Sclerotic, Aging, Rigid, Highly-Taxed Europe Wants Our Tech Money [CBD]

Why Europe failed to match America’s tech boom

This provides some perspective on just how far gone Europe is in comparison to America. Yes, we are probably in an existential decline, with almost every drop of individualism and entrepreneurship being beaten out of us by a rapidly expanding government, which desires nothing more than to create a permanent underclass of dependents, ruled by the Mandarins in Washington and a few select state capitols (Texas need not apply).

Forbes annually ranks the world’s largest companies based on revenue, profit, assets, and market value. In its 2016 compilation, seven of the top 10 tech companies in the world were American. Europe has just just three companies in the top 20: Germany’s SAP, Sweden’s Ericsson, and Finland’s Nokia. And there’s a simply massive size difference between America’s top tech firms and Europe’s. For instance: Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and Amazon each have a market cap of over $350 billion each. Europe’s tech trio: about $50 billion a pop.

But compared to Europe we are living in a Randian paradise! Instead of encouraging the creation of wealth, the EU simply takes what they need.

Europe is wealthy and well educated, certainly more so than China, which has the same number of tech firms on the Forbes list. So what’s its problem? There are a few obvious answers: lack of access to venture capital, inflexible labor markets, and a heterogeneous home market of distinct language, cultures, and regulations.

One French tech entrepreneur has described America’s edge this way: “The confluence of a large pool of capital, world-class talent, vibrant support infrastructure, and a risk-loving culture has bred a self-fulfilling cycle of innovation and entrepreneurship.”

Wander through the hipster and youngish neighborhoods of NYC and listen for French; you will hear a lot of it! The number of young, well-educated Frenchmen who have left France to come to the NY area is amazing.

Ponder that....France is so bad that America looks like the Wild West of commerce and opportunity. The American possibilities seem boundless when one comes from a dying civilization.

"Risk-loving culture" really hit home, because the current crop of SJWs in academia is so risk-averse that they are unwilling to hear risky words! Much less embark on an unknown adventure building widgets or the next Apple or just building a better lawn mower.

posted by Open Blogger at 03:00 PM

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