Tyler Cowen explains all in a post that hits all the right notes. Here’s the kernel of his conclusions:
Because European government works better, Europeans demand more of it and get more of it. American liberals look at Europe and see (sometimes) better results per dollar spent. They then conclude that America should be more like Europe, whereas in reality America would end up spending more to get more bad American government. They also conclude that defenders of the American market-based order simply ignore the evidence before their eyes, evidence which supposedly shows the superiority of social democracy.
Market-oriented types look at Europe and think it is on the verge of collapse, when it isn’t. They can’t imagine that it doesn’t, in every way, have American-style government failure.
This corresponds completely to my experiences in both Europe and the United States and conforms to my intuitions about both.
The one thing I would add to Tyler’s model is that the United States is enormously less centralized than Europe. This is probably simultaneously a cause and effect of diversity. Consensus is easier in a European country than it is in the United States and enormously easier in Japan.
Tim Worstall has an interesting take on this:
“Looking at it all from the point of view of an American liberal we can make our second observation. If social democracy will, when attempted over 300 million people, lead to these failures, the obvious answer for those desiring social democracy is to attempt it is smaller units. Fortunately, the US already has these, they’re called States. By devolving decisions, what may and may not, what should and must, be done down to those units, most of which are (with a few admitted exceptions) around the population size of our successful Nordic social democracies, we might actually be able to get people to think and act in that more communitarian manner, as desired.
I look forward to it actually, the massed intellectual firepower of Liberal America abjuring the Federal Government and arguing strongly for States’ Rights, all in the name of social democracy. ”
As a Scot proud of the efforts it took to get devolved government in my homeland, I have to say this sounds like a good idea to me. If Tim’s words are meant to be tongue in cheek, as I suspect they are, then I may well end up differing with my US liberal colleagues on this one.
Regards, C
If we americans weren’t largely ignorant and propagandized, we might have a government that works. Instead we elect some of the most foolish people.
Just as an example, a european is many times more likely to be knowledgable about and accept evolution, compared to an american. Is it really surprising that a country whose inhabitants deny the basis for modern biological science would find itself unable to elect suitable and responsible leaders?
When conservatives run government believing that government doesn’t work, you end up with a self-fulfilling prophesy of failed government.
Hence: Katrina, Iraq, Politicized branches of government, disdain for the rule of law, etc….
Agreed on all counts, Dave.
It’s kind of a quiet thing, especially because they’re not well-represented on blogs or on TV, but I think a lot of American “progressives” have already accepted the idea that the best way towards their goals lies through a) local and state legislatures and b) the private sector. Certainly, the emergence of the “social entrepreneurship” field in the last decade has a lot to do with progressives who’ve made the realization that government is not the cure all ills. I count myself among that number.
European countries have a parliamentary system. While it causes volatility, a vote of “no confidence”‘ is enough to bring the current government down and for new elections to be called. I am a cynic, so I don’t think this is a perfect system by all means– no system is perfect — but it is a bit more accountable than the American system.
Europeans have a different view of their governments. While they are always pissing and moaning about high taxes, they are quite happy with virtually free, and very good, education — from kindergarten through university — , high-quality and cheap (compared to the US) health care, pensions, generous vacation time, etc…
Whenever I go to Europe — where I was born and raised — I remind the malcontents there of the cost of health care, the cost of education, the lack of free time, and the constant insecurity that Americans have to exchange for higher salaries and lower taxes.
Hi Dave,
On the subject, have you seen Francis Fukuyama’s latest in the Guardian?
Here’s the relevant phrase:
“The EU’s attempt to transcend sovereignty and traditional power politics by establishing a transnational rule of law is much more in line with a “post-historical” world than the Americans’ continuing belief in God, national sovereignty, and their military.”
The folks over at National Review, having been written out of their grandaddy’s will, are now having kittens about this.
Regards, C
Fukuyama’s views as expressed in that brief piece are not inconsistent with my own.
I think, however, that the Europeans are living in a glass bubble and, in the immortal words of Curly from City Slickers, “Day ain’t over yet.”
In moments of optimism (they’re brief) my view of the future is tolerance of diversity. The United States is, was, and will continue to be an outlier. Europeans need to learn to tolerate our different views (as do transnational progressivists on this side of the Pond). We need to accept theirs. And those of the Chinese. And the Indians. And so on.
There’s no perfect solution. We have experienced a higher rate of immigration than any European country and a concommitantly higher rate of change and friction and thrived on it. We need to learn what we can from each other and reject anything we don’t like while allowing that others might like it better.
There is, however, no place where someone from a traditional society who wants to keep it that way will be able to escape from modernity without simultaneously escaping from peace and prosperity.
“Certainly, the emergence of the “social entrepreneurship†field in the last decade has a lot to do with progressives who’ve made the realization that government is not the cure all ills. ”
It never was. But there are instances when the free market fails to provide optmal outcomes. Case in point: pollution. Left to its own devices, a paper mill will happily pollute the river they are bordering with its chemical rejects. People living along the river will have to suffer the effects of pollution because by themselves they are not able to sue the company effectively. This is a case when the carrot and the stick are needed from the government to force the paper mill to at least conform to a second-best solution.
My issue with government is not how big it is in terms of $ spent; it is HOW these $ are spent. A simple analogy to this was provided by the mother of Mario Cuomo (Mario was the governor of the state of NY a long time ago. ) She referred to a hypothetical woman who would spend $50 a week on groceries, but bought only junk food to feed her children. After that woman’s grocery budget was doubled to $100 — her husband got a big pay raise — she then spent $100 on junk food to feed her kids instead of buying fruit, vegetable, and meat. Was that a wise choice? Obviously not.
Government is not the issue. The issue is BAD government. The Republicans are always railing against government and once they are in office, they proceed to prove it by engaging in outrageous excesses to prove it.
Iit is high time that some serious heads come back into office and focus on governance. Government is essential to maintain law and order, to provide national security, to provide for maintaining the country’s infrastructure, etc…. But it is also essential to prevent and manage natural disasters (Katrina, wild fires, agricultural pollution…) and their huge economic and social consequences.
Devil’s Advocate, you might want to take a look at my old post, “Learning from History: the Relief and Rebuilding of New Orleansâ€. While I completely agree that government should consider natural disasters and how to deal with them more seriously, I’m not sure I mean the same thing by “government†as you do.
I think there’s essentially no hope of government, meaning government at the farthest distance from where the problem is, actually taking the lead in solving local problems especially when local people aren’t committed to solving them themselves.
“We need to learn what we can from each other and reject anything we don’t like while allowing that others might like it better.”
But that is what the US has always done! The Jews from the shtetels in Europe were at some point totally scorned by their co-religionists already settled in the US. The Italians, the Irish, and the Poles — being Catholic — were once considered like second-class citizens. The Chinese who worked on the railroads were persecuted early in the century. Japanese Americans were put in concentration camps during WWII. Etc… Etc… Every ethnic group that came — and still comes — to the US has been terribly discriminated against until acceptance finaly set in. The latest targets are Mexicans and Central Americans. This too shall pass once a new group of scapegoats can be found.
I live in New York City and I relish the diversity around me. My shoe-repair guy is Greek. The 7/11 on the corner is run by a Sikh. The deli across the street is owned by an Egyptian who hires a Pakistani worker. The deli down the street is owned by Indians. The local laundrymat is owned and operated by a Vietnamese couple. The liquor store across the street is owned by a Palestinian. There are two Japanese restaurants and an Ethiopian restaurant within a two-bloc radius. I am in diversity heaven!
Exactly. Unfortunately, some of my countrymen believe that the United States should be a poor imitation of France while others believe that Europe should become a bad imitation of the United States. I’m content for the U. S. to be the U. S. and Europe to be Europe.
Dave Schuler,
I totally agree with you that the blame for the New Orleans disaster needs to be spread across all lines of government. Neither Bianco nor Nagin dealt with the crisis in an efficient fashion. However, a disaster of that magnitude needed quick federal intervention as no local or state government is equipped to deal with such a large-scale catastrophy.
FEMA was supposed to handle it. Unfortunately, FEMA was totally neutered by the Bush Administration when it placed it under the supervision of an incompetent political hack and lost it into the sea of the newly created DHS. I’ll never forget Chertoff’s admission on TV the following Thursday that he did not know that people had been stuck in the Superdome since the levees broke on Monday. Where was he for four days? Where were his aides? On Mars? The whole world saw the horrific images of drowning people. The levees broke on a Monday yet the military amphibious trucks did not arrive until Friday? Sorry, but tis was a perfect case of a bad federal government functioning badly.
I won’t even comment about Bush’s total disregard for the people of New Orleans, as he was happily continuing his vacation in Crawford and later pretending to play guitar at some birthday event. New Orleans was drowning, and the Emperor kept fiddling.
“Exactly. Unfortunately, some of my countrymen believe that the United States should be a poor imitation of France while others believe that Europe should become a bad imitation of the United States. I’m content for the U. S. to be the U. S. and Europe to be Europe. “‘
I totally agree with you. The US is the US and the various European governments are what they are. To each its own. And we have the choice to move around.
I have the privilege of being able to live and work legally in both the US and Europe. So it’s up to me.