Degrees of Wealth

# Summary The author, who lived in Shanghai for eight years before returning to the Netherlands, explores how "wealth" cannot be measured uniformly between countries. While the Netherlands has higher wages and more leisure time, China offers superior technology, convenience, and services at lower costs; the difference reflects how wealth trickles through each economy differently. True wealth depends on which values one prioritizes—whether money, time, trust, health, or convenience—making direct comparisons between countries fundamentally flawed.