Happiness is in severe deficit today. There is so much doom and gloom everywhere, no matter what country one looks at. Economic anxiety and divisive politics are the main drivers of the widespread malaise. How does anyone even attempt to put together a world happiness or human development index in such a depressing environment?

The UN makes the effort. Its annual Human Development Index (HDI) measures the overall well-being of a country’s citizens based on three criteria: life expectancy, number of years of schooling, and gross national income (GNI) per capita. The scoring is on a scale from 0 to 1, with a mark of 0.800 or higher considered very high and anything below 0.550 viewed as low. In the 2025 HDI, Iceland topped the chart with a score of 0.972, while South Sudan was at rock bottom with 0.388.

According to The Economist, the HDI data suggest that New Zealand, which tied with the U.S. and Liechtenstein for the number 17 spot (each country scored 0.938), should be a good place to live. And yet, record numbers of New Zealanders are emigrating to live and work in Australia and elsewhere. The Economist asks: “What explains the Kiwis’ improbable flight?”

The Economist says that about 129,000 citizens emigrated from New Zealand in 2024. That number is said to be 40 percent above the pre-pandemic average. The country “has been in a rut,” according to the newspaper, with an economy in recession and unemployment rising. Departing Kiwis blame expensive housing and surging crime for their exit. One leaver is quoted as writing in a Facebook post that “New Zealand is a sinking boat.”

Numbers can tell a story. But in my long life and many travels, I have learned that data don’t always paint a true picture of how people feel about where they live. Ordinarily, there wouldn’t be much to write home about a 17th-place finish in any contest. But when people in much of the rest of the world vote with their feet, the direction of travel tends to be toward America. That includes citizens from many of the countries that placed above the U.S. in the 2025 HDI. Whatever the quality-of-life indicators say about America, the opportunities this country offers people to make something of themselves are unparalleled and remain a strong magnetic pull.

“Nowhere cool” is a popular Ghanaian maxim. Its message is that life is not necessarily better in other places, no matter what rosy pictures are painted of those outside worlds. We have massive problems in America today, but that hasn’t prompted me to look over fences for greener pastures. Lush vegetation is always beautiful, but there can be all kinds of nasty surprises lurking beneath it. I should know. I still have constant nightmares from the many encounters I had with deadly snakes in the virgin Ghanaian forest where I spent much of my childhood.

This holiday season, I am thankful for the life I have in 17th-ranked America.