Want a happy, healthy childhood? Choose Norway...

Or Denmark, or France, or even Britain. But avoid the USA. The OECD evaluated 21 variables for children under 18 in six categories ranging from material well-being, housing, education, health and safety, risky behavior, and the quality of school life. The US compared badly: out of 30 OECD countries, the US ranked 23rd (material well being), 12th (housing & environment), 25th (educational well-being), 24th (health and safety), 15th (risky behavior) and 14th (quality of school life).

In the same article, The Economist highlights findings that America suffers a distressingly high degree of 'persistence of earnings': the rich stay rich, and the poor stay poor. To be clear: "the poorest American children are considerably more likely than are their European peers to stay poor."

For a summary see: The Economist. For the report itself, go here.