Letter: Small objection

Published on Monday 25 October 2010 16:42

Alex Orr (Letters, 22 October) rehashes his argument from an earlier letter (5 October), using GDP per capita figures to prove that small nations can be economically successful, a claim I don't doubt for a minute.

However, to seek to draw inferences about the relative benefits of large and small nations on the basis of a few small - and thus unrepresentative - nations is surely misguided.

For example, on the measure of wealth used by Mr Orr, the USA encompasses more of the world's population than the other 20 most successful nations put together, and is also significantly wealthier. This perhaps suggests that, in terms of aggregate wealth creation, larger is better.

On the other hand, this takes no account of other factors such as wealth distribution within populations, but in turn this perhaps undermines the case for using GDP per capita as a measure of economic success in the first place.

Also, it's a bit rich of Mr Orr to denigrate others for "talking down" and "knocking" Scotland and other nations when he often does the same in relation to the UK, an economic entity which the Scottish people have generally been content to be part of.

However, in his more recent letter Mr Orr at least does not repeat his earlier reference to "mighty Belgium", a remark which I'm sure was not intended to be complimentary.

Stuart Winton

Hilltown

Dundee