Americans have inaccurate opinions about Europe. Liberals think it’s better and conservatives think it’s worse than it really is. I spent the first 30 years of my life in Europe, but I now live in America. Since starting this blog, I’ve compared job security, family friendliness, convenience, air conditioning, trains and meadows between the two places. Sometimes one place comes out ahead, sometimes the other, but mostly it’s matter of taste.
There is however no denying that in economically, America has in recent years pulled away from Europe. I’ve seen people try to explain that away, none of them convincingly. And it’s not just in comparison to America that Europe is falling behind, but also in comparison to other regions like East Asia.
A recent Works in Progress podcast discusses what may be going on. Their most likely explanation? Labor market regulation. Never addressed: Why do other developed countries like Canada and New Zealand suffer from similar economic malaise, even though their labor market regulation is quite different from Europe?
Nehaveigur 