The Hong Kong of Scandinavia
The Economist Intelligence Unit ranks Denmark the best place in the world to do business. The actual Hong Kong is ranked 7th. These United States finish just under Sweden. If only we could adopt the Nordic model and have a less fettered capitalism!
[Via Nordophile Justin Fox]
April 30th, 2008 13:05
Agreed. Check out Galbraith in the American Prospect recently: http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=why_populists_need_to_rethink_trade
“The Scandinavian countries are egalitarian. They have universal unions, high minimum wages, and a strong welfare state. But they also are highly open. They practice free trade. Business there is free to import, export, and outsource. Business there is free to hire and fire. And yet the Scandinavians enjoy, most of the time, the lowest unemployment rates in Europe.
The secret is in the wages. If you are a business in Sweden or Norway, there is one thing you are not free to do. You are not free to cut your wages. You are not free to compete by going after cut-rate workers, either native or immigrant. You are not free to undercut the union rate. Successful businesses must, therefore, find other ways to compete. They do it by keeping productivity high. This means that advanced industries thrive in Scandinavia, while backward ones die out. (And that progressive businessmen prosper, while reactionaries fade away.) As a result, the economies stay competitive. The tax and welfare systems then make sure that everyone has enough to live on.”
May 1st, 2008 07:21
[...] go for that, … if the socialists in America tied their socialism to completely unfettering the market, a [...]
May 1st, 2008 07:22
[...] go for that, … if the socialists in America tied their socialism to completely unfettering the market, a [...]
May 2nd, 2008 01:28
[...] environment and responsive labor market. Think “flexicurity”. (HT: Will Wilkinson, who quips “These United States finish just under Sweden. If only we could adopt the Nordic model and [...]
May 4th, 2008 03:08
I have to admit, socialism with a free market economy is a concept I had never thought of before. Maye the democrats in this country could re-invent themselves in this light.
May 4th, 2008 13:19
Earth,
Sounds like Mutualism. Indeed it’s overlooked by most.
May 11th, 2008 19:51
[...] via Will Wilkinson [...]