[wolfgangbabad]

EU has much better banking than the US. With VAT ID is paradoxically less fragmented as well. SEPA transactions is something the US can only dream about and will never materialize because Jim Texan's Right Bank ltd. will be against a common payment framework ;D because freedom or some other generic-murikan brainfart. America ban when cannot compete. Culture of guns and oppression.

[pembrook]

Agreed, SEPA is objectively better than what the US has.

But it doesn’t matter how easy it is the transfer money if you increasingly don’t have any.

On average, governments in the EU centrally direct roughly 40% more economic activity than the U.S. (and Chinese) government does.

In the short term, this appears more efficient. Allowing markets and decentralized private players to sort things out is messy and aesthetically unpleasing at times (like democracy), but leads to greater growth and innovation overall. The Chinese Communist Party understands this, maybe the Eurocrats will figure this one out after a few more 6-course dinners in Brussels.

[pyrale]

Please explain to me how efficient the US health care system is.

That’s right, it’s part of the money handled by public entities in my country, and "decentralized" in the US. Personally I don’t want any of the kind of "growth" the US has experienced in their health sector.

[pembrook]

Nothing about US healthcare resembles a free market in any sense of the word.

The US in fact has government healthcare for anyone over 65, anyone under 22, anyone disabled, anyone who has been in the military, and anyone who is poor (essentially half the population).

The other half outside the government system is nothing like a free market either, due to the existence of the first half combined with well-meaning policies that ultimately create the worst kind of adverse incentives.

That said, the US funds basically half of global medical research while Europe funds only a third while having double the population. So again, the EU centralized government system is absolutely more efficient overall, but the messy (only slightly more decentralized) US system drives far more innovation.

[CalRobert]

If only they had some money to put in those banks

[jajko]

We have plenty and have higher quality of life, better healthcare, better social services, vastly better public education, better infrastructure, much lower criminality, much better personal happiness and personal fulfilment, much less stress and live much longer...

Yeah enjoy your money, you will need it when getting older to finance basic services and needs.

[mytailorisrich]

We are having less and less money (growth has stalled), which means we will struggle to maintain everything you've mentioned, we already are.

[CalRobert]

I live in Europe and moved here from California but so long as you can triple your pay by moving to America Europe will be a laggard. Retire at 40 or work until 70?

Not to mention that millionaires in their thirties and forties are the raw material startups are made of (who else can justify the opportunity cost?) and Europe lacks that, badly. Meanwhile one in fifteen Americans are millionaires. Which group is more likely to have the freedom to take risks?

[torginus]

Why are people so catty to each other? I feel like I'm on another site.

[masfuerte]

We're all fucked and we don't want to admit it. So we squabble. Europe is obviously fucked already and America is getting fucked by the orange ringmaster. The future is bleak.

[jajko]

Yes thats true, I also feel a bit regret for getting provoked (but never starting out of blue, just responding in similar manners).

Ifs fucking disappointing, Europe and US are by far the best allies and friends (Australia and New Zealand too) on the most important matters - our core values, our respect for democracy etc. France helped you with independence, you helped us defeat fucking nazis ffs.

I hate to see this breakup, because it feels permanent for foreseeable future. And there aren't even good enough reasons. I hate that 1 unstable person can literally drag a billion down down the mud.

[CalRobert]

I think we agree actually. I’m just tired of seeing European workers getting paid dirt.