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They'll always be individual Americans and Europeans who differ greatly one from another. But overall, are we two peoples becoming more alike than different?
Economist and pundit James Glassman thinks we may be. That troubles him.
(W)hen it comes to public policy, Europe has taken a wrong turn. Its welfare state has sapped initiative and driven jobs abroad. Its treatment of immigrants is shameful. Unemployment is in the double digits, health policy is making people sicker, and foreign policy is based on isolationism and moral posturing.Turning from Europe to America, Glassman asks:
The results are predictable: The countries that use the euro will grow 1.2 percent this year, according to The Economist; the United States will grow 3.5 percent. Similar disparity has prevailed for a decade, and Americans today have a living standard about one-third higher. The notion that Europe will be able to compete with resurgent China and India in the next 30 years is laughable.
Is it inevitable that, as we grow more prosperous, we will become more like Europe - losing initiative, insisting that our governments coddle us? I worry that we are beginning to see the initial signs of just such a turn for the worse.Initial signs of just such a turn? I think we've been making the turn for decades but I'll save that for another day.
Glassman says to get out of the turn America needs a mix of government policies and personal initiative. Government policies should include increased emphasis on science education, rejection of protectionist trade practices, and a restructuring of corporate taxes so American companies can better compete in international markets.
About personal initiative Glassman believes:
The personal counts more (than government action). America has a choice: more like Europe, or more like Asia. Actually, Asia has become more like America in recent years, so the real choice is whether we want to be complacent Europeans or our hard-working, compassionate, imaginative American selves.Glassman over generalizes in that last paragraph. Many Europeans are anything but complacent, and many Americans are anything but hard-working, compassionate and imaginative in the constructive sense Glassman means.
Glassman provides a lot of information and a reasoned argument to convince Americans we need to watch where we're going lest we wind up where we didn't want to be.
Please read his column.
6 comments:
I think we got a long ways to compare to Europe social programs. I think we going more toward capitalism with out any control. Which was one reason communism started. A middle class keeps everything in balance.
I just did a blogg on welfare and see what others was blogging on the welfare subject. If you got time read my blogg about welfare.
Glassman also predicted during the Internet bubble that the Dow was headed to 36,000...that doesn't mean his observations now are not worth noting, but certainly his reputation as a seer is not so great.
I would wonder about his comparison to the "wealth" of Europe.
If you control for emigration I suspect you would find that the average American is much more "propserous" than the average Euro.
-C
You can't split the world into "us and them". We ARE like Europeans, Asians, Africans, and Indians. We are just as prone to boondoggle or success as anyone else. The fact is that the median income in the US, adjusted for inflation, has been going downward for thirty years. People are working longer hours to keep their noses above the water line and have accomplished a savings rate of zero. We keep hearing about how the economy is growing, but the fact is that the growth is not being felt by Average Joe. The Dow is actually down about 2% since Jan. 1, 2004. There are many factors that go into figuring the standard of living, not just the growth of wealth by those at the top. When the availability or inavailability of healthcare and other necessities are factored into the equation, the USA is not even in the top 5. Maybe we should govern ourselves more like the Europeans.
Peppylady,
I read your blog and found it interesting but I don't agree with a lot of it.
But thank you for commenting.
Ed Cone,
You're right. Glassman missed on the 36,000 call. Of course, he's been right on much else. And which of us has a perfect call record?
anonymous C,
I can't think of a respected European economic think tank that would disagree with you. Also, the Financial Times, certainly no cheerleader for the U. S., frequently makes your point.
anonymous,
In some important ways we can't split the world into "us and them." We all have certain basic needs. But in other ways the world is dramatically split into "us and them." For example, some of us want to grant gays and lesbians the right to marry; others don't but have no problem with what they do in private while others view gays and lesbians are criminals. In some countries they are subject to the death penalty.
Thank you all for commenting.
John
Every country can say it is split into "us and them" on a wide variety of devisive issues. In that respect, all peoples and countries are alike, even though some individuals within any sample have trouble acknowledging it.
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