> Count in good education for say 2 kids (500k-1 million per head?) That seems like a very high number. There are very expensive private schools in Europe too

> Count in good education for say 2 kids (500k-1 million per head?) That seems like a very high number. There are very expensive private schools in Europe too if you chose to send your children there. > healthcare costs Yes, it depends on your income and insurance. The fact that it's tied to your job is a huge issue if you develop serious health problems and are unable to work. But that "only" applies to a subset of the population and being able to save an extra $30-100k per year might still provide a form of "insurance" and if not you'll end up being significantly richer than your European counterparts when your retire (assuming you're in the top 20% or so). > Also, personal freedom is higher in Western Europe > Basically police state Can you give some examples? I mean the proposed EU wide encryption ban could pretty much turn the EU into East Germany with universal state surveillance (obviously an exaggeration and hopefully it will never pass but the fact that some EU bureaucrats are even considering it and that some states actually support the proposal should be extremely shocking to everyone who cares about "personal freedom" even the tiniest bit). > Effectively a caste society based on your wealth/income. Considering how expensive real estate is these days and that a significant proportion (most?) of wealth is inherited I'm not sure that's particularly different in the EU. > High criminality Definitely true, although it largely depends on where you live. Some areas are pretty much as safe as anywhere in Europe. > But its nigh impossible to put some simple numbers on those things we generally call quality of life. > You are just hiding in complexities Yes, however you can't expect me to provide you with an in-depth analysis here it's just one example. It largely depends on many factors, however Europe is not some fairyland. Some things are better than in the US, some are just as bad or worse; median income, youth unemployment, unaffordable real estate, wealth inequality etc.). IMHO the biggest issue Europe is facing is widespread economic stagnation over the last 10-15 year that combined with aging population might mean that "free"* healthcare and other social services might soon become unaffordable (in this context I find the slight superiority complex exhibited by some Europeans slightly baffling) * it's not really free though. You still pay ~10% in taxes for it and many countries have mostly (or entirely) privatized healthcare systems (even if they are much better regulated than those in the US)