giant bottle of Barcardi. Here it would have cost around $60.00, there it was $24.00. Whoohoo what a win!! (No, I am not referring to duty free)

But
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: cdbrown on August 09, 2005, 05:22:12 am


Now, to make the Big Mac Index work correctly, take away the third world counties and do the calculation based on the average wage that 65% of your population earns. Then divide this figure by the length of your genitals and you will find that Australian men are very well hung.


But we didn't need to do any calcs to know this
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: JCL on August 09, 2005, 10:22:14 am
I actually have some real issues when it comes to monetary comparisons between countries.




This is a very real concern and is why the Big Mac metric is better than just comparing exchange rates. Labor costs, capital costs, and material costs all figure in to the price of a product like a Big Mac.

Comparing alcohol prices probably includes mostly tariffs and taxes. Same with gasoline. Entertainment is labor dominated, and many import products are likely freight dominated in a place like an island.

So it is hard to come up with a mix that shows the real buying power of a currency. The Big Mac probably works for the Cook Islands (presuming they have McD's) as it should be close to the "fish and chips" kind of pricing that you say is more typical of products that people commonly buy. Of course, it isn't perfect. For example, if cattle isn't grown on the Cook Islands, then the "fish and chips" might be a better measure if they are all homegrown.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: btoddkelley on August 09, 2005, 04:31:53 pm
The big mac comparison in based on the law of one price.
     In the absence of transportation and other transaction costs, competitive markets will equalize the price of an identical good in two countries when the prices are expressed in the same currency.
     This means that we can compare how long it takes an average citizen of a nation to earn a big mac and come up with a comparative measure of living standards. Big macs work well because they are relatively inexpensive, are not normally transported, and are not subject to any special taxes or tariffs.  these conditions allow a lot of people to buy them, and prevent  production from being outsourced.
     I had to chime in since someone deleted the political thread. I was ready to discuss the problems of placing a regression over a bar graph!


Todd
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: danny_galaga on August 09, 2005, 09:10:34 pm
It would be nice if they upated that site with current exchange rates.
Title: Re: McRich Americans.
Post by: cdbrown on August 10, 2005, 04:47:05 am
yes very confused, annoyed that they didn't even update the online one.