That said, it's possible to be in the top few % in a major metropolis anywhere in the world and still feel 'average' simply because the cost of living is so great and you're spending >50% of your income on housing.
[0] https://www.cbs.nl/en-gb/visualisaties/income-distribution
Note however that the chart shows disposable income, which I'm pretty sure is the one after tax. 80k gross is more like 48k after tax.
More than twice the average income? I don't know whether that qualifies as "shitload", but it's not that far away, no?
I'm not really complaining, mind you. It's nice to live in a country where basically nobody sleeps on the street, medical assistance is available (if you really need it) and basically free, the infrastructure is great etc.
Not exactly true outside certain areas, mostly in the US. In The Netherlands for example > 80k euros is considered pretty good pay.
> so much of what we do is boring, and, in the greater scheme of things, pointless
This I would say is actually quite a big problem, one that can lead to burnout in the longer run.