Easy to say in a safety-net society in a comfortable city. But if losing a job can mean an extreme drop in standard of living, then competition will naturally be more fierce.
That's not necessarily rational as an individual. Perhaps finding enough allies is much harder to achieve, or comes with more risk, than playing the competitive game well enough to meet your own needs.
I didn't mean it as a criticism, I just think its amusing that any time in the US if someone talks about unionising or workers rights - chants of "that's communism" begin. The workers have been so programmed to not stand up for themselves it has become a tragedy.
I know what you mean, the red scare is very deep in the US. It’s certainly funny that many seem to think unions are communism without actually knowing what either is or what the actual connection between them is. My tongue was in the vicinity of my cheek when I wrote the above comment.
That's definitely true, but not the only important thing in such a comparison. Germans work only 75% of the hours Americans do per year, and a lot of that is cultural.