Economic weaklings

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I love it when the only response Europeans can make to the weakness of their own society is to say “oh yeah, well America sucks worse”. No one denies that we have our own issues to deal with here, but I don’t see the same kind of emigration statistics like the brain drain occuring in the old world. What is really hilarious is the mantra that the European economy is stronger than ours. I guess if you keep telling yourself that long enough you might actually start to believe it.

Of course, that does not make it true. No less authority than that liberal bastion called the New York Times has an article dispelling the myth of a higher standard of living  in Europe.

All this was illuminated last year in a study by a Swedish research organization, Timbro, which compared the gross domestic products of the 15 European Union members (before the 2004 expansion) with those of the 50 American states and the District of Columbia. (Norway, not being a member of the union, was not included.)

After adjusting the figures for the different purchasing powers of the dollar and euro, the only European country whose economic output per person was greater than the United States average was the tiny tax haven of Luxembourg, which ranked third, just behind Delaware and slightly ahead of Connecticut.

The next European country on the list was Ireland, down at 41st place out of 66; Sweden was 14th from the bottom (after Alabama), followed by Oklahoma, and then Britain, France, Finland, Germany and Italy. The bottom three spots on the list went to Spain, Portugal and Greece.

Alternatively, the study found, if the E.U. was treated as a single American state, it would rank fifth from the bottom, topping only Arkansas, Montana, West Virginia and Mississippi. In short, while Scandinavians are constantly told how much better they have it than Americans, Timbro’s statistics suggest otherwise. So did a paper by a Swedish economics writer, Johan Norberg.

Contrasting “the American dream” with “the European daydream,” Mr. Norberg described the difference: “Economic growth in the last 25 years has been 3 percent per annum in the U.S., compared to 2.2 percent in the E.U. That means that the American economy has almost doubled, whereas the E.U. economy has grown by slightly more than half. The purchasing power in the U.S. is $36,100 per capita, and in the E.U. $26,000 – and the gap is constantly widening.”

Can you imagine how bad it would be if the Euros actually paid for their own defense? Whatever. I stand by the assertion that Europe as we have known it is unlikely to survive the 21st century. If they weren’t so damn arrogant I might even feel some pity as their pathetic society goes the way of the dinosaur. Godless socialism, declining birthrates, staggering Muslim immigration, and an economy in the toilet. All hail the brilliance of our betters for creating a perfect storm of destruction.

Meanwhile, as we watch the former powers of Europe fade into oblivion, the Chinese are making noises. China will be America’s challenge in the coming years. I expect we will prevail but we won’t have the time or resources to bail out our feckless former allies for a third time.

Oh well.

53 thoughts on “Economic weaklings”

  1. When he writes that the purchase power per capita is 36k per American what exactly does that mean?Is it a reference to how much is literally spent per person? And if so what does that supposedly measure? We are all aware of the huge disparity that exists between the upper 2% and the remainign 98% in this country, a disparity that is growing larger everyday. A better figure would have been a mean average.

  2. John – Bah Humbug. As usual you miss the point and exaggerate. Its QUALITY OF LIFE not the quantity of cars or quantities of BULL you have that is in your life. BAH HUMBUG Jonathan…. more B.S. PROPAGANDA.

  3. Just because every American has 2.5 or 3.5 cars, and 2.5 or 3.5 garages and no or crumbling public transportation and minimal infrastructure, and because the USA only counts those unemployed that are insured and have are less than six months on the rolls, does not mean that the part-timers, or underemployed, or self-employed are counted in the unemployment rolls.
    Again Jonathan, its QUALITY OF LIFE not the BULL you have that only gives you the BULL in life.

  4. In the USA after you use up six months of unemployed you no longer exist. Also the afore-mentioned and students etc are not counted at all. That is why the USA has only 5.5% unemployed not 15%. Just because Americans are good at COOKING THE BOOKS does not mean that you can cook or eat, or HAVE A LIFE. again…. BAH HUMBUG.

  6. Pingback: NIF




  7. Wow, EuroYank must really be upset … so much so that clear, concise, rational thoughts escape him/her.

    “Just because every American has 2.5 … minimal infrastructure” – excuse me, but it takes infrastructure to have someplace to drive all of our cars!

    “In the USA after you use up six months of unemployed you no longer exist” – no, you still exist you just need to GET A JOB! Something that is not really a huge problem in the US; given our unemployment rate that is 1/2 to 1/3 that in the ‘EU paradise’ (which France may not even join!).

    “students etc are not counted at all” – that is because they are busy bettering themselves, not necessarily trying to be productive (yet). Would you like to count infants as well?

    “I do not think FEDERAL EMPLOYEES are counted as EMPLOYED, since they DO NOT PRODUCE ANYTHING” – you should perhaps take a brief moment to review what you say before you hits post; I believe you are trying to say that they should not be counted? And while I, half tongue in cheek, agree that their productivity could be called into question atleast they have a job. And, if you want to make that a basis for comparison you must apply the same rule to the govt employees within the EU … which I believe would put the US even farther ahead (please feel free to correct me, with facts, if that is not correct).

    /TJ
    … NIF
    … The Wide Awakes

  9. Jonathan- since TJ is a fellow neocon of yours, I am happy you have at least one ally. and …

    Mr. TJ if you can read … in Europe ALL THOSE THAT ARE NOT COUNTED IN THE USA are counted in Europe.

    Bah Humbug

  13. “since TJ is a fellow neocon of yours, I am happy you have at least one ally” – if by NeoCon you mean a Conservative who believe spreading democracy is a *good* and *just* thing, then indeed I am! And John has more than one ally … last I checked Bush was just re-elected by a clear majority by us “neocons”.

    Wow … “if you can read” … are you familiar with the inverse relationship between ad hominem attacks and the strength of your position? Yes, I thought not.

    “in Europe ALL THOSE THAT ARE NOT COUNTED IN THE USA are counted in Europe” – I will assume you are attempting to correct my statement … you know, the one were I said I wasn’t sure and was inviting constructive criticism. In response, ignoring your insulting tone, I say thank you for the information, even if I doubt your assertion.

    “and TJ stop writing such long commentaries without supporting information” – Perhaps you could stop writing ignorant, rambling, incoherent posts? … and I did not feel I needed supporting facts to question your unsupported facts …
    (note that that was not an ad hominem attack; that was a criticism of your posts .. subtle but important difference)

    “GET A JOB” – I have an excellent job, ThankYouVeryMuch. A job that allows my wife to stay home and raise our child (and two dogs) even in a fairly high cost of living area. A job that is paying for additional career training. A job at a company I have been with for just under 7 yrs. Basically, I have a good life and don’t want this country to be ruined like so many others.

    Regarding the Pravda article – they failed to mention one key thing. Military. How would this ‘EU-superpower’ defend itself? France, assuming it joins, would be more than happy to surrender to the first sign of a threatening invasion and do any of those nations have an even noticeable military? Could they field and army if challenged by a rising China, Russia, S. Korea? I think not.

    Also – it would make it much easier to read your comments if you would learn to compose your thoughts first and to make your (incorrect, offensive) statement(s) in one post. It is also considered ‘good netiquette’.
    /TJ
    IF you want supporting facts go read a day or two’s worth of posts at my site, or search it for anything not mentioned today … that should cover just about any topic your care to raise.

  14. I am at a loss as to why some people find it necessry to trash Europe or even why you care what they are doing. How long can you guys hold a grudge becasue they failed to support our decision to go to war in Iraq? That is what this is really about. Heck half the darn country didn’t support that decision. You’ve either go to get over it or else endorse isolationism. Is that what you are endorsing? Guess what, we need allies. We need Europe as our allies because believe me China and India do not have our best interest at heart. Neither does the Middle East. If you stopped letting your testosterone interfere with your brains you’d realize that our country cannot go it alone!

  15. You know, I was just going to watch this. Euroyank is kind of endearing in the way Eric/Kender is endearing-ok, Euroyank amuses me more (in the good way anyway). But, to say we need European allies would have made me belly laugh if it were half as amusing as Euroyank or Eric. You are wrong Mom. We don’t need them-I think that has been proved rather solidly. And, making fun of Europeans has nothing to do with the fact that SOME of them didn’t support us. It is just fun. They went all high and mighty and were due for a little “nyah nyah nyah.”

    So…John, say it with me now: FTF!!!!:)

  17. TJ- Europe is in the process of attempting to unite that is the priority. And France has enough hairdressers to ward off any attempted American tourist Invasion. Germany has enough strudel and wiener schnitzel to pay for American protection against a possible UFO assault from Mars, and Italy and the rest of Europe has enough pizza and big macs to be pro-American in the cheering section, and as for the rest of your remarks, the Neo-Conservatives or NeoCons are the major threat to American Democracy for as the saying goes, if you lose your freedom and liberty to defend against losing it, you have neither.

  19. Ashley we do need Europe. At least our politicians understand that, even the President understands that.

  21. Carol – “How long can you guys hold a grudge because they failed to support our decision to go to war in Iraq?” … How long can they hate us for going to war Iraq? Remember, we didn’t start the hate. In fact, I don’t ‘hate’ anyone. And sure, allies are good – but only when they are good allies … not fickle, unreliable ones – especially since (and I agree with you here) “China and India do not have our best interest at heart”. Also, don’t forget France, Russia, Germany were all against the war in Iraq for one reason, and one reason only – because they were willing to sacrifice innocent Iraqi lives for the $Billions(!) they were making.

    EuroYank – I have no problem with them uniting or trying to … I refuse to dignify your ignorant ramblings of the next several lines with a response … as for “NeoCons are the major threat to American Democracy” is downright laughable and “as the saying goes, if you lose your freedom and liberty to defend against losing it, you have neither” I think you mean to say ‘A People Who Would Sacrifice Liberty for Security Will Lose Both, and Deserve Neither’, yes? That statement does indeed have great value and meaning. Oh, and don’t forget your oh-so-valued French+women would all be speaking German if not for the US … never forget. And you didn’t bother to answer what military the entire EU could muster or how they would react in the face of a threat. (If you need a hint, the answer is THE UNITED STATES’ MILITARY)

    /TJ

  23. TJ the only reason the USA is still stationed in Germany is not to protect Germany from an outside invasion. Its to keep Germans in line. And the German Army can at anytime be reconfigured stronger than ever. This time the Russians are our best friends also.

  24. TJ – I do not think Germany will allow itself to get outnumber 20 to one anymore if some problem starts, nor take on the whole world at the same time. For Germans its laughable you have such a major problem with small countries numbering a few million gooks.

  28. I’m sorry – did I ever say you would be speaking German, or indicate that I knew or cared what your nationality was? (I did say so your valued French women would be speaking German, which may work for you but I doubt they really want to) If so, it was an accident – I don’t care where anyone is from (and nor should you care where I am from) … it is the validity of the statements that matters, not the nationality of their source.

    Did I ever say we were defending Germany? We are, at the base level, defending our own nation (&/or its interests) – as EVERY nation should do but many fail to.

    “laughable you have such a major problem with small countries numbering a few million gooks” – nice ethnic slur! My problem with them is that they are a destabilizing force … I have no direct fear of them conquering the US. The only threat the US truly fears is itself (and the whacked out liberal left that is seeking to destroy us from within).

    /TJ

  29. The only threat the US truly fears is itself (and the whacked out liberal left that is seeking to destroy us from within). The threat is from the whacked out RIGHT. Your right is destroying the country from within, but that is something we will never agree on … but I will leave you with one closing remark … the last thing Bin Laden said on one of his aired tapes …. “You will lose your money and your economy.” He knew exactly how Bush JR would react. He knew his CIA PRSIDENT father before he became the previous President.

  30. Your whacked out RIGHT controls the supreme court, the congress, the senate, the judicial branch and the executive branch, and the world bank…. HOW Much MORE control do you need TO DESTROY EVERYTING?

  31. Catholic southerner of German descent (Daddy was a Kraut). Why are you picking on me nimwit, I’m on your side in this debate? Must be mixing me up with that little red-headed firebrand I call daugheter.

  33. Johnathan … by the way you are wrong with you statistics… in Luxembourg the average income per capita is 54,000 in dollars and in the EU you MUST COUNT the SOCIAL BENEFITS GUARANTEED and the WORK CONTRACTS and PAYOUT AMOUNTS if LAID OFF… lots of things you do not know or US statistics DON’T TELL.

  34. EuroYank – “Your whacked out RIGHT controls the supreme court, the congress, the senate, the judicial branch and the executive branch, and the world bank…. HOW Much MORE control do you need TO DESTROY EVERYTHING?”

    That statement just shows your utter ignorance in how the American Democratic (Republic) system works.

    Neither the Left nor the Right “CONTROL” any of the three branches; one side may have more influence now that the other(s) but they are still bound by rules and by the knowledge that too much will simply result in their being voted out 2-4-6 years later. If the radical right “CONTROLLED” the govt so much, with no fear of repercussions, don’t you think things would be radically different?? (BTW – I am glad neither party is that confident + powerful, once the govt no longer fears the people they will no longer represent their interests)

    Also – just to pick knits :
    1) the “the congress, the senate”
    1.1) one is part of the other
    2)the “judicial, supreme court”
    2.1) (again) one is part of the other

    in one of your many follow-on comments you also said – “MUST COUNT the SOCIAL BENEFITS GUARANTEED” – as opposed to our unemployment, Welfare, non-Socialized medicine (but everyone can still get help (and not wait 3months)), food stamps, etc?

    /TJ
    … NIF

  35. TJ – In Europe they have work contracts … which means the employee gets paid a lump sum if he is laid off usually around 32,000 dollars, his pension, medical benefits, and unemployment are additional guarantees NUMB NUTS.

  36. TJ – and your sentate just confirmed NEGROPONTE as head of intelligence … the biggest AMERICAN NAZI alive …. since Vietnam responsible for millions of 3rd world deaths. LOOK it up in a search engine FOOL.

  37. Your American UNITED STATES SENATE elected the top AMERICAN NAZI alive 98-2 if that is not CONTROL what is? you stupid FOOL.

  40. and NEGROPONTE is a NAZI … and that is no thesis… millions of innocents butchered because of him. That shows you where the NATION is headed, and that is no THESIS.

  41. and we all know why the USA never signed to have its mass murderers in the military brought up on WAR CRIMES CHARGES at the INTERNATIONAL WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL…. because the entire American Administration are International War Criminals.

  42. Euroyank – As you still cannot grasp how to make your point in a concise, readable fashion (multiple posts, repetition of points and inconsistent caps usage) and you persist in ad hominem attacks (against me (“NUMB NUTS” “FOOL” “FOOL”), against some well respected officials (Negroponte, “NAZI”) and against those that I have less respect for (Democrats, “WHIMPS”[sic])) and you obviously have no interest in having an actual discussion/debate I am going to quit responding to you and write you off as a useless troll.

    Since this is my last response to you – let me also point out that you offer no support of your assertions. As constructive criticism, just so you know, saying “look it up” does not count as a supporting argument.

    If you happen to learn rules of grammar and the rules of debate, please feel free to seek additional comments. (Here or elsewhere)
    /TJ
    … NIF
    … The Wide Awakes
    PS – John – sorry you have to deal with his ramblings, perhaps once he is being ignored he will go away.

  43. John Dimitri Negroponte (born July 21 , 1939 ) (pronounced neg-row-pontee) is the current UnitedStates ambassador to Iraq . A career diplomat who served in the US Foreign Service from 1960 to 1997, Negroponte served as U.S.ambassador to the United Nations from September of 2001 until June2004. As ambassador to Iraq, Negroponte oversees the largest American diplomatic facility in the world.

    He is a controversial figure because of his involvement in covert funding of the Contras and his covering up of human rights abuses carried out by CIA -traineddeath squads in Honduras in the 1980s.
    In 1984 Nicaragua filed a suit in the World Court against the United States in Nicaragua v. United States , which in 1986 resulted in aguilty verdict against the US, calling on it to “cease and to refrain” from the unlawful use of force against Nicaragua throughdirect attack by US forces and through training, funding and support of the terrorist forces. The US was “in breach of its obligation under customary international law not to use forceagainst another state” and was ordered to pay reparations (see note 1). The US response to this ruling was to dismiss thejuristiction of the court and escalate the war.

    After direct military aid was interrupted by the BolandAmendment (passed by the U.S. Congress in December 1982 and extended in October 1984 to forbid action by not only the DefenseDepartment and the Central IntelligenceAgency but all U.S. government agencies), Administration officials sought to procure third-party funding of militarysupplies, culminating in the Iran-Contra Affair of1986-1987.
    From 1981 to 1985 Negroponte was US ambassador to Honduras. During his tenure, he oversaw the growth of military aid toHonduras from $4 million to $77.4 million a year, a country at that time ruled by a right-wing military dictatorship. Accordingto The New York Times , Negroponte was responsible for”carrying out the covert strategy of the Reagan administration to crushthe Sandinistas government in Nicaragua .” Critics say that during his ambassadorship, human rights violations in Honduras becamesystematic.

    Negroponte supervised the construction of the El Aguacate air base, where the US trained Nicaraguan Contras and which critics say was used as a secret detention and torture center during the 1980s. InAugust 2001, excavations at the base discovered 185 corpses, including two Americans, who are thought to have been killed andburied at the site.

    Records also show that a special intelligence unit (commonly referred to as a “death squad”) of the Honduran armed forces,Battalion 3-16, trained by the CIA and Argentine military, kidnapped, tortured and killed hundreds of people, including US missionaries. Critics chargethat Negroponte knew about these human rights violations and yet continued to collaborate with the Honduran military while lyingto Congress .

    In May 1982, a nun, Sister Laetitia Bordes, who had worked for ten years in El Salvador, went on a fact-finding delegation toHonduras to investigate the whereabouts of thirty Salvadoran nuns and women of faith who fled to Honduras in 1981 afterArchbishop Óscar Romero ‘s assassination. Negroponte claimed the embassyknew nothing. But in a 1996 interview with the Baltimore Sun ,Negroponte’s predecessor, Jack Binns, said that a group of Salvadorans, among whom were the women Bordes had been looking for,were captured on April 22, 1981, and savagely tortured by the DNI, the Honduran Secret Police, and then later thrown out ofhelicopters alive.

    In early 1984, two American mercenaries , Thomas Posey and Dana Parker,contacted Negroponte, stating they wanted to supply arms to the Contras after the U.S. Congress had banned further military aid.Documents show that Negroponte brought the two with a contact in the Honduran armed forces The operation was exposed nine monthslater, at which point the Reagan administration denied any US involvement, despite Negroponte’s participation in the scheme.Other documents uncovered a plan of Negroponte and then-Vice President George H. W. Bush to funnel Contra aid money through the Honduran government.

    During his tenure as US ambassador to Honduras, Binns, who was appointed by President Jimmy Carter , made numerous complaints about human rights abuses by the Honduran military and he claimed hefully briefed Negroponte on the situation before leaving the post. When the Reagan administration came to power, Binns wasreplaced by Negroponte, who has consistently denied having knowledge of any wrongdoing. Later, the Honduras Commission on HumanRights accused Negroponte himself of human rights violations.

    Speaking of Negroponte and other senior US officials, an ex-Honduran congressman, Efrain Diaz, told the BaltimoreSun, which in 1995 published an extensive investigation of US activities in Honduras:

    Their attitude was one of tolerance and silence. They needed Honduras to loan its territory more than they were concernedabout innocent people being killed.

    The Suns’s investigation found that the CIA and US embassy knew of numerous abuses but continued to support Battalion3-16 and ensured that the embassy’s annual human rights report did not contain the full story.

    The question of what John Negroponte knew about human rights abuses in Honduras will probably never be answered definitively,but there is a large body of circumstantial evidence supporting the view that Negroponte was aware that serious violations ofhuman rights were carried out by the Honduran government with the support of the CIA. Senator Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, on 14 September 2001, as reported in the Congressional Record , aired his suspicions on the occasion ofNegroponte’s nomination to the position of UN ambassador:

    Based upon the Committee’s review of State Department and CIA documents, it would seem that Ambassador Negroponte knew farmore about government perpetuated human rights abuses than he chose to share with the committee in 1989 or in Embassycontributions at the time to annual State Department Human Rights reports.

    Among other evidence, Dodd cited a cable sent by Negroponte in 1985 that made it clear that Negroponte was aware of the threatof “future human rights abuses” by “secret operating cells” left over by General Alvarez after his deposition in 1984.

    Appointment to the UN

    When President Bush announced Negroponte’s appointment to the UN shortly after coming to office, it was met with widespreadprotest. However, the Bush administration did not back down and even went so far as to try to silence potential witnesses. OnMarch 25 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported on thesudden deportation from the United States of several former Honduran death squad members who could have provided damagingtestimony against Negroponte in his Senate confirmation hearings.

    One of the deportees was General Luis Alonso Discua, founder of Battalion 3-16. In the preceding month, Washington had revokedthe visa of Discua who was Honduras’ Deputy Ambassador to the UN. Nonetheless, Discua went public with details of US support ofBattalion 3-16.

    Upon learning of Negroponte’s nomination, Reed Brody of HumanRights Watch in New York commented:

    When John Negroponte was ambassador he looked the other way when serious atrocities were committed. One would have to wonderwhat kind of message the Bush administration is sending about human rights by this appointment.

    Negroponte in Iraq

    On April 19, 2004, Negroponte was nominated by US President George W. Bush to beUS ambassador to Iraq after the June 30 handover. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 6, 2004, by a vote of 95 to 3, and wasofficially sworn in on June 23, 2004, replacing L. Paul Bremer as thecountry’s head American civilian official.

  44. Euroyank – As you still cannot grasp how to make your point in a concise, readable fashion (multiple posts, repetition of points and inconsistent caps usage) and you persist in ad hominem attacks (against me (“NUMB NUTS” “FOOL” “FOOL”), against some well respected officials

    Comment by TJ

  46. TJ you asked him to back up his assertions. He did so. These discussion forums simply become a place to rant rather than an opportunity to learn if you refuse to listen to the other side of the coin. EuroYank stop baiting TJ and stick to the facts.

  47. Carol, I don’t know what you are talking about. EuroYank has been exposed as a barking moonbat. He offered nothing of substance to refute the basic truth. Europe is a sorry has been.

  48. Carol I backed up what he complained about. He has been mocking me since the beginning, and I have enough of it. You can continue having your little family discussions. I am done.

  49. John — I still have the first attack of yours on my blog when we met. You have been bad mouthing me for a long time, before I even started to get back. You can dish it out, but can not take it. Typical

  50. John – you are a typical asshole. You attacked me for living in europe and you are a typical Redneck prick that can only get a federal job

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