4 ms·

Could articles like this bemoaning Europe's state of regulation be opinion pieces? What if what Europe does is a good idea for the people but just inconvenient

Could articles like this bemoaning Europe's state of regulation be opinion pieces? What if what Europe does is a good idea for the people but just inconvenient for companies? Europe is one of the power houses of the world but with low self-esteem I am afraid. In the long term what matters is the people's quality of life and diversity. Take China or the US: if a lot of people don't have purchasing power and leisure who are then buying stuff for themselves as end users?

Terr_ 2y ago
> Could articles like this bemoaning Europe's state of regulation be opinion pieces? I agree with the broader idea that a lot of this stuff is PR from vested interests, but this case it's not really secret, since the news outlet categorizes it as: > Argument - An expert's point of view on a current event.
FredPret 2y ago
Are you under the impression that people in the US don't have purchasing power? Also, Europe is a power house right now, but won't be a generation from now if trends continue. All forms of power are built on economic power or are a means to get economic power.
- thrance 2y ago
  As an European, I heard that 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. I don't think our laws should focus on tech companies' freedom since it doesn't seem to improve the people's lives.
  - FredPret 2y ago
    Not sure where that stat comes from - median wealth in the USA compares extremely favourably with the rest of the world, while the average blows everyone except Switzerland out of the water. Also, living paycheck to paycheck != being poor. There are many people with high incomes but poor budgeting who live paycheck to paycheck, but will realistically be just fine if they have to tighten their braces.
    - _nalply 2y ago
      That's partly because they aren't protected sufficiently from Corporate cleverly using psychological and other tricks to empty the pockets.
  - pembrook 2y ago
    No need to "hear." This is easily Googled. Americans have the highest level of disposable income in the world, and it's not even close. Even Europe's mega-rich tax havens like Luxembourg have a lower disposable income than Americans. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_capita_income https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_c... Yea I know the rebuttal--"but I also heard they all have $100,000 hospital bills every year!!" The disposable per capita income numbers already account for healthcare expenditures.
    - _nalply 2y ago
      You used the term "highest level of disposable income in the world". Sorry to be so blunt, but it's not helpful if you look only at the average. A better metric would be the median because it is well known that the super rich distort the disposable income in some countries (the US, but also some European countries). I see in plutocraticish environments the rich and powerful sometimes very deftfully prevent measures inconvenient for Corporate but useful for the weaker part of the population. I admit this also happens in Europe. But somehow it is just easier to live as a poorish person in many European countries.
      - pembrook 2y ago
        Not sure if you checked the link, Wikipedia has both Mean equivalised and Median equivalised charts. Americans rank #1 on both mean and median. So the point about the super rich distorting the mean is irrelevant. > But somehow it is just easier to live as a poorish person in many European countries. Perception and narratives are not reality. In fact, typically in economic matters it takes almost a decade for the public narrative to shift to match the reality of the numbers. Even if reality is right there in the data. This is why bubbles usually go on for much longer than the "smart" people think they will. Look at any of Fama-French research; momentum is the strongest inefficiency in virtually all markets.
        FredPret 2y ago
        The other thing is - though US median performance is high and average performance is much higher - it's not just a couple of billionaires pulling up that average. It's millionaires - tens of millions of them. There's something special about a system that can create so many extremely successful people.
  - burnerthrow008 2y ago
    > As an European, I heard that 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck Yes, and we all declare bankruptcy every month, and charge $10,000 to our credit card to be allowed into the doctor's waiting room, where we announce our arrival by firing a gun in the air. Where do you guys hear this stuff?
    - wasyl 2y ago
      The numbers are debatable as usual but they're not taken from thin air > A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses. > Similarly, a 2023 Forbes Advisor survey revealed that nearly 70% of respondents either identified as living paycheck to paycheck (40%) or—even more concerning—reported that their income doesn’t even cover their standard expenses (29%). https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/ https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-pa...
    - wasyl 2y ago
      The numbers are debatable as usual but they're not taken from thin air > A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses. > Similarly, a 2023 Forbes Advisor survey revealed that nearly 70% of respondents either identified as living paycheck to paycheck (40%) or—even more concerning—reported that their income doesn’t even cover their standard expenses (29%). https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/ https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-pa...
llm_trw 2y ago
>In the long term what matters is the people's quality of life and diversity. I think you'll be surprised to find out just how many Europeans disagree with the diversity part. We are quite close to ethno-state Europe, just like how it was between 1800 and 1950. Ask a European what they think of Gypsies for a wild time.
localfirst 2y ago
> What if what Europe does is a good idea for the people but just inconvenient for companies? Thats exactly the issue. What's good for Europeans isn't so good for American corporations. Already populist presidents in America have signaled they don't care about Europe so why should Europeans nurture and allow a hostile country continue to operate in their lands? This type of outrage from American MSM is quite baffling. Whether their billionaires like it or not countries are going their own way and the biggest slap in the face is that those billionaires do not even live in America.

Terr_ 2y ago

> Could articles like this bemoaning Europe's state of regulation be opinion pieces? I agree with the broader idea that a lot of this stuff is PR from vested interests, but this case it's not really secret, since the news outlet categorizes it as: > Argument - An expert's point of view on a current event.

FredPret 2y ago

Are you under the impression that people in the US don't have purchasing power? Also, Europe is a power house right now, but won't be a generation from now if trends continue. All forms of power are built on economic power or are a means to get economic power.

thrance 2y ago
As an European, I heard that 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. I don't think our laws should focus on tech companies' freedom since it doesn't seem to improve the people's lives.
- FredPret 2y ago
  Not sure where that stat comes from - median wealth in the USA compares extremely favourably with the rest of the world, while the average blows everyone except Switzerland out of the water. Also, living paycheck to paycheck != being poor. There are many people with high incomes but poor budgeting who live paycheck to paycheck, but will realistically be just fine if they have to tighten their braces.
  - _nalply 2y ago
    That's partly because they aren't protected sufficiently from Corporate cleverly using psychological and other tricks to empty the pockets.
- pembrook 2y ago
  No need to "hear." This is easily Googled. Americans have the highest level of disposable income in the world, and it's not even close. Even Europe's mega-rich tax havens like Luxembourg have a lower disposable income than Americans. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_capita_income https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disposable_household_and_per_c... Yea I know the rebuttal--"but I also heard they all have $100,000 hospital bills every year!!" The disposable per capita income numbers already account for healthcare expenditures.
  - _nalply 2y ago
    You used the term "highest level of disposable income in the world". Sorry to be so blunt, but it's not helpful if you look only at the average. A better metric would be the median because it is well known that the super rich distort the disposable income in some countries (the US, but also some European countries). I see in plutocraticish environments the rich and powerful sometimes very deftfully prevent measures inconvenient for Corporate but useful for the weaker part of the population. I admit this also happens in Europe. But somehow it is just easier to live as a poorish person in many European countries.
    - pembrook 2y ago
      Not sure if you checked the link, Wikipedia has both Mean equivalised and Median equivalised charts. Americans rank #1 on both mean and median. So the point about the super rich distorting the mean is irrelevant. > But somehow it is just easier to live as a poorish person in many European countries. Perception and narratives are not reality. In fact, typically in economic matters it takes almost a decade for the public narrative to shift to match the reality of the numbers. Even if reality is right there in the data. This is why bubbles usually go on for much longer than the "smart" people think they will. Look at any of Fama-French research; momentum is the strongest inefficiency in virtually all markets.
      - FredPret 2y ago
        The other thing is - though US median performance is high and average performance is much higher - it's not just a couple of billionaires pulling up that average. It's millionaires - tens of millions of them. There's something special about a system that can create so many extremely successful people.
- burnerthrow008 2y ago
  > As an European, I heard that 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck Yes, and we all declare bankruptcy every month, and charge $10,000 to our credit card to be allowed into the doctor's waiting room, where we announce our arrival by firing a gun in the air. Where do you guys hear this stuff?
  - wasyl 2y ago
    The numbers are debatable as usual but they're not taken from thin air > A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses. > Similarly, a 2023 Forbes Advisor survey revealed that nearly 70% of respondents either identified as living paycheck to paycheck (40%) or—even more concerning—reported that their income doesn’t even cover their standard expenses (29%). https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/ https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-pa...
  - wasyl 2y ago
    The numbers are debatable as usual but they're not taken from thin air > A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses. > Similarly, a 2023 Forbes Advisor survey revealed that nearly 70% of respondents either identified as living paycheck to paycheck (40%) or—even more concerning—reported that their income doesn’t even cover their standard expenses (29%). https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-paycheck-statistics-2024/ https://www.forbes.com/advisor/banking/living-paycheck-to-pa...

llm_trw 2y ago

>In the long term what matters is the people's quality of life and diversity. I think you'll be surprised to find out just how many Europeans disagree with the diversity part. We are quite close to ethno-state Europe, just like how it was between 1800 and 1950. Ask a European what they think of Gypsies for a wild time.

localfirst 2y ago

> What if what Europe does is a good idea for the people but just inconvenient for companies? Thats exactly the issue. What's good for Europeans isn't so good for American corporations. Already populist presidents in America have signaled they don't care about Europe so why should Europeans nurture and allow a hostile country continue to operate in their lands? This type of outrage from American MSM is quite baffling. Whether their billionaires like it or not countries are going their own way and the biggest slap in the face is that those billionaires do not even live in America.