Europe's Sickness

The failure of Continental Europe to achieve its self proclaimed goal of world leadership of the knowledge economy by 2010 is guaranteed by its academic and economic shortcomings. (See “Red America, Blue Europe,” 10/14/05). But the well being of European society is threatened even more by a pernicious and dangerous malady, a sickness of the spirit.

The American Enterprise (October 2005) magazine notes “that the economic lags, and demographic sags, in Europe are accompanied by declines in optimism, in personal satisfaction, in belief that life is fair and within an individual’s control.” TAE calls it a “crisis of the spirit.”

The Harris Interactive 2002/03 poll of American and European attitudes reveals a vast (and growing) Atlantic chasm. In response to the question “How satisfied are you with your life?” 57% of Americans answered “very satisfied” as opposed to 14% of Frenchmen, 17% of Germans and 16% of Italians. How, you may ask, can this be true? We are constantly told that life is so much better in Europe, freer, more leisurely, more enlightened. What’s up?

Could it be that Europeans are not so very successful and believe it to be the fault of outside forces, perhaps the government, perhaps globalization? To the question whether “success is determined by forces outside our control” only 32% of Americans (all liberals I’m sure) agreed as opposed to a majority in France (54%) and supermajorities in Germany (68%) and Italy (66%).

Furthermore those European countries have a poverty of hope. When asked “Do you expect your personal situation to improve in five years” only 20% in Germany, 42% in France and 53% in Italy (those wide-eyed Italian optimists) expected improvement. In America, 63% were counting on improvement of an already very satisfying existence.

The sickness of the European spirit is manifest in much of social life. The birthrate has already fallen below the population replacement level (2.1 children per woman) in France (1.9), Germany and Italy (both 1.3). The lower homeownership rates and much smaller houses in Europe compared to America reflect an attitude unfriendly to family life. The homeownership rate in Germany is only 41% (compared to 69% in America) and Germans are reluctant even to buy cars.

Yet former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder insists “our unique European model of social participation and our embrace of the welfare state have something to offer to the whole world.” In the words of TAE, Germans are “behaving like people on the sinking Titanic who insist that their drinks be shaken, not stirred.”

The next time someone tries to sell you on the European social model as a roadmap to the European’s blissful existence, there is a one word New Yorker response that fits the situation: Fuggedaboutit mate.