William (an economist) has responded to my question below about Ireland having the second highest per capita income in the world.
It seems that the answer is, "No, it's not true". William cites a report from the OECD, which shows Ireland is 4th, not second in GDP per capita. But, more importantly, he explains the difference between GDP and income (GNP), which I had confused as had the Globe and Mail.
So, Ireland is 4th (accepting the OECD report that William cites) in productivity, but 9th in income. My initial reaction to this is that we (in Ireland) are getting ripped off. But, then I think about those low tax rates that the IFSC banks & other foreign companies here exploit and I wonder if that's the source of our great productivity. It's not that we necessarily work harder, it's just that our corporate taxes are lower.
